Car Lease Calculator — Monthly Payment & Total Cost
Work out the monthly lease payment, total finance charge and total lease cost. Enter the MSRP, negotiated cap cost, down payment, residual value percentage, APR and lease term.
% of MSRP
months
%
Before local sales tax — add your state/country lease tax rate
455.67
per monthDepreciation
68.7%
Finance charge
20.4%
Down payment
10.9%
- 1
Residual value
35,000 × 55% ÷ 100 = 19,250 - 2
Net cap cost
33,000 + 895 − 2,000 = 31,895 - 3
Money factor
4.9% ÷ 2400 = 0.002042Lease interest rate per dollar; multiply by 2400 to recover APR. - 4
Monthly depreciation
(31,895 − 19,250) ÷ 36 = 351.25 - 5
Monthly finance charge
(31,895 + 19,250) × 0.002042 = 104.42 - 6
Monthly lease payment
351.25 + 104.42 = 455.67
How does this calculator work?
Monthly lease payment = [(Net cap cost − Residual) ÷ Months] + [(Net cap cost + Residual) × APR/2400]. Net cap cost = selling price + acquisition fee − down payment. Residual = MSRP × residual%. The largest lever is the residual value set by the manufacturer — a higher residual makes a bigger difference than negotiating the selling price.
Formula
How this is calculated
A car lease payment is made up of two components added together each month. The depreciation component covers the portion of the vehicle's value you consume during the lease: (Net cap cost − Residual value) ÷ Term in months. The net capitalised cost (net cap cost) is the agreed selling price plus any acquisition fee minus your down payment — it is what you are effectively borrowing against. The residual value is the car's projected worth at lease end, expressed as a percentage of MSRP.
The finance component is the interest charge on the average outstanding balance: (Net cap cost + Residual value) × Money factor, where Money factor = APR ÷ 2400. Dividing by 24 converts the annual rate to a rough monthly factor, and dividing by 100 removes the percentage. This approximation matches the industry-standard money factor formula used by manufacturer finance arms in the US and many other markets.
All figures here are pre-tax. Lease payments are taxed differently by jurisdiction — some states tax the full vehicle value upfront, others tax each monthly payment. Acquisition fees in this calculator default to a 2024 US estimate (editable). A higher residual value is the strongest lever for a lower payment; comparing residuals across the same model from different lenders reveals the best deal. Down payments reduce net cap cost but do not recover well if the car is written off early.
Frequently asked questions
A money factor is the lease interest rate as a tiny decimal (e.g. 0.00204). Multiply it by 2400 to get the equivalent APR: 0.00204 × 2400 ≈ 4.9%. Dealers sometimes quote money factor instead of APR, so knowing this conversion helps you compare lease offers.
You only pay for the depreciation you use — the gap between cap cost and residual. A higher residual means less depreciation over the lease term, so both the monthly depreciation and the average balance (which drives the finance charge) are smaller.
A bigger cap cost reduction lowers monthly payments but does not reduce total lease cost much, and if the car is totalled the insurer pays the leasing company — you may not recover the down payment. Most advisors suggest minimising the down payment on a lease and putting that money elsewhere.
Also known as
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Car Lease Calculator — Monthly Payment & Total Cost [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/car-lease-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Car Lease Calculator — Monthly Payment & Total Cost." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/car-lease-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Car Lease Calculator — Monthly Payment & Total Cost," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/car-lease-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_car_lease_calculator, title = {Car Lease Calculator — Monthly Payment & Total Cost}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/car-lease-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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