Out-the-door price calculator
Turn an advertised car price into what you’ll actually pay: sales tax, fees, rebates and your trade-in, then what’s left to pay or finance.
You enter the tax rate and fees; the calculator does the arithmetic and shows every line. Not sure how something is taxed? Choose “Not sure” and the estimate assumes the dearer answer, then shows what you’d save.
For an ordinary dealer purchase. Not for leases, business purchases, tax exemptions or registering in another state.
Check these fields
Your estimate
How the total is worked out
- Start from the vehicle price and take off any dealer discount.
- Add dealer fees and add-ons. Those you mark as taxed, or aren’t sure about, count towards the taxed amount.
- Take the trade-in and rebate off the taxed amount only if your answers say they lower it. The taxed amount never goes below zero.
- Sales tax is the taxed amount times your rate, rounded to the cent.
- Add the government fees, which aren’t taxed, and the tax, then subtract the rebate. That’s the out-the-door price.
- Subtract the trade-in offer, add what you still owe on the trade-in, and subtract your down payment. That’s what you pay or finance.
The monthly payment assumes a simple fixed-rate loan with equal payments. A lender’s figure can differ with rounding, the first payment date, or anything added to the loan.
A worked example
Fictional numbers: an 8% rate, a trade-in that lowers the taxed price in full, and a $200 documentation fee that is taxed. Not any state’s actual rules.
| Vehicle price | $30,000.00 |
|---|---|
| Documentation feetaxed | $200.00 |
| Title, registration and plate feesnot taxed | $300.00 |
| Sales tax8% of $20,200.00 | $1,616.00 |
| Out-the-door price | $32,116.00 |
| Out-the-door price | $32,116.00 |
|---|---|
| Trade-in offer | −$10,000.00 |
| Loan payoff on the trade-in | $4,000.00 |
| Cash down payment | −$2,000.00 |
| To pay or finance | $24,116.00 |
The taxed amount is $20,200.00: the $30,000 price plus the $200 fee, minus the $10,000 trade-in. Over 60 months at 0% APR, $24,116.00 is about $401.93 a month.
Where to find your numbers
- Sales tax rate. New York: Sales and use tax rates, with the Jurisdiction/Rate Lookup by address from the Tax Department. Tax Bulletin ST-590 explains which location’s rate applies to a vehicle. Elsewhere, your state revenue department’s rate lookup.
- Title, registration and plate fees. New York: the DMV’s fee charts and fee estimator. New Jersey: the MVC’s initial registration page.
- What you can negotiate. The CFPB’s guide to negotiating a car or auto loan.
- What a loan payment includes. The CFPB on monthly auto loan payments.
Questions
Why does my result say “Incomplete”?
You left the title, registration and plate fees blank. The total leaves them out and says so, rather than treating them as zero.
What does “Not sure” do?
It counts the item the more expensive way, so the estimate errs high, and the result lists how much less tax you’d pay if the cheaper answer is right.
Is the monthly payment what a lender will charge?
It’s an estimate for a simple fixed-rate loan. Judge a deal by its out-the-door price and loan terms, not by the monthly payment alone.
Do you keep my numbers?
No. The calculation runs in your browser and the numbers you type are never sent anywhere.