A Car Lease Payment Calculator
A lease payment is the interest on the whole car plus the depreciation you consume while you drive it. Both halves are set by the price, the residual value and the money factor, so a small change in any of them moves the monthly figure.
Monthly payment
$453.33
- Depreciation part
- $333.33
- Finance charge
- $120.00
- Residual value
- $18,000.00
- Total of payments
- $16,320.00
Values update as you type. This calculator covers the single scenario its formula assumes — see Common Mistakes for what it leaves out.
The formula this calculator uses
Payment = depreciation + finance charge
- price
- Negotiated selling price of the car
- residual
- Value the car will be worth at lease end
- moneyFactor
- Interest rate divided by 2400
- term
- Lease length in months
How to check the result by hand
- 1
Start from the negotiated price
Use the actual selling price you agreed, not the sticker price. This is the base for both halves of the payment.
- 2
Get the residual value
Multiply the sticker price by the residual percentage the leasing company sets, usually 45% to 65% depending on model.
- 3
Compute depreciation
Subtract residual from price and divide by the term. 30,000 minus 18,000 over 36 months is 333.33 a month.
- 4
Convert the money factor to a rate
Multiply the money factor by 2400. A money factor of 0.0025 becomes an APR of about 6%.
- 5
Compute the finance charge
Add price and residual, then multiply by the money factor. 48,000 times 0.0025 is 120, though the standard formula gives the monthly figure directly.
- 6
Add the two halves
Depreciation plus finance charge is the pre-tax monthly payment, before any sales tax, fees or down payment.
For worked examples, common mistakes and the limits of this formula, read the full How To Calculate A Car Lease Payment page.