Auto Lease Calculator
Enter the vehicle price, residual value, money factor, and term to estimate a monthly lease payment, with the depreciation fee and finance fee shown separately.
Model your lease
The negotiated cap cost, from $1 through $10,000,000.
Cash due at signing that lowers the amount financed. Use 0 if none.
The share of the vehicle price it is expected to be worth at lease-end, from 0% through 100%.
The lease finance rate, from 0 through 0.05. Money factor ≈ APR ÷ 2400, so 0.0025 is roughly a 6% APR.
Whole months, from 1 through 84. A 36-month term is typical.
A depreciation fee of $352.78 plus a finance fee of $133.25, with sales tax applied.
- Depreciation fee
- $352.78
- Finance fee
- $133.25
- Residual value
- $20,300.00
- Total lease cost
- $20,721.79
How a lease payment is calculated
A lease payment has two parts. The depreciation fee spreads the vehicle's expected loss in value — the capitalized cost minus its residual value — evenly across the term. The finance fee (also called the rent charge) is the leasing company's interest, computed from the money factor applied to the sum of the capitalized cost and the residual value. Sales tax, in most US states, is then applied to the monthly payment.
Cap cost = Vehicle price − Down paymentResidual value = Vehicle price × Residual %Depreciation fee = (Cap cost − Residual value) / TermFinance fee = (Cap cost + Residual value) × Money factorMonthly payment = (Depreciation fee + Finance fee) × (1 + Sales tax %)- Cap cost
- Capitalized cost, the amount being financed
- Residual value
- Expected value at lease-end
- Money factor
- Lease finance rate; money factor ≈ APR ÷ 2400
- Term
- Lease length in months
$35,000 vehicle, 58% residual, 0.0025 money factor, 36 months
Take a $35,000 vehicle with a $2,000 down payment, a 58% residual value, a money factor of 0.0025, a 36-month term, and 7% sales tax. The capitalized cost is $33,000 and the residual value is $20,300. The depreciation fee is ($33,000 − $20,300) ÷ 36 = $352.78, and the finance fee is ($33,000 + $20,300) × 0.0025 = $133.25. Adding 7% sales tax to the $486.03 pre-tax total gives a monthly payment of $520.05. Over the full 36-month term plus the down payment, the total lease cost is $20,721.79.
A money factor of 0.0025 is roughly a 6% APR (0.0025 × 2400). This is an educational estimate based only on the values you provide.
What this calculator assumes
- The down payment (capitalized cost reduction) lowers the amount financed but does not change the residual value, which is based on the full vehicle price.
- Sales tax is applied to the monthly payment, as most US states tax a lease; some states and Canadian provinces tax leases differently.
- Acquisition fees, disposition fees, registration, and other upfront charges are not included.
- The money factor is treated as a constant for the full term.
- Money values are rounded to the nearest cent for display.
Auto lease FAQ
What is a money factor?
The money factor is how lease finance charges are quoted. It is a small decimal — multiply it by 2400 to approximate the equivalent annual percentage rate. For example, a 0.0025 money factor is roughly a 6% APR.
Why is the finance fee based on the cost plus the residual?
The rent charge is designed to earn interest on the average amount outstanding over the lease. Because the balance falls from the capitalized cost down to the residual value, adding those two figures and applying the money factor approximates interest on that average balance in a single step.
Sources and review notes
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — auto loans and leases
- Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice — Leasing a Car
Methodology last checked Jul 14, 2026. Formula implementation is covered by deterministic unit tests. No financial professional review is claimed yet.