Introduction
If you want to sell your car, trade it in, or buy a used one, you need a fair idea of what it's worth. This free used car value calculator estimates three prices from the car's model year, its price when new, its fuel type, whether it is a car or a light truck, whether the brand is mass-market or luxury, and its mileage: what a private buyer might pay, what a dealer might offer as a trade-in, and what a dealer might ask for it on their lot.
Cars lose value as they age. This is called depreciation, and it is the biggest factor in what a used car is worth. The calculator uses the depreciation rates Argonne National Laboratory measured from used-vehicle values for each fuel type and market segment.4 It then adjusts for mileage and for how used-car prices have moved since those values were collected, and shows every step.
How to Use Our Used Car Value Calculator
Model year: Pick the car's model year. The calculator counts the car's age from it.
Price when new: Enter the window-sticker price (MSRP) for the car's trim and factory options, or what was paid for it new. The make, model, trim and options all enter the estimate through this price. For a plug-in hybrid or electric car, take off any federal tax credit it had, because the depreciation rates for those cars are measured against the price after that credit.4
Current mileage: Type the number shown on the odometer.
Fuel type, body and brand: Choose gas, hybrid, plug-in hybrid or electric; car or light truck (SUVs, minivans and pickups are light trucks); and a mass-market or luxury brand. Each combination loses value at its own rate.
Repairs needed: The estimate is for a car in clean condition. If the car needs work, enter what the repairs would cost, and the amount is taken off all three prices.
Click Calculate to see the private sale, trade-in and dealer retail estimates, a chart of value by model year and a step-by-step breakdown. Click Reset to go back to the example car.
How Much Is a Used Car Worth?
Argonne National Laboratory studied the private-party values of 98 models from 23 makes, in clean condition and driven 12,000 miles a year.4 For each fuel type and market segment it fitted a drop when the vehicle is first sold, followed by a steady yearly percentage. For a mass-market gas vehicle the first-year factor is 80.3% and the yearly rate is 11.3%, and for a luxury gas vehicle they are 79.5% and 14.5%.4 Light trucks hold their value better than cars, by 3.2% for gas vehicles and 22.6% for hybrids.4 To see how a car loses value over the years you own it, use our car depreciation calculator. You can also calculate the percentage decrease between the original price and the current value to see the total loss.
Mileage matters too. In a study of millions of U.S. used-car listings, each extra 10,000 miles lowered a conventional car's retention rate by 4.64%, a hybrid's by 4.67%, a plug-in hybrid's by 4.49% and a non-Tesla electric car's by 5.07%, at the same age.5 The calculator compares your mileage with 12,000 miles for each year of the car's age and applies those rates.
Used-car prices have also moved since those values were collected. The consumer price index for used cars and trucks was 141.493 in July 2020, and the index for new vehicles was 147.803.7 In August 2026 the used cars and trucks index was 184.580 and the new vehicles index was 179.715.8 The calculator raises its estimates by how much used-car prices rose relative to new-car prices between those two months.
There are three main ways to price a used car. Private party value is what you could get by selling it yourself. Trade-in value is what a dealer offers when you trade it toward another car, and it is usually the lowest. Dealer retail value is what a dealer asks for it on their lot, and it is usually the highest. Research using Kelley Blue Book prices found that the gap between suggested retail and trade-in values rises from approximately 15 percent for one-year-old cars to more than 50 percent for cars more than ten years old.6 The calculator draws a straight line between those two points and places the private sale halfway between trade-in and retail. That split is an estimate.
The results are averages for cars of the same fuel type, body and brand type, so a particular model often sells for 10% to 25% more or less, and rare or collectible cars can differ by much more. Colour, accident history and location are not included, so compare listings near you before you set a price.