Your result
What your result means
A payment of $600 a month at 7.54% for 60 months repays a loan of $29,914.79. Add $4,000 down and a $0 trade-in, take out $800 in fees and $1,874.40 of sales tax, and the most the car itself can cost is $31,240. Interest adds $6,085.22, so you pay $40,000 in all.
The math
Formula and sources
Loan = M × (1 − (1 + r)^−n) ÷ r Price = (Loan − fees + down + trade-in × (1 + t)) ÷ (1 + t) tax = (Price − trade-in) × t
- M
- monthly payment you can afford
- r
- monthly interest rate = annual rate ÷ 12
- n
- loan term in months
- t
- sales tax rate
This is the car loan formula run backwards. The loan is rounded down to the cent and the price down to the dollar, so the payment never goes over your budget. Most states tax the price after the trade-in credit; a few tax the full price. Insurance, fuel and repairs are not in the payment.
The code and tests for this formula are open source (MIT): car-affordability.ts on GitHub.
Sources we checked this against
- 1How do I compare auto loan offers?Consumer Financial Protection Bureau · consumerfinance.gov
- 2Consumer Credit – G.19, Terms of CreditBoard of Governors of the Federal Reserve System · federalreserve.gov
- 3PV function (present value formula and examples)Microsoft Support · support.microsoft.com
Formula last checked 2026-11-08. Found an error? Tell us and we will fix it.
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Car loan by monthly payment
How much car loan can I get for $400 a month?
About $19,943 over 60 months at 7.54%, the average commercial-bank rate on 60-month new car loans for Q3 2026 (preliminary, G.19 release of November 6, 2026) (Federal Reserve G.19). The table runs other budgets and terms through this calculator at the same rate. These are loan amounts before any down payment, sales tax or fees.
| Monthly payment | 48 months | 60 months | 72 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| $300 a month | $12,398 | $14,957 | $17,332 |
| $400 a month | $16,531 | $19,943 | $23,109 |
| $500 a month | $20,663 | $24,929 | $28,886 |
| $600 a month | $24,796 | $29,915 | $34,663 |
| $700 a month | $28,929 | $34,901 | $40,440 |
| $800 a month | $33,061 | $39,886 | $46,217 |
Each extra $100 a month adds about $4,986 of loan over 60 months. The loan is not the sticker price: sales tax and fees are usually rolled in, so they use up part of it. With $4,000 down, 6% sales tax and $800 of fees, a $400 payment over 60 months buys a car of about $21,833 ($1,310 of it goes to tax). Enter your own numbers above for an exact figure, or check the payment on a specific car with the car loan calculator.
Does a longer loan let you afford more car?
Yes, but you pay for it in interest. Here is the same $400 a month at 7.54% over three terms:
| $400 a month | Loan it covers | Total paid | Total interest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 48 months | $16,531 | $19,200 | $2,669 |
| 60 months | $19,943 | $24,000 | $4,057 |
| 72 months | $23,109 | $28,800 | $5,691 |
Going from 48 to 72 months lets the same payment cover $6,578 more car, but interest more than doubles, from $2,669 to $5,691. The CFPB notes that some experts recommend five years or less, because a long loan costs more and makes it more likely you will owe more than the car is worth. Rates on 72-month loans are not lower to make up for it: banks averaged 7.17% on them in the same release. See how term changes the cost of a specific loan in What is a good car loan length?
Step by step
Two worked examples
CFPB: $597 a month at 4.75% for 36 months
Car price you can afford
$19,994
- Monthly payment you can afford
- $597
- Interest rate (APR)
- 4.75%
- Loan term
- 36 months
- Down payment
- $0
- Trade-in value
- $0
- Sales tax
- 0%
- Title, registration & dealer fees
- $0
The CFPB’s comparison table shows a $20,000 loan at 4.75% for 36 months costs $597 a month. Run backwards, $597 a month covers $19,994.11, so a car of about $19,994 with no tax or fees. The small gap is because the CFPB rounds the payment to the dollar.
$400 a month, $4,000 down, 6% tax, $800 fees
Car price you can afford
$21,833
- Monthly payment you can afford
- $400
- Interest rate (APR)
- 7.54%
- Loan term
- 60 months
- Down payment
- $4,000
- Trade-in value
- $0
- Sales tax
- 6%
- Title, registration & dealer fees
- $800
At the Fed’s 7.54% average for 60 months, $400 a month repays $19,943.19. With $4,000 down, after $1,309.98 of tax and $800 of fees, the most the car can cost is $21,833.
| Result | Example 1 | Example 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Car price you can afford | $19,994 | $21,833 |
| Loan the payment covers | $19,994.11 | $19,943.19 |
| Total interest | $1,497.87 | $4,056.78 |
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How much car loan can I get for $400 a month?
About $19,943 over 60 months at 7.54%, the Federal Reserve’s Q3 2026 average for 60-month new car loans at banks. The same $400 covers $16,531 over 48 months or $23,109 over 72 months. Sales tax and fees come out of that amount, so with $4,000 down, 6% tax and $800 of fees the car itself can cost about $21,833.
How much car can I afford?
Start from the monthly payment that fits your budget after insurance, fuel and other bills, then work back to a price with this calculator. At 7.54% for 60 months, every $100 of monthly payment covers about $4,986 of loan. Add your down payment and trade-in, and remember that tax and fees use part of the loan.
Does a longer loan let me afford a more expensive car?
Yes, but it costs more. At 7.54%, $400 a month covers $16,531 over 48 months with $2,669 of interest, or $23,109 over 72 months with $5,691 of interest. The CFPB notes that longer loans cost more in interest and make it more likely you will owe more than the car is worth.
How much does each $1,000 of down payment add to the price I can afford?
Slightly less than $1,000 when sales tax applies. With 6% tax, $1,000 more down raises the price you can afford by about $943, because tax is charged on the whole price. In the $400-a-month example, going from $4,000 to $5,000 down raises the price from $21,833 to $22,776.
Should I include sales tax and fees in my car budget?
Yes. They are usually rolled into the loan, so they use up part of what your payment covers. On a $21,833 car, 6% sales tax is $1,310. Ask the dealer for the out-the-door price and compare it with this calculator’s result.