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Rent vs. Buy Calculator
Compare renting with buying using mortgage cost, taxes, insurance, maintenance, appreciation, equity, and sale costs across the same holding period.
Rent vs. Buy Calculator
Use this free rent vs. buy calculator to compare the long-run cost of renting against buying the same home over a chosen holding period. Enter home price, mortgage terms, property costs, rent assumptions, appreciation, and sale friction to review monthly carrying cost, equity buildup, and effective net cost on both sides. It works well with the Mortgage Calculator, the Rent Calculator, and the wider Financial Calculators category.
Buying Assumptions
Renting and Horizon Assumptions
Results
compare viewBuying looks more efficient over this holding period
After estimated sale proceeds are considered, buying is ahead by about $74,658.52 over 7 years in this scenario.
Monthly Snapshot
Monthly Mortgage Payment$2,301.86
Monthly Owner Cost$3,454.36
Monthly Rent Cost$2,678.00
Break-Even Starting Rent$2,101.28
Holding Period7 years
Mortgage Balance Today$368,000.00
Net Cost Comparison
Total Rent Cost$253,518.12
Total Buy Cash Cost$385,753.83
Net Owner Proceeds on Sale$206,894.23
Effective Net Buy Cost$178,859.60
Effective Net Rent Cost$253,518.12
Difference$74,658.52
Ownership Value
Future Home Value$573,476.60
Remaining Loan Balance$332,173.77
Gross Owner Equity$241,302.83
Selling Costs$34,408.60
Year-by-year comparison
Annual view of rent cost, owner cash cost, estimated home value, loan balance, and owner equity over the selected holding period.
| Year | Rent Cost | Buy Cash Cost | Home Value | Loan Balance | Owner Equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $32,136.00 | $41,452.32 | $474,720.00 | $363,808.14 | $110,911.86 |
| 2 | $33,408.00 | $41,614.24 | $489,911.04 | $359,339.98 | $130,571.06 |
| 3 | $34,730.88 | $41,781.34 | $505,588.19 | $354,577.33 | $151,010.86 |
| 4 | $36,106.68 | $41,953.79 | $521,767.01 | $349,500.76 | $172,266.25 |
| 5 | $37,537.56 | $42,131.76 | $538,463.55 | $344,089.59 | $194,373.96 |
| 6 | $39,025.68 | $42,315.42 | $555,694.38 | $338,321.76 | $217,372.62 |
| 7 | $40,573.32 | $42,504.96 | $573,476.60 | $332,173.77 | $241,302.83 |
What is a rent vs. buy calculator?
A rent vs. buy calculator is a housing-decision tool that compares the financial outcome of renting a home with buying a similar home over the same number of years. Instead of focusing only on a monthly payment, it compares the full ownership stack with the long-run value recovered from equity and appreciation.
That makes it useful when monthly cost alone gives a misleading picture. A buyer may build equity and recover part of the cost later, while a renter may preserve flexibility and avoid sale friction. To pressure-test the ownership side directly, continue into the Mortgage Calculator, the Real Estate Calculator, or browse more Financial Calculators.
How this calculator works
The calculator estimates a fixed mortgage payment from the purchase price, down payment, rate, and loan term. It then layers in taxes, insurance, HOA, and maintenance to build an ownership cash-cost estimate over the chosen holding period.
On the rent side, it grows rent over time and includes renters insurance. On the buy side, it projects home appreciation, estimates the remaining loan balance, subtracts selling costs, and converts the ownership path into an effective net cost after sale proceeds. The final comparison shows which option looks financially lighter under the same assumptions.
Worked example
The default example compares renting at $2,650.00 per month with buying a $460,000.00 home using a $92,000.00 down payment and a 6.4% mortgage rate. Over 7 years, the tool weighs rent growth against owner carrying costs, appreciation, and sale friction to show the more efficient path.
Monthly owner cost
$3,454.36
Monthly rent cost
$2,678.00
Net difference
$74,658.52
In this example, the better answer depends less on the first month's payment and more on the full holding-period math. That is exactly why a structured rent vs. buy comparison is more useful than a headline monthly-payment check.
Frequently asked questions
A rent vs. buy calculator estimates the total housing cost of renting compared with buying over the same time horizon. This version compares rent growth, renter costs, mortgage payments, taxes, insurance, HOA, maintenance, home appreciation, remaining loan balance, and sale costs to estimate which path leaves you in a better financial position.
Related tools
Use these related housing and finance tools to review mortgage cost, rent assumptions, and property-level economics from supporting angles.
Explore This Tool in Context
Rent vs. Buy Calculator is part of the Financial Calculators collection. If you want a broader view of similar workflows, open the Financial Calculators category page or browse all QuickTools categories.
Common next steps after this tool include Estate Tax Calculator, Social Security Calculator and Annuity Payout Calculator.
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