Running costs
What will this car actually cost you?
Running costs are visible; depreciation is not. Nothing leaves your account, no bill arrives, and then one day you sell the car and find out what the last few years cost. Depreciation explained makes the argument — this puts your car's own numbers through it.
The car
Over 5 years
€493 a month
€29,607 all in, or €0.39 a kilometre. The car is worth about €13,393 at the end.
- Depreciation
- €343 / month
- Fuel, tax, insurance, servicing
- €150 / month
Depreciation is the larger cost. It is invisible until you sell, and for most of the first five years it is the biggest single cost of owning the car.
What it is worth, year by year
| Year | Worth | Lost that year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | €28,220 | €5,780 |
| 2 | €23,423 | €4,797 |
| 3 | €19,441 | €3,982 |
| 4 | €16,136 | €3,305 |
| 5 | €13,393 | €2,743 |
Same money, the catalogue's best rate against its worst: €11,591 against €22,145 — €10,554 decided by which badge and which fuel you chose rather than by anything you do with the car afterwards.
How the sum works
- Depreciation compounds. It works on what the car is worth now, not on what you paid. A steady 13 per cent is 0.87 multiplied by itself once a year — over five years that is 0.498, so a car on the median rate keeps almost exactly half its value.
- One rate a year, because that is what the catalogue has. Real curves are steeper at the front: a car loses a visible slice the moment it is registered. Read year one as optimistic and year five as about right.
- The running cost is the catalogue's monthly estimate — fuel or electricity, insurance, tax and servicing for a typical driver. Yours will differ; the ranking between cars is the useful part.
- Within a budget band, the rate matters more than the price. If you change car every three or four years, buy the depreciation rate. If you keep cars for a decade, buy the car you want and negotiate hard.
Euros and the European list, like the guides. Depreciation rates are this project's estimates rather than measured resale results — treat them as a ranking rather than a forecast.
Find a car that holds its valueWhat else will you buy for it?