Rent vs Buy Calculator
Compare the true cost of renting versus buying over your time horizon, including equity built and appreciation.
Type exact values (cents included) or drag a slider to get close. To fine-tune, click the slider and press Left arrow keyRight arrow key on your keyboard: each press moves mortgage amounts by $100 and interest rates by 0.01%.
Type an exact value from $1,000 to $6,000. Dragging the slider moves quickly. With the slider focused, press the left or right arrow key to move in steps of $50.
Type an exact value from $300,000 to $2,000,000. Dragging the slider moves quickly. With the slider focused, press the left or right arrow key to move in steps of $100.
Type an exact value from 5.00% to 50.00%. Dragging the slider moves quickly. With the slider focused, press the left or right arrow key to move in steps of 1.00%.
Type an exact value from 2.00% to 8.00%. Dragging the slider moves quickly. With the slider focused, press the left or right arrow key to move in steps of 0.01%.
Assumes 2.5% annual rent increases, 1% property tax, 1% maintenance, 3% appreciation. Your market may differ — I'll run real numbers with you.
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Get Exact Numbers — Free CallHow the Rent vs Buy Calculator Works
Renting and buying trade off differently over time: rent typically rises every year, while a mortgage builds equity and benefits from home appreciation — offset by interest, property tax and maintenance costs.
This calculator projects both paths over your chosen time horizon so you can see which one actually costs less in your situation, not just which one "feels" cheaper today.
4 Steps to Your Results
Projected forward at an estimated 2.5% annual increase, a reasonable long-run average.
Price, down payment and mortgage rate on the buying side, financed over a standard 25-year amortization.
3, 5 or 10 years — the comparison window for both renting and owning.
Total rent paid vs. ownership costs (interest, 1% property tax, 1% maintenance) minus equity built and estimated 3%/year appreciation.
Renting at $2,400/month while buying a $650,000 home with 10% down at 4.49% over a 5-year horizon: total rent paid comes to about $151,382, versus ownership costs of about $187,598.
But equity built plus appreciation over those 5 years adds up to roughly $175,004, bringing the net cost of owning down to about $12,593 — far below the $151,382 spent on rent.
In this example, buying wins by about $138,789 over 5 years — though the comparison is sensitive to your down payment, rate, and local appreciation, so it’s worth running your own numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Rent rising 2.5%/year, property tax and maintenance each at 1% of home value per year, and 3% annual home price appreciation. Your local market may differ.
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