How Long You Should Keep a Car Financially

How long you should keep a car in the U.S. from a financial view depends on depreciation, maintenance cost, and total cost of ownership. Here's when to sell vs drive longer.

TL;DR Financially, many cars make sense to keep 5–7+ years—you've taken most of the depreciation hit and the curve is flatter. Sell earlier if maintenance and repair cost spike or if you need to change vehicles. Use autopremo.com depreciation and total cost tools to model your car.

Why "How Long" Matters Financially

• Depreciation. Most of the value loss happens in the first 3–5 years. After that, the curve flattens—you're losing less per year. So keeping the car longer often means lower average depreciation cost per year.
• Maintenance and repairs. As the car ages, maintenance and repair cost usually rise. At some point, the cost of keeping it exceeds the cost of replacing it—or the car becomes unreliable.
• Total cost. The financially optimal "keep" period is when total cost of ownership (purchase/loan + depreciation + fuel + insurance + maintenance) per year is lowest—or when you've paid off the loan and are only paying fuel, insurance, and maintenance.

Model depreciation and total cost at autopremo.com.

A Simple Financial Rule of Thumb

• First 3–5 years: Steepest depreciation—you're losing the most value per year. Financially, selling early often means you've "paid" a lot in depreciation without spreading it over many years.
• Years 5–7+: Depreciation curve is flatter—you're losing less per year. If maintenance is reasonable, keeping the car can mean lower average cost per year from here on.
• When maintenance spikes: If repair cost becomes high (e.g., major transmission, engine, or repeated repairs), the financial case for keeping the car weakens. Compare cost of repairs vs cost of a replacement car (payment + depreciation + maintenance). Use autopremo.com to compare.

See depreciation and total cost at autopremo.com.

What to Do

• If you've had the car 3–5 years — you've taken most of the depreciation hit. Financially, keeping it 2–4 more years (if maintenance is reasonable) often makes sense—you're on the flatter part of the curve.
• If you've had the car 7+ years — depreciation is minimal from here; the main cost is maintenance and repairs. Keep it as long as maintenance cost is reasonable and the car is reliable—or until repair cost exceeds the value of replacing it.
• If you're underwater on the loan — selling early can mean you owe more than the car is worth. Financially, keeping the car until you're at least at break-even (or paying down the loan) can avoid that. Use autopremo.com depreciation and price checker to see current value vs loan balance.

Get depreciation and total cost at autopremo.com.

Your "How Long to Keep" Checklist

• [ ] Depreciation curve understood—steep early, flatter later—use autopremo.com depreciation
• [ ] Current value vs loan balance checked (if you have a loan)—use autopremo.com price checker
• [ ] Maintenance and repair cost considered—if high, compare to cost of replacement—use autopremo.com total cost
• [ ] Decision: keep as long as total cost per year is reasonable and car is reliable; sell when repair cost or need for a different vehicle justifies it

See depreciation and total cost at autopremo.com.

Bottom Line

Financially, many cars make sense to keep 5–7+ years—depreciation is flatter and you've spread the cost over more years. Sell earlier if maintenance spikes or you need a different vehicle. Use autopremo.com to model depreciation and total cost so you decide when to keep and when to sell.