Entry № 13 · logged Oct 1, 2026Free, no sign-upLease vs Buy · Car Finance
36 months, one car, two ledgers.
Thirty-six months is the lease industry’s home field: the standard term, the steepest depreciation years, the window every dealer quote is built for. This page runs the lease-vs-buy slip fixed on that window — $495 a month and $2,500 due at signing on the lease side, a 60-month loan at 6.5% on the buy side, the same $35,000 car — and posts each path’s net cost to the dollar.
Over 36 months: $20,320 to lease, $20,274 net to buy — the buyer edges it by $46.
The dealer's desk slip, Form LVB-13. Left ledger: the lease offer, line by line. Right ledger: buying the same car with a loan, minus the equity you keep. Every keystroke re-posts the net-cost verdict below the tear line.
Net cost is what each path really costs you: the lease's drive-off plus every payment plus mileage overage, against the buyer's down payment plus loan payments minus the equity left in the car at the end. The comparison window is the lease term.
Around this tool
From the ledger
Why 36 months is the whole game
Cars lose value fastest when they’re new: the seeded $35,000 car is worth $19,250 at month 36, a 45% haircut in three years. A lease makes you pay for exactly that haircut, plus interest, plus fees — then takes the car back. A 60-month loan makes you pay for the whole car, but after 36 payments you still owe only $13,836 against that $19,250 of value. That $5,414 of net equity is the entire reason buying wins the window by $46.
Stretch the window and the buyer pulls away. Over 72 months the lease would cost $38,140 (the drive-off plus 72 payments, assuming the same terms rolled forward) while the buyer — loan paid off at month 60, car now worth roughly $12,000 — nets $28,480. That’s a $9,660 win for buying, and it’s the shape of the whole decision: the lease rents the steep years forever; the buyer amortizes them over every year they keep the car.
One caveat on the 36-month window: it flatters the lease’s cash flow. The lease asks $495 a month; the loan asks $616.33. If the monthly budget is the binding constraint — not the total cost — the lease genuinely fits where the loan doesn’t. Net cost is the honest comparison; cash flow is the practical one. The slip posts both so you don’t have to choose which to see.
Disclaimer: the figures here are arithmetic, not financial advice. Resale values are guesses, money factors are negotiable, and your credit decides your rate — the dealer’s worksheet has the final word.
Filed answers
Questions from the finance office
Why is 36 months the standard lease term?
It’s the sweet spot for everyone but you: the car is under the factory warranty the whole time, the depreciation curve is steepest (so the lessor’s residual math is most predictable), and three years is short enough to keep you coming back. 24-month leases exist but cost more per month; 48-month terms push you past the warranty.
What happens at the end of the 36 months?
Three doors: hand the car back and walk away (paying any mileage overage and wear charges), buy it for the residual value stated in the contract, or lease/buy something new. The buyout price was fixed on day one — if the car’s market value beat the residual, buying it out is a bargain; if not, walk.
Does the loan term matter if I’m comparing over 36 months?
Yes, through the balance. A 72-month loan at the same rate leaves a bigger balance at month 36 — less equity kept — while a 48-month loan leaves less. The slip computes the actual remaining balance for whatever term you type, so the equity line is honest either way.
What if I’d lease again after 36 months?
Then you’re comparing one lease cycle against the buyer’s first 36 months — which is exactly what this page does — and the buyer still wins by $46 here. Perpetual leasing (a new lease every three years, forever) against buying and holding for 9+ years is where the buyer’s advantage compounds into five figures, because the buyer eventually gets payment-free years and the lessee never does.
How do mileage limits change the math?
They’re the lease’s hidden second price. Drive 15,000 miles a year against a 12,000 cap at $0.25 a mile and you owe $2,250 at turn-in — enough to flip the seeded verdict from a $46 coin flip to a $2,296 win for buying. Be honest about your real miles before you sign; the slip has a line for exactly that.
Is this financial advice?
No — it’s arithmetic on numbers you type. It doesn’t check your credit, negotiate your money factor, or know what your car will really be worth in three years. The dealer’s worksheet and your own budget have the final word.
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