Compare car deals, all-in
Up to three quotes side by side, with every tax and fee on its own line. Free, no signup, and every default shows its source and the date we checked it.
Where will you register the car?
Harris County, Texas
Example quotes. Pick your place and type yours. Example: three quotes on one car in Harris County, Texas. Pick your own place and type your quotes.
Your deals at a glance
| Deal | Payment | All-in |
|---|---|---|
| $581.67a month | $39,900.30+$760.58 more than Deal C | |
| $525.30a month | $42,821.70+$3,681.98 more than Deal C | |
| $569.00a month | $39,139.72Lowest |
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
Your numbers stay in this browser.
$581.67 a month · 60 payments
All-in $39,900.30
$525.30 a month · 72 payments
All-in $42,821.70
$569.00 a month · 60 payments
All-in $39,139.72Lowest
Out-the-door $35,159.75
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
Out-the-door $35,898.19
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
Out-the-door $35,650.38
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
New · 2026 · Gas · change
New or used
The sheet starts with a new car; each deal sets its own
Model year
A new car is the current or next model year
Fuel
Gas car. Electric and hybrid cars pay more in some states
Doc fee stated on its own line
Buyer’s orders list the doc fee on its own line, which is what keeps it untaxed in Texas
New · 2026 · Gas · change
New or used
The sheet starts with a new car; each deal sets its own
Model year
A new car is the current or next model year
Fuel
Gas car. Electric and hybrid cars pay more in some states
Doc fee stated on its own line
Buyer’s orders list the doc fee on its own line, which is what keeps it untaxed in Texas
New · 2026 · Gas · change
New or used
The sheet starts with a new car; each deal sets its own
Model year
A new car is the current or next model year
Fuel
Gas car. Electric and hybrid cars pay more in some states
Doc fee stated on its own line
Buyer’s orders list the doc fee on its own line, which is what keeps it untaxed in Texas
$225.00: what Texas presumes reasonable.
Texas calls it a documentary fee.
It must be the same whether you pay cash or finance.
law.cornell.edu · checked Oct 2, 2026
The notice Texas requires with this fee
A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT AN OFFICIAL FEE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT REQUIRED BY LAW, BUT MAY BE CHARGED TO BUYERS FOR HANDLING DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE SALE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE MAY NOT EXCEED A REASONABLE AMOUNT AGREED TO BY THE PARTIES. THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW.
$225.00: what Texas presumes reasonable.
Texas calls it a documentary fee.
It must be the same whether you pay cash or finance.
law.cornell.edu · checked Oct 2, 2026
The notice Texas requires with this fee
A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT AN OFFICIAL FEE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT REQUIRED BY LAW, BUT MAY BE CHARGED TO BUYERS FOR HANDLING DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE SALE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE MAY NOT EXCEED A REASONABLE AMOUNT AGREED TO BY THE PARTIES. THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW.
$225.00: what Texas presumes reasonable.
Texas calls it a documentary fee.
It must be the same whether you pay cash or finance.
law.cornell.edu · checked Oct 2, 2026
The notice Texas requires with this fee
A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT AN OFFICIAL FEE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT REQUIRED BY LAW, BUT MAY BE CHARGED TO BUYERS FOR HANDLING DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE SALE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE MAY NOT EXCEED A REASONABLE AMOUNT AGREED TO BY THE PARTIES. THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW.
Your $5,000.00 down covers the $2,459.75 in tax, title, license and the doc fee first; $2,540.25 goes toward the price.
Your $5,000.00 down covers the $2,503.19 in tax, title, license and the doc fee first; $2,496.81 goes toward the price.
Your $5,000.00 down covers the $2,400.38 in tax, title, license and the doc fee first; $2,599.62 goes toward the price.
Illustrative rate, not a quote. Your APR depends on your credit, the term, the vehicle and the lender.
Illustrative rate, not a quote. Your APR depends on your credit, the term, the vehicle and the lender.
Illustrative rate, not a quote. Your APR depends on your credit, the term, the vehicle and the lender.
60 payments, last $581.77
72 payments, last $525.40
60 payments, last $568.72
cash down plus every payment
+$760.58 more all-in than Deal C
cash down plus every payment
+$3,681.98 more all-in than Deal C
cash down plus every payment
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
Estimate. Your dealer’s buyer’s order and your lender’s disclosures are the numbers that count. Check them against this.
3 charges this total leaves out
3 charges this total leaves out
3 charges this total leaves out
By Mr. Voltage · Data checked Oct 2, 2026 · Page changed Oct 30, 2026
Questions people ask
What is the $3,000 rule for cars?
It is a personal-finance rule of thumb, not a law and not an industry standard, and no source names who first said it. It is usually put as: have at least about $3,000.00 on hand when you buy a car, either as a down payment or as the cash price of a cheap used car, and as a test of whether you can carry what comes after the payment (insurance, fuel, repairs). A second, unrelated use applies the same number to repair-or-replace decisions. To see what it does to a deal, take a $30,000.00 car financed at 5.90% over 60 months (Texas, with the car registered in Harris County). With nothing down, the payment is $622.78 a month and the interest over the loan is $5,075.42. With $3,000.00 down, they are $564.92 and $4,603.88. Whether to follow it is your call; the calculator above shows the effect on each of your own deals.
How much is the monthly payment on a $30,000 car?
It depends on the tax, fees, down payment, rate and term, not on the price alone. As an example, take a $30,000.00 car financed at 5.90% over 60 months with nothing down (Texas, with the car registered in Harris County). The tax is $1,875.00, title, registration and county fees are $191.00 and the dealer's doc fee is $225.00, so the amount financed is $32,291.00 and the payment is $622.78 a month, with $5,075.42 of interest over the loan. Change any of those in the calculator above to see your own.
Why is my payment higher than other car loan calculators show?
Many simple calculators work from the price alone. A payment on a contract is worked from the amount financed: the price plus tax, title and registration fees, the doc fee and any add-ons, less your cash down and trade-in equity, plus any negative equity. In the example above, the price is $30,000.00 but the amount financed is $32,291.00, because the tax ($1,875.00), the fees ($191.00) and the doc fee are on top. A longer term, a higher rate than the one assumed, and a first payment due later than a month out also raise it. If you have a quoted payment in hand, the payment check works out the rate or the extra amount it implies.
How accurate are car payment calculators?
A calculator is as accurate as what goes into it. The loan arithmetic itself is exact: this one works in whole cents, rounds each payment the way a lender does and adjusts the last. The gap comes from the inputs: the tax rate where the car is registered, the fees, the rate and term a lender actually approves, and any add-ons. Every default here shows where it came from and the date it was checked, and every figure is an estimate until it matches the paper you sign. The methodology page lists each step.
Do my numbers leave my browser?
No. The math runs in your browser, and what you type is not sent to us or to anyone else. Your deals are kept in this browser's own storage on this device, and Start over clears them. A share link holds the deal in the part of the address after the #, which browsers do not send to a website, so we never see it; whoever you give the link to can read it. Picking a state loads that state's rules data, so which state you pick is visible as a request for that data, and the numbers you type are not.
What does Simple fold away?
Simple hides lines, never money. Every charge is counted in both views, and every total is the same in both. Simple folds three groups of rows into one closed line each: add-ons and rebates, tax and government fees, and the loan’s detail. A closed line is a summary of the worked deal. Add-ons and rebates read “None typed · add” when there are none, and otherwise name each add-on and rebate with its amount. Tax and fees read as the total, the tax, and how many fee lines there are and where they came from, with “so far: choose your county” while a county is missing. The loan reads as how much is financed and the interest over the payments, or “Paying cash · nothing financed” when there is no loan. Any add-on, rebate or figure you typed is named on its closed line, so folding never hides what a quote differs on. Open a line to edit it, or pick Full sheet in the “How much to show” switch to see every row.