About the Rent vs Buy Calculator
Whether it is cheaper to rent or to buy depends on how long you stay, the price of the home, the mortgage rate, how fast prices and rents rise and what else you could do with your money. This rent vs buy calculator compares the two over the number of years you expect to stay. For buying, it adds the down payment, buying costs, mortgage payments, property tax, insurance and upkeep, then subtracts what you would get back: the home's value minus the loan left and the cost of selling. For renting, it adds up the rent, which rises each year. It also counts what the down payment could have earned if invested, and shows the year in which buying starts to win.
Updated October 2026
How to use the Rent vs Buy Calculator
- 1Enter the home price, down payment percentage, mortgage rate and term.
- 2Enter the yearly property tax, insurance and maintenance percentages, and how fast you expect prices to rise.
- 3Enter your buying and selling costs as percentages of the price.
- 4Enter the rent for a similar home, how fast rent rises and what an investment could earn.
- 5Enter how many years you will stay and read which option costs less.
Choosing realistic assumptions
- Home price growth: long-run averages are often around inflation, 2 to 4 percent a year.
- Maintenance: budgeting 1 percent of the home's value a year is a common rule.
- Buying costs: 2 to 5 percent; selling costs: 5 to 8 percent with agent fees.
- Rent growth: look at the history in your area.
- Investment return: use a cautious figure after tax and fees.
What the numbers leave out
Owning gives stability, freedom to change the house and a forced way to save. Renting gives flexibility, no repair bills and less risk if prices fall. These benefits are real but hard to put in a spreadsheet. Treat the break-even year as a guide. If you may need to move in a few years or aren't sure where you'll live, renting keeps your options open.
Related tools
The House Affordability Calculator finds how much you can borrow, the Mortgage Calculator shows a precise payment, the Down Payment Calculator plans your deposit, the Rental Property Calculator looks at buying to let and the Inflation Calculator shows the effect of rising prices over time.
Features
- Net cost of buying versus renting
- Break-even year for buying
- Mortgage, tax, insurance and maintenance included
- Buying and selling costs included
- Opportunity cost of the down payment
- Yearly rent increases
- Runs in your browser
Frequently asked questions
Is it better to rent or buy?
There is no single answer. Buying tends to win when you stay many years, prices rise steadily and rent is high compared with the price. Renting tends to win when you move often, the price-to-rent ratio is high or you could earn good returns by investing the down payment. The calculator tests your own numbers.
What is net cost?
It is the money you spend minus the value you keep. For buying, you spend the down payment, closing costs, mortgage payments, taxes, insurance and upkeep, and you keep the home's value minus the loan and selling costs. For renting you spend the rent and keep nothing. Lower net cost is better.
Why does the stay length matter so much?
Buying has big costs at the start and at the end: closing costs and selling costs. These take years of price growth and saved rent to recover. Staying only two or three years rarely pays off, while staying ten or more usually does if prices behave normally.
What is the opportunity cost of the down payment?
Money used as a down payment cannot be invested elsewhere. The calculator adds what that money would have earned at the rate you enter. A higher investment return makes renting look better; a lower one favours buying.
Does the calculator include mortgage interest tax relief?
No. Tax rules vary by country and by household, and some places allow deductions for mortgage interest or property tax while others do not. Treat the result as before tax relief and adjust your assumptions if you have it.
How reliable are the results?
They are only as good as your assumptions. Home prices, rents, rates and returns change, and small changes in them can flip the answer. Try several cases, such as lower price growth and higher repairs, before making a decision. This is not financial advice.