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Rent vs Buy Calculator

Compare renting against buying over a chosen number of years, including home equity, invested savings, and the year buying breaks even.

Buying

Renting

Comparison period

This is an estimate that ignores local tax treatment, such as mortgage interest deductions or capital gains rules. Calculated in your browser as you type.

Break-even
Year 5
The year buying’s net position overtakes renting’s.
357,011
Total cost of buying
359,673
Total cost of renting
+245,854
Buyer net position at the end
+170,758
Renter net position at the end

Year by year

YearBuying costRenting costBuyer netRenter net
134,47131,400+70,857+96,351
234,72332,336+86,291+104,520
334,98333,300+102,330+112,474
435,25034,293+119,001+120,180
535,52635,316+136,332+127,600
635,80936,369+154,915+135,256
736,10137,454+175,047+143,372
836,40238,572+196,837+151,974
936,71239,723+220,399+161,092
1037,03240,909+245,854+170,758

This is an estimate, not financial advice. It assumes whichever path costs less in a given year has its savings invested at the return rate entered, and it ignores local tax treatment entirely.

How to compare renting and buying

  1. Fill in the buying side

    Enter the home price, down payment, mortgage rate and term, property tax, insurance, maintenance, closing costs, and expected appreciation.

  2. Fill in the renting side

    Enter the monthly rent, the annual rent increase, renters insurance, and the return you would expect on money not spent on a down payment.

  3. Set how many years to compare

    Choose the comparison period. The result updates instantly and covers every year up to that point.

  4. Read the break-even year

    Check the year buying’s net position overtakes renting’s, along with the total cost and final net position for each path.

Why use this tool

Break-even year

The tool finds the first year in which buying’s net position, home equity minus selling costs, overtakes what renting and investing the difference would be worth.

Invests the difference both ways

Whichever path costs less in a given year has its savings invested at the return rate entered, so the comparison stays apples to apples.

Full cost breakdown for buying

Mortgage payments, property tax, insurance, maintenance, and closing costs on both purchase and sale are all included in the buying total.

Year-by-year table

A compact table shows the cost and net position for both paths in every year of the comparison, with the break-even year highlighted.

Appreciation and rent growth

Home value and rent both grow at the annual rates you set, so longer comparisons reflect a more realistic trajectory than a flat estimate.

Private by design

Every figure you enter is calculated in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.

About this tool

Deciding whether to rent or buy comes down to more than comparing a monthly rent to a mortgage payment. Buying carries a down payment, closing costs, property tax, insurance, and maintenance, offset by home equity that builds as the mortgage is paid down and the home appreciates. Renting carries none of that, but the money that would have gone to a down payment can be invested instead. This tool models both paths side by side over a comparison period you choose and reports which one comes out ahead and when.

In each year, whichever path costs less has the difference invested at the return rate entered, so neither side is assumed to spend more cash overall than the other. Buying’s net position at the end of any year is the home’s value at that point minus the remaining mortgage balance and the closing costs of a hypothetical sale, plus anything invested along the way. Renting’s net position is simply the growing investment account. The break-even year is the first point at which buying’s net position catches up to renting’s.

This is an estimate and it ignores local tax treatment entirely, including mortgage interest deductions, property tax deductions, and capital gains rules on a home sale, all of which vary by location and change the real answer. Everything runs in your browser, so the figures you enter are never uploaded or stored. To work out the mortgage payment on its own, including property tax and insurance, use the mortgage calculator.

Frequently asked questions

How does the tool decide whether buying or renting wins?
It compares the net position of each path at the end of every year: for buying, that is the home’s value minus the remaining mortgage and selling costs, plus any invested savings; for renting, it is the growing investment account. The break-even year is the first year buying’s net position reaches or passes renting’s.
What happens to the money not spent on a down payment?
It is assumed to be invested at the return rate you enter from year one. In any later year where renting costs less than buying, that difference is added to the same investment account, and in any year where buying costs less, the difference is invested on the buying side instead.
Does this include local tax treatment?
No. Mortgage interest deductions, property tax deductions, and capital gains rules on a home sale all vary by location and are not modelled here. Treat the result as a starting estimate, not a final answer for your situation.
What if I only want to compare a few years, not the full mortgage term?
Set the comparison period to whatever number of years you actually plan to stay. The mortgage term can stay at its full length; the tool only compares the two paths up to the number of years you choose, using the remaining mortgage balance and home value at that point.
Are the figures I enter kept private?
Yes. The whole comparison runs in your browser. Every price, rate, and cost you enter is never uploaded, stored, or logged.

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