Cheapest Vehicle Classes to Own
Using real median market prices (pulled from MarketCheck across 48 popular vehicles, including the majority of America's best-sellers) and our standard 5-year ownership model, here's how the five main vehicle classes rank by total cost of ownership — cheapest first.
The ranking
#1 — Sedan
$29,3475-year estimate · $489/mo · real avg. price $30,374#2 — Electric
$39,2075-year estimate · $653/mo · real avg. price $45,675#3 — SUV / crossover
$41,9985-year estimate · $700/mo · real avg. price $43,114#4 — Truck
$52,6945-year estimate · $878/mo · real avg. price $58,880#5 — Luxury
$63,7725-year estimate · $1,063/mo · real avg. price $63,362This ranking uses the real average market price per class, not one representative model — an expensive sedan can still cost more to own than a cheap SUV. Use the vehicle browser to compare specific models, or the interactive calculator for your own numbers.
Why the ranking looks like this
Depreciation and insurance are usually the two largest costs, and both scale with the vehicle's price — which is why smaller, less expensive classes tend to come out ahead even before fuel and maintenance are counted. Real market data shows trucks and SUVs now carry meaningfully higher average prices than a few years ago, which widens this gap.
See the full methodology →