How to use the lease break cost calculator
- Enter the monthly rent and the months left on the lease.
- Enter the early termination terms from your lease: a fee in months of rent, a flat fee, a re-letting fee, months of rent owed until it is re-let and any deposit you expect to lose.
- Optionally enter the rent at your next home and the cost of the move to compare total housing costs for the months left.
- Read the cost of ending the lease early, the rent you would avoid and which choice costs less.
Formula
termination fee = rent x months of fee + flat fee
cost of leaving = fee + re-letting fee + rent x months until re-let + lost deposit
rent if you stay = rent x months left
total if you leave = cost of leaving + new rent x months left + move cost
The comparison of totals only covers the months left on the lease, and it counts housing costs, not any other difference between the homes.
Eight months left at $1,800
A fee of two months of rent is $3,600. With no other costs, ending the lease costs $3,600 and avoids $14,400 of rent, which is $10,800 less than staying. If the next home costs $1,650 a month and the move costs $500, leaving totals $3,600 + $13,200 + $500 = $17,300 against $14,400 for staying, so staying costs $2,900 less over those months.
With a fee of 1.5 months, a $250 flat fee, a $100 re-letting fee, one month of rent until re-let and a $300 lost deposit, the cost of leaving is $2,700 + $250 + $100 + $1,800 + $300 = $5,150. Against $10,800 of rent for six months, ending early avoids $5,650.
Read your lease first
Early termination terms vary a great deal. Some leases set a fee, some make you pay until a new tenant moves in, some allow you to sublet and some give you rights to end the lease for particular reasons. Tenant protections also differ by place. This page does arithmetic on the numbers you enter and gives no legal advice.
If you are unsure what your lease says, ask your landlord for the terms in writing or contact a local tenant resource before you decide.
Why the comparison can favor leaving
Staying costs rent for every month left. Leaving costs a one-time amount plus your next home. When the new place is cheaper, or the fee is small compared with the months left, leaving can cost less in total. The reverse is true with a short time left and a large fee.
The break-even figure shows the cost of leaving in months of rent, which you can compare with the months you have left.
Related tools
Plan the upfront costs of the next place in the Move-In Cost Calculator, prorate rent for a partial month with the Proration Calculator, budget the move with the Moving Cost Calculator, and split costs with the Rent Split Calculator.
Assumptions and limits
- Every amount comes from your lease and your own quotes.
- The months until re-let are a number you choose, since no one can predict them.
- Rent stays the same for all the months left.
- The page does not model taxes, interest or rights to end a lease for other reasons.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to break a lease?
Add the termination fee, any re-letting fee, rent owed until the unit is re-let and any deposit you lose. A fee of two months on $1,800 rent is $3,600 before other costs.
Is it cheaper to break a lease or pay the rent that is left?
Compare the cost of leaving with the rent for the months left. With eight months at $1,800 left, a $3,600 cost of leaving is $10,800 less than the rent you would pay by staying.
Does this tell me what my landlord can charge?
No. It does arithmetic on the terms you enter. What a landlord may charge depends on your lease and local rules, so check your paperwork and a local tenant resource.
Why include the rent at my next home?
Leaving only saves money if the total housing cost falls. Adding the next rent and the move shows the total for both choices over the months left.