How to use the rideshare vs car ownership calculator
- Enter what the car costs each month: payment, insurance, miles driven, fuel economy, gas price, maintenance and parking, plus yearly registration and other costs.
- Enter how many rideshare trips you would take per week, the average cost of a trip and a tip percent.
- Add any other transit or rentals you would still pay for each month.
- Compare the monthly totals, the yearly difference and the number of trips per month at which the two cost the same.
Formula
Car per month = payment + insurance + (miles / mpg x gas price) + maintenance + parking + yearly costs / 12
Rideshare per month = trips per week x 52 / 12 x fare x (1 + tip) + other transit
Break-even trips per month = (car per month - other transit) / (fare x (1 + tip))
The cost per mile of the car is the monthly total divided by the miles driven in a month.
A car against 14 trips a week
Fuel for 800 miles at 28 mpg and $3.50 a gallon is $100.00. With a $450 payment, $150 insurance, $80 maintenance, $60 parking and $300 a year of registration ($25 a month), the car costs $865.00 a month, or $1.08 a mile.
Fourteen trips a week is 60.7 trips a month. A $16 fare with a 15% tip is $18.40, so rideshare is $1,116.27 plus $40 of other transit, $1,156.27. Owning is $291.27 cheaper a month. The two would cost the same at 44.8 trips a month.
What the comparison leaves out
The tool compares monthly cash costs only. If you would sell the car, you would also free up money from the sale, and a car loses value every year whether you drive it or not, so depreciation is a real cost that is not in the list. If you are paying off a loan, the payment is counted, but the interest on cash tied up in a paid-off car is not.
Rideshare prices change with time of day, demand and place, so use a few recent receipts to find your average. A few long trips can cost far more than the average trip, and some trips may not be available when you need them.
Using the break-even number
The break-even trip count is the easiest figure to act on. If you would take fewer trips than that, rideshare costs less. If you would take more, owning costs less. It moves with the car's costs, so lowering insurance or parking changes it.
For a fuller view of what a car costs, see the total cost of car ownership calculator, and to check a payment use the car payment calculator. The fuel cost calculator helps refine the fuel line.
Assumptions and limits
- All prices and trip counts are numbers you enter, and the examples are only samples.
- Depreciation, the money from selling the car, surge pricing and trip availability are not modeled.
- Fuel is miles divided by mpg times the gas price.
- A month has 52 / 12 weeks.
Frequently asked questions
Is it cheaper to use rideshare than to own a car?
It depends on how much you would ride. If your trips per month are below the break-even number the tool shows, rideshare costs less on these figures. Above it, owning costs less.
What should I count as the cost of owning a car?
Count the loan payment, insurance, fuel, maintenance and repairs, parking, registration and similar yearly fees. Depreciation matters too, but it is not in this tool, so keep it in mind.
How do I estimate my rideshare cost per trip?
Look at your recent receipts and take the average, then add the tip you usually give. Use a higher figure if you ride at busy times.
Why include other transit?
Even without a car you may still pay for buses, trains or an occasional rental. Adding it keeps the comparison fair to the car-free option.