Negative equity car trade-in calculator

Do you owe more on your car than a dealer will give you for it? Enter what you owe, what the dealer offers and the car you want. You will see the shortfall, what it adds to your next loan if you roll it in, and what it costs to pay it in cash instead.

Your current car

These are example numbers. Replace them with yours.

$

The payout amount from your lender, not the balance on your statement.

$

Ask more than one dealer. Offers differ.

Compare the offer with what cars like yours are listed for

Pick your car and we show what the same model and year is listed for, and where the dealer's offer sits against it.

The car you want

$

Sales tax depends on where you register the car.

% a year
Down payment and fees
$
$
$

You would owe more than the car is worth by

$5,000.00

This is negative equity. It does not go away when you trade the car in.

Two ways to handle the shortfall

Pay the shortfall in cash: you borrow
$23,285.00
Pay in cash: monthly payment
$407.13
Add it to the new loan: you borrow
$28,285.00
Add it to the loan: monthly payment
$494.55
Extra each month if you add it
$87.42
Extra interest over the loan
$1,294.24

Adding it to the new loan means you start with a loan of 72% of the new car's price, and you are paying interest on the old car's debt as well. Cars lose value quickly, so you may owe more than the new car is worth for a good while.

Other ways to close the gap: keep the car and pay the loan down, make extra payments until the gap closes, or choose a cheaper car so the new loan stays small.

An estimate. Sales tax uses your province's rules for a dealer purchase, and interest is worked out monthly. Confirm every figure on your contract.

Keep going with Uobo

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How it works

Negative equity means your car is worth less than the loan on it. The dealer pays off your old loan from the trade-in value, and any gap does not disappear. It is either paid in cash or added to the new loan.

The calculator works out the new loan both ways, with your province's sales tax on the new car (your trade-in comes off the price before tax in most provinces). It shows the extra you pay each month and the extra interest if you add the shortfall to the loan.

Your privacy comes first. What you enter stays on your device unless you choose to text it to Uobo.

Example: $24,000 owed, $19,000 offered, a $38,000 car in Ontario

The shortfall is $5,000. At 7.9% over 72 months, paying it in cash leaves a payment of $407.13 a month. Adding it to the new loan raises the payment to $494.55, which is $87.42 more each month and about $1,294 more in interest.

What this does not cover

  • It is an estimate. Your lender works out interest and fees its own way, so confirm every figure on the contract.
  • The payout you owe is not the balance on your statement. Ask your lender for a payout figure that includes interest to the day of payoff.
  • Rolling negative equity into a new loan can leave you owing more than the new car is worth. That makes the same problem bigger next time. The car payment calculator shows what a bigger loan does to your payment.

Common questions

What is negative equity on a car?

It means you owe more on the loan than the car is worth. It is common in the first years of a long loan, especially with a small down payment, because cars lose value faster than a loan is paid down.

Can I trade in a car with negative equity?

Yes. The dealer pays off the old loan and the shortfall is paid in cash or added to your new loan. Adding it means you pay interest on the old car's debt as well.

Is it better to roll negative equity into a new loan or pay it?

Paying it in cash costs less overall, because you avoid interest on it. If you cannot, rolling it in keeps the cash, but it raises the payment and the interest, and starts the new loan owing more than the car is worth.

How can I get out of negative equity?

Keep the car and make extra payments until you owe less than it is worth, wait for the value to catch up, or choose a cheaper car so the new loan stays small. Compare the options before you sign for a new car.

Where the numbers come from

Last checked against these official pages on 2026-10-07. Rates and rules change, so check the source before you rely on a figure.

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