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How-to guide

How to Calculate Car Depreciation: Formula, Steps & Examples

Learn how to calculate Car Depreciation — the formula explained step by step, with worked examples and a free calculator to check your answer.

By Arjun Desai, B.Tech (Engineering) · Updated Jun 2026 · 2 min read

Calculating your value after depreciation is straightforward once you know the Car Depreciation formula and what each input means. This guide explains the method in plain language, walks through a manual calculation, and gives worked examples you can follow — then you can do it instantly with the Car Depreciation Calculator.

What is Car Depreciation?

The Car Depreciation calculation tells you your value after depreciation from a few simple inputs. The figure you are solving for here is the value after depreciation, expressed in INR.

The Car Depreciation formula

The core formula is:

Value after depreciation = Purchase price × (1 - Annual depreciation rate ÷ 100)^(Years owned)

Here is what each input means:

  • Purchase price — a money amount. Example: ₹10,00,000.
  • Annual depreciation rate — a percentage, such as an annual rate. Example: 15%.
  • Years owned — a number. Example: 5.

How to calculate it step by step

  • Write down the purchase price (for example, ₹10,00,000).
  • Write down the annual depreciation rate (for example, 15%).
  • Write down the years owned (for example, 5).
  • Apply the formula above to get your value after depreciation.
  • Double-check the result with the Car Depreciation Calculator.

Worked examples

Example 1

Input / OutputValue
Purchase price₹10,00,000
Annual depreciation rate15%
Years owned5
Value after depreciation₹4,43,705
Total depreciation₹5,56,295

With purchase price of ₹10,00,000, annual depreciation rate of 15% and years owned of 5, the value after depreciation works out to ₹4,43,705.

Example 2

With purchase price of ₹20,00,000, annual depreciation rate of 15% and years owned of 5, the value after depreciation works out to ₹8,87,411.

ResultValue
Value after depreciation₹8,87,411
Total depreciation₹11,12,589

Example 3

With purchase price of ₹5,00,000, annual depreciation rate of 15% and years owned of 5, the value after depreciation works out to ₹2,21,853.

ResultValue
Value after depreciation₹2,21,853
Total depreciation₹2,78,147

Tips for an accurate result

  • Keep your units consistent — mixing, say, months with years or grams with kilograms is the most common source of error.
  • Round only at the very end. Rounding inputs early can shift the final answer noticeably.
  • Re-run the numbers whenever an input changes, rather than estimating from an old result.

Prefer not to do the maths by hand? — the Car Depreciation Calculator does it instantly, for free, with the formula and a worked example built in.

Continue exploring automotive calculators with these tools: Engine Displacement Calculator, Compression Ratio Calculator, Horsepower to Torque Calculator, Gear Ratio Calculator, Tire Size Calculator.

Calculators in this guide

Frequently asked questions

The formula is: Value after depreciation = Purchase price × (1 - Annual depreciation rate ÷ 100)^(Years owned). With purchase price of ₹10,00,000, annual depreciation rate of 15% and years owned of 5, the value after depreciation works out to ₹4,43,705.

Gather each input, apply the formula step by step keeping your units consistent, and round only at the end. You can verify your answer instantly with the Car Depreciation Calculator.

It uses the standard formula with exact arithmetic, so the result is correct for the inputs you enter. Bear in mind that real-world outcomes can still differ when underlying assumptions change.

The value after depreciation is expressed in INR. Make sure your inputs use matching units so the result is correct.

Arjun Desai · B.Tech (Engineering)

Arjun Desai is an engineer who writes about the practical physics, electronics and energy calculations behind everyday technology.