Rent vs. Buy Calculator
Compare the real cost of buying a home against renting and investing the difference, see which builds more net worth, and the year buying breaks even.
Mortgage, taxes, maintenance, appreciation, and closing/selling costs all included.
Renting ahead by $59,124 after 10 years
Net worth if you buy: $321,777 · if you rent & invest: $380,902. Renting stays ahead the whole 10 years.
Renting is ahead at these numbers. Each line changes one thing and keeps the rest as entered.
- Staying longer: buying does not catch up with renting within 40 years at these numbers.
- A cheaper home: at about $442,960 (11.4% lower) buying draws level at 10 years.
- Higher rent: if rent were about $2,807 a month instead of $2,500, buying draws level.
- Faster appreciation: if the home gained about 4.5% a year instead of 3.5%, buying draws level.
| Appreciation | 5.0% return | 7.0% return | 9.0% return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5% a year | -$107,815 | -$161,627 | -$224,394 |
| 3.5% a year | -$4,361 | -$59,124 | -$122,919 |
| 5.5% a year | +$119,816 | +$64,029 | -$871 |
Replace a planning assumption with a real quote, such as your lender's rate or an agent's selling cost, to firm up the answer.
- Home price$500,000Sample value
- Down payment20%Sample value
- Mortgage rate6.75%Planning assumption
- Loan term30 yearsSample value
- Property tax1.1% a yearPlanning assumption
- Home insurance$150 a monthPlanning assumption
- Maintenance1% a yearPlanning assumption
- Closing costs2.5% of pricePlanning assumption
- Home appreciation3.5% a yearPlanning assumption
- Selling costs6% of pricePlanning assumption
- Mortgage-interest tax benefit0%Planning assumption
- Monthly rent$2,500Sample value
- Rent growth3% a yearPlanning assumption
- Renter's insurance$15 a monthPlanning assumption
- Investment return7% a yearPlanning assumption
- Years you'll stay10Sample value
Planning assumption · Sample value. Planning assumptions are the site's starting estimates, not quotes or forecasts. Sample values are placeholders until you enter your own.
How this calculator works
The honest way to compare renting and buying isn't monthly payment vs. rent, it's net worth. This tool runs a month-by-month simulation of both paths. The buyer builds equity as they pay down the mortgage and the home appreciates; the renter invests the cash a buyer would tie up (down payment and closing costs), plus whatever they save whenever renting costs less than owning.
At the end, it compares what each person could walk away with, the buyer's home equity net of selling costs vs. the renter's investment portfolio, and finds the year the two cross, your break-even point.
Equity + appreciation vs. invested savings.
How long you'd need to stay for buying to win.
Taxes, maintenance, HOA, closing and selling costs.
What the renter earns investing instead.
Good to know
Results are very sensitive to two guesses: home appreciation and investment return. Try a range for both.
The biggest driver is usually how long you'll stay, transaction costs make short stays favor renting.
This doesn't model income-tax effects (mortgage-interest/SALT deductions, investment taxes), PMI, or moving costs.
It's a planning comparison, not financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
How does this calculator work?+
Is it cheaper to rent or buy?+
What's the break-even point?+
Does it include tax benefits of owning?+
Keep planning your home purchase
Once you've decided, size up the payment and what you can afford.
Sources and limits
Written and maintained by Relocation By Numbers. Sources and limits reviewed October 13, 2026. Found a mistake? Tell us in the feedback box below. Full methodology
City rent, home-price and property-tax defaults come from the Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 (tables B25113, B25109, B25058, B25064, B25077 and B25103). City price levels for housing, goods, utilities and other services come from BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. Insurance and closing-cost defaults, and the dollar budgets for groceries, utilities, transportation, healthcare and childcare, are planning assumptions, not government data; the price-level indexes only scale them by city.
Not included
- Does not model income-tax effects (mortgage-interest or SALT deductions, investment taxes), PMI or moving costs.
- Results are highly sensitive to the appreciation and investment-return assumptions.