Rent vs. Buy Calculator

How to use this calculator

1. Enter the home price, your down payment and the mortgage rate you'd realistically get. The example uses 2026 U.S. reference values: 350,000 at 6.5% over 30 years.
2. Check the cost of owning. Property tax, insurance and maintenance are entered as a percentage of the home's value, plus any HOA fee. They're easy to forget and they change the answer.
3. Enter the rent you'd pay for an equivalent place, and how much you expect it to rise each year.
4. Set how long you plan to stay. That's the single input that flips the result most. Move it and watch the two curves.

The break-even year is the whole question

Buying front-loads costs: closing costs when you buy, agent fees when you sell, and early mortgage payments that are nearly all interest. That hole takes years to fill. Meanwhile the renter isn't standing still: they keep the down payment invested and that money grows.

The break-even year is where the two accumulated-cost curves cross. With 2026 rates around 6.5%, it usually lands somewhere between five and seven years. Below that, renting normally wins; past it, ownership pulls ahead and keeps pulling. So the real question isn't "rent or buy" in the abstract — it's how long you're staying.

What the price-to-rent ratio tells you

Divide the home price by a full year of rent for a similar place. Under 15 the market leans toward buying; between 15 and 20 it's a coin flip decided by your horizon; above 20 the home is expensive relative to rent, and renting while investing the difference usually comes out ahead. It's a fast read on the market before you run the full numbers.

If you're weighing a mortgage against other uses of your money, our piece on paying off your mortgage early versus investing covers the other half of the decision. And before you take on a mortgage at all, it's worth checking what counts as a good debt-to-income ratio.

Frequently asked questions

How does the calculator decide when buying wins?

It simulates both paths year by year. On the buying side it adds up everything that leaves your pocket (down payment, closing costs, mortgage payments, property tax, insurance, maintenance and HOA) and subtracts the equity you'd walk away with if you sold that year, after selling costs. On the renting side it adds up the rent and subtracts what your down payment would have earned if you had invested it instead. The break-even year is the first year the buying line falls below the renting line.

What is the price-to-rent ratio?

It's the home price divided by a year of rent for a similar place. Under 15, homes are cheap next to renting and buying usually pays off. Between 15 and 20 there's no clear winner. Above 20, renting and investing the difference usually wins. It's a quick sanity check on the market, not a verdict on your situation.

Why does the down payment count as an opportunity cost?

Because a renter keeps that cash. If a buyer puts 70,000 into a house, a renter could invest the same 70,000. The gain that money would have made is a real advantage of renting, so we subtract it from the renter's cost to compare both sides fairly.

Why is buying so expensive in the first years?

Closing costs when you buy and agent fees when you sell can add up to roughly 9% of the price, and early mortgage payments are almost all interest. That's why a short stay usually favors renting: you pay the transaction costs without enough time to make them back.

Does the calculator store my data?

No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing is sent or saved. Reloading the page resets it to the example.

This tool is educational and provides estimates. It is not financial, tax, or real-estate advice. Rates, taxes, transaction costs and market behavior vary by country and by city, and the assumptions you enter (appreciation, rent increases, investment returns) are projections, not guarantees.