Which Cars Better to Lease or Buy
When it comes to leasing, depreciation cost will be the largest portion of your monthly payment. Depreciation is the difference between what the vehicle is worth at time of lease, and what it's worth at the end of your lease (called Residual Value). So it makes sense to lease a car with low depreciation cost, or put another way - high residual value.
Residual value is calculated as a percentage of MSRP. The higher the percentage, the lower your depreciation cost during a lease. For example, if a car has an MSRP of $30,000 and the leasing company has calculated a residual value of 50% after 36 months, that means the total depreciation cost will be $15,000 (that's if you purchase the car at MSRP, which you better not do if you're reading RealCarTips - any price you negotiate below MSRP will reduce your overall depreciation cost).
Below, you'll find a list of the vehicles with the highest 36-month residual values. These are the vehicles you will be paying the least when it comes to depreciation - and which may be better to lease than to purchase, especially if you plan to keep it for only 3 years and not drive more than 12,000 miles per year. The vehicle with the best residual value right now is the 2022 Nissan Frontier, with a residual value of 77% over 3 years. With an MSRP of $40,155, that means it will depreciate by only about $11,000 over 3 years (if you were to pay full MSRP).
Keep in mind residual values are best-guess estimates, and sometimes leasing companies set them higher than what they actually expect the vehicle to be worth (as a hidden incentive so lease payments are lower). And sometimes, market conditions change during the lease, and the actual worth of the vehicle ends up being way lower than the residual "guesstimate". Since the residual value is set in stone, this is why these vehicles may be a better choice to lease than purchase, especially the ones with residuals over 60%.
However, not all vehicles with high residual values offer good lease deals (due to other factors such as interest rates and other fees). For these types of deals, it's better to purchase the vehicle rather than lease - check out the final column in the table below to see if it's better to lease or buy the vehicle if you're planning to keep it short-term.
As always, I recommend using TrueCar No Haggle and CarsDirect to see the lowest prices your local dealers are willing to offer on these leases.
Better to Lease or Buy
| Rank | Vehicle | Trim | MSRP | Lease Payment ($0 Down) | Residual | Better To... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2022 Nissan Frontier | SV CC () | $40,155 | $493 | 77.0% | Buy |
| 2 | 2022 Toyota Venza | LE | $34,439 | $393 | 69.0% | Lease |
| 3 | 2022 Subaru Ascent | $33,970 | $400 | 68.0% | Buy | |
| 4 | 2022 Subaru Forester | $27,070 | $318 | 68.0% | Buy | |
| 5 | 2022 Honda Ridgeline | RTL-E | $45,365 | $539 | 68.0% | Buy |
| 6 | 2022 Subaru Crosstrek | Base | $25,670 | $306 | 67.0% | Buy |
| 7 | 2022 Toyota RAV4 | LE | $29,409 | $364 | 66.0% | Buy |
| 8 | 2022 Subaru Impreza | Impreza | $21,590 | $265 | 66.0% | Buy |
| 9 | 2022 Subaru Outback | Base | $28,820 | $338 | 66.0% | Buy |
| 10 | 2022 Hyundai Tucson | $28,345 | $350 | 63.0% | Buy | |
| 11 | 2022 Subaru Legacy | Base | $24,490 | $290 | 63.0% | Buy |
| 12 | 2022 Hyundai Sonata | SE | $25,545 | $302 | 63.0% | Buy |
| 13 | 2022 Toyota RAV4 Prime | SE | $42,680 | $450 | 62.0% | Lease |
| 14 | 2022 Toyota C-HR | LE | $25,518 | $306 | 62.0% | Buy |
| 15 | 2022 Honda Pilot | Special Edition | $42,755 | $525 | 62.0% | Buy |
| 16 | 2022 Mazda CX-9 | Sport | $36,855 | $457 | 60.0% | Buy |
| 17 | 2022 Hyundai Venue | SE | $20,245 | $235 | 60.0% | Lease |
| 18 | 2022 Toyota Prius Prime | LE | $29,504 | $335 | 59.0% | Lease |
| 19 | 2022 Hyundai Nexo | $60,680 | $617 | 58.0% | Lease | |
| 20 | 2022 Hyundai Kona EV | $35,245 | $360 | 58.0% | Lease | |
| 21 | 2022 Hyundai Ioniq | $27,845 | $292 | 58.0% | Lease | |
| 22 | 2022 Kia Niro EV | EX | $41,245 | $388 | 55.0% | Lease |
| 23 | 2022 Mazda MX-30 | $34,695 | $355 | 52.0% | Lease | |
| 24 | 2022 Ford Edge | SE | $38,640 | $469 | 51.0% | Buy |
| 25 | 2022 Jeep Wrangler | Unlimited Sport | $37,190 | $425 | % | Lease |
| 26 | 2022 Dodge Durango | R/T | $55,385 | $533 | % | Lease |
| 27 | 2022 Chevrolet Camaro | LT1 | $37,665 | $362 | % | Lease |
| 28 | 2021 Jeep Cherokee | Latitude Lux | $34,000 | $370 | % | Lease |
| 29 | 2022 GMC Canyon | Short Elevation | $34,765 | $371 | % | Lease |
| 30 | 2022 Chevrolet Equinox | LT | $28,970 | $299 | % | Lease |
| 31 | 2022 Buick Enclave | Essence | $44,870 | $470 | % | Lease |
| 32 | 2022 GMC Terrain | SLE | $29,970 | $349 | % | Lease |
| 33 | 2022 Chevrolet Traverse | LT | $38,270 | $439 | % | Lease |
| 34 | 2022 Jeep Gladiator | Sport S | $44,475 | $440 | % | Lease |
| 35 | 2022 Cadillac XT5 | Luxury | $46,065 | $564 | % | Buy |
| 36 | 2022 Dodge Charger | SXT | $32,945 | $396 | % | Buy |
| 37 | 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee WK | Laredo E | $38,575 | $432 | % | Lease |
| 38 | 2022 Ram 1500 Classic | Warlock | $42,430 | $406 | % | Lease |
| 39 | 2022 Chevrolet Bolt | LT | $34,870 | $305 | % | Lease |
| 40 | 2022 Jeep Wrangler 4xe | Sahara 4xe | $55,785 | $470 | % | Lease |
| 41 | 2022 Chevrolet Colorado | LT | $36,470 | $400 | % | Lease |
| 42 | 2021 Jeep Renegade | Latitude | $29,465 | $353 | % | Buy |
| 43 | 2022 Toyota Tundra | SR5 | $42,305 | $451 | % | Lease |
| 44 | 2022 GMC Sierra 1500 limited | Elevation | $51,065 | $571 | % | Lease |
| 45 | 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 | LTD LT (2FL) | $47,850 | $439 | % | Lease |
| 46 | 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV | SEL 1AT | $38,520 | $425 | % | Lease |
| 47 | 2022 Cadillac CT4 | excluding V Premium Luxury | $39,665 | $487 | % | Buy |
| 48 | 2022 Volvo V60 | Recharge Polester Engineered Range | $68,395 | $832 | % | Buy |
| 49 | 2022 Chevrolet Trax | LT | $25,890 | $272 | % | Lease |
| 50 | 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee L | Limited | $47,515 | $538 | % | Lease |
| 51 | 2022 Ram 1500 | BIG Horn | $42,985 | $408 | % | Lease |
| 52 | 2022 Chevrolet Blazer | LT | $35,470 | $400 | % | Lease |
3 Steps Every Car Buyer Needs to Take to Save Maximum Money
The key to getting the best deal is to gather price or lease bids from as many local dealers as possible. Then shop that best price around until no one can beat it. Here are the steps:Step 1 Get Prices From My Trusted Network
Select the vehicle you're interested in to see if there are local dealers in my network who will provide you with their best upfront price. You will get direct access to an internet sales manager who you can further negotiate with online (no need to visit dealership).Step 2 Get Prices From TrueCar / CarsDirect
TrueCar, and CarsDirect are my top 2 online price quote recommendations. These services show you pre-negotiated prices from dealers closest to you - and the deals are usually pretty decent. But remember, you can still negotiate further.Step 3 Complete my Checklist
Follow this up with my checklist to make sure you squeeze out every last bit of savings.- Gregg Fidan
Each week, I'll keep you up-to-date on the latest car deals and news that might affect your purchase. This includes...
- Best Rebates, Incentives, and Lease Deals
- Latest Car Buying Scams and Tricks
- The Best & Worst Time to Buy a Car
- Which Cars You Should Avoid
About The Author
Gregg Fidan is the founder of RealCarTips. After being ripped off on his first car purchase, he devoted several years to figuring out the best ways to avoid scams and negotiate
the best car deals. He has written hundreds of articles on the subject of car buying and taught thousands of car shoppers how to get the best deals.
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