Spreadsheet: Cost of Car Ownership Calculator

Some of the episodes in my new podcast series Teaching You to Fisch (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube) include spreadsheets I’ve created to illustrate particular topics. Some of them are modifications of spreadsheets I’ve used before and some are newly created. Because not everyone is going to choose to watch/listen to the podcasts (they are really missing out, of course), I decided I also should make individual blogs posts that just highlight the spreadsheets. That way some folks may be able to use them who otherwise wouldn’t bother with the podcast.

The second spreadsheet is a Cost of Car Ownership Calculator (when you click on the link it will ask if you want to make a copy, click “Make a copy” to get an editable version). The basic idea is to take a closer look at what owning your car(s) is actually costing you. There are two options, one tab that looks at the cost of your commute (including the opportunity cost of the time of your commute), and one tab that looks at your yearly cost. The spreadsheet will not only calculate your yearly cost, but how much that would grow to if you instead were able to invest that money over time (with a default of 30 years). The spreadsheet has some sample numbers already listed, but you will want to modify them to match your situation.

If you want a more detailed walk through of how to use the spreadsheet, this links directly to the specific spot in Episode 4 where I illustrate how to use it (roughly from 9:17 to 13:20 of the video). This exercise illustrates how much your car(s) is really costing you, and encourages you to look more closely at ways to reduce this expense (shortening or eliminating your commute, buying a used vehicle, buying more economical vehicles, driving less by combining or eliminating trips, etc.).