Buy vs Rent Breakeven Calculator
Use this free buy vs rent breakeven calculator to answer one focused question: how many years until buying beats renting? Enter the home price, rent and a few assumptions, and get the breakeven year straight away.
The chart shows the cumulative net cost of each path crossing over — the moment ownership pulls ahead once you account for appreciation, rent growth, and the investment returns a renter earns on money not tied up in a down payment. No account, no sign-up, no spreadsheet.
▶ Assumptions
Lower is better. Each line is the true cost of that path — cash spent minus what you'd keep (home equity for buying, investment gains for renting). Where buying drops below renting is your breakeven.
Estimates are for illustration and education only. Results are highly sensitive to your assumptions about appreciation, rent growth and investment returns — try a range.
How breakeven is found
The tool tracks the true cumulative cost of each path, year by year, and finds where they cross. Buying looks expensive early because of the down payment and closing costs; renting looks cheap early but never builds equity. Over time the lines cross — that's your breakeven.
When does buying win?
Three price-to-rent situations. Load any one into the calculator and adjust from there.
How to use the breakeven calculator
Four short steps. Change any field and the breakeven year and chart update instantly.
Enter price and rent
The home you'd buy and the rent for a comparable place. This price-to-rent gap drives everything.
Set the financing
Down payment, mortgage rate and term determine your payment and how much cash is tied up upfront.
Check the assumptions
Appreciation, rent growth, investment return and costs are where the answer really lives — adjust to your view.
Read the breakeven
Compare the breakeven year to how long you plan to stay. Staying past it favors buying; leaving before it favors renting.
The breakeven horizon
The single most useful number in the buy-versus-rent debate is the breakeven horizon: how long you must own before buying costs less than renting. It cuts through the emotion and the "renting is throwing money away" clichés with one honest figure.
Why buying starts out behind
Buying front-loads big costs — the down payment, closing costs, and in the early years a mortgage payment that's mostly interest. Renting has none of those, and a disciplined renter can invest the down payment instead. So for the first few years, renting is almost always cheaper.
Why buying catches up
Every month you own, you build a little equity and your fixed mortgage stays put while rents climb. Appreciation adds to your equity, and eventually the growing gap between rising rent and your steady payment — plus the equity you've built — overtakes the renter's invested savings. That crossover is the breakeven.
The assumptions matter most
This result swings hard on three inputs: home appreciation, rent growth, and the investment return a renter earns. Optimistic appreciation makes buying win fast; a high investment return makes renting compelling for longer. Always test a range rather than trusting a single scenario.
Who it's for
Anyone weighing whether to buy now or keep renting, especially if they're unsure how long they'll stay. You only need the price and rent to get a first answer.
Want a full year-by-year comparison instead of just the breakeven? Try the rent vs buy calculator, or browse all our free tools.