The best way to determine what your next car loan will cost or how much you can save by refinancing your current auto loan is to go online and find a lender that has a car finance calculator on their site. This tool works if you are looking to buy a new or used car or if you are trying to refinance a car you already have. These types of calculators can be very useful toward helping you determine what you can afford or if refinancing how much money you can save. Following are some quick tips for using a car finance calculator:

First – make sure the car finance calculator you choose is one that can calculate payments. It should have you input three to five items to get an accurate payment. The first thing it will ask is how much are you trying to finance.

Second – some calculators will ask for the amount of down payment you are planning on. If the car finance calculator you find does not, then go to step three. If it does, enter the amount you are planning to put down. Remember that a down payment is usually required for a new car purchase but typically not for a refinance.

Third – determine how long you want to finance your car loan. The most common term today is 60 months but many borrowers finance shorter than that or even longer. The lender you choose or the vehicle you are financing will be a determining factor.

Lastly – You should enter the annual percentage rate. If you don’t know what that will be, you can estimate on what you are expecting from the lender.

Once you have input all of this information into the car finance calculator, you can then see your estimated payment.  These calculators are used for illustrative purposes only and may not be reflect the exact payment you will have. They will, however, give you an accurate estimation on what to expect.