Lease or Finance? We Ran the Math on America's 10 Best-Selling Cars

Lease a new Ford F-150 and you pay $127 a month less than the neighbor who finances the same truck. Ten years later, the lease has cost $54,460 more. We ran the same math on America's ten best-selling vehicles, with each brand's own lease program from October 2026: same price, same 6.35% rate on both sides, $0 down on the lease, 10% down and 60 months on the loan. Leasing wins at three years on only 2 of the 10. Buying starts to win somewhere between 1 yr 8 mo and 3 yr 2 mo. Free calculator, run your own car, miles, state and dealer offer: https://realnumberscalc.com/lease-vs-... 0:00 Lease or finance? 0:37 Three drivers 1:04 The rules 1:19 How a lease is priced 2:03 Dave, year by year 3:19 Maya, the swapper 4:15 The worst truck to own 5:04 All ten 5:37 The mileage myth 6:21 The new tax break 7:34 Luis: the work truck 8:29 How sure are we? 9:04 The answer 9:46 Your numbers LEASE VS FINANCE, 12,000 MILES A YEAR (lease = back-to-back 3-year leases; finance = buy, keep, sell at market value) • Toyota Corolla LE: lease $335/mo vs loan $434/mo · buying wins after 1 yr 8 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $3,135 · after 10 yrs financing saves $26,787 • Toyota RAV4 LE Hybrid: lease $406/mo vs loan $594/mo · buying wins after 1 yr 11 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $3,757 · after 10 yrs financing saves $28,058 • Honda CR-V LX: lease $454/mo vs loan $570/mo · buying wins after 2 yr · after 3 yrs lease costs $4,572 · after 10 yrs financing saves $33,108 • Toyota Tacoma SR5: lease $480/mo vs loan $749/mo · buying wins after 2 yr 4 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $2,982 · after 10 yrs financing saves $37,695 • Toyota Camry LE Hybrid: lease $416/mo vs loan $548/mo · buying wins after 2 yr 6 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $1,758 · after 10 yrs financing saves $30,359 • Ford F-150 STX: lease $780/mo vs loan $907/mo · buying wins after 2 yr 10 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $1,300 · after 10 yrs financing saves $54,460 • Chevy Silverado 1500 LT: lease $812/mo vs loan $944/mo · buying wins after 2 yr 10 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $1,234 · after 10 yrs financing saves $57,947 • GMC Sierra 1500 Elevation: lease $851/mo vs loan $990/mo · buying wins after 2 yr 11 mo · after 3 yrs lease costs $406 · after 10 yrs financing saves $62,010 • Nissan Rogue SV: lease $552/mo vs loan $625/mo · buying wins after 3 yr 1 mo · after 3 yrs lease saves $353 · after 10 yrs financing saves $38,827 • Ram 1500 Big Horn: lease $946/mo vs loan $1,052/mo · buying wins after 3 yr 2 mo · after 3 yrs lease saves $1,830 · after 10 yrs financing saves $65,351 THE NEW TAX BREAK: interest on a loan for a new US-assembled car is deductible up to $10,000 a year, 2025–2028, even if you don't itemize (phases out above $100,000 of income, $200,000 joint). Leases don't qualify. On the F-150 it saves about $1,114 at a 22% bracket, and it moves break-even about two months earlier. WORK TRUCK (self-employed, 20,000 miles a year, 80% business, Silverado over 6,000 lb): over 6 years the lease costs $30,200 more before tax and $23,696 more after tax. SOURCES (checked Oct 17, 2026) • Best-sellers: best-selling-cars.com, USA top 10 vehicle models, January–September 2026 (manufacturer sales reports) • Loan rate: Experian, State of the Automotive Finance Market, Q2 2026 (average new-car APR 6.35%) • Sales tax: Tax Foundation, 2026 midyear sales tax rates (average combined state and local 7.53%) • Lease programs, October 2026: Ford Credit (F-150), GM Financial (Silverado, Sierra), Stellantis (Ram 1500), Toyota Financial Services (RAV4, Camry, Tacoma, Corolla), Honda Financial Services (CR-V), NMAC (Rogue): MSRP, residual, miles, fees • Resale value by age and maintenance by year: CarEdge, per model • Car-loan interest deduction: One Big Beautiful Bill Act sec. 70203; IRS final regulations T.D. 10054 • Final assembly: NHTSA American Automobile Labeling Act report, model year 2026 • Business use: IRS Pub. 463 and 946; IRS Notice 2026-10 (mileage rate) Narration: AI voice (ElevenLabs). Animations are original. For education, not financial advice. Music (YouTube Audio Library): "Deep Space Sector 9" by Ezra Lipp · "Tratak" by Jesse Gallagher · "Pulsar" by The Grey Room / Density & Time · "Radio Flyer" by Nathan Moore How many years do you usually keep a car? Tell us in the comments. #LeaseVsBuy #CarLease #PersonalFinance