<prompt> Human: Hi everyone I wanted to ask a what point does buying a new car make more sense than a used one? In other words how long would one have to keep it in both time andor mileage for it to be worth it. This question is independent of financing as we will likely just pay cash.  <response>: Buying a new car never makes financial sense. You will always be better off buying a used car, as youll be buying it after the depreciation has kicked in.As a benchmark, I like to assume a car is going to last 200,000 miles. Take that number of miles and prorate it against a new car vs a used car. For example, a used 2015 Toyota Camry LE with 30,000 miles costs around 15,500. A new one with 0 miles costs 23,700. The used one has 15 of its total miles used up but costs around 34 less money. There are other, non-financial reasons to buy new: you dont want to deal with repairsmaintenance for a while, you want a car that you know the history of, you want the prestige of buying a new car, etc. I know this is the Finance subreddit but buying a car is often a mix of finance and personal preference. If the issue was only finance, your best bet is to buy a well-maintained 15-20 year old Toyota Corolla for a few thousand bucks. It will get you anywhere you need to go and wont unexpectedly break down. But most people dont want to drive an old beat-up car if they dont have to. Its a great option if youre just getting through college or trying to pay off debt, but otherwise a good middle ground is to go with a used 3 year old vehicle. 