Before you buy

Every purchase is a fork in the road. See where the other path leads.

Enter what you're about to spend. We'll show you what that same money could look like years from now — had it gone into the market instead.

today invest spend
$
$
or
%
7.0%
5 yrs
30 yrs
10.0%
3.0%

Default 10% reflects the S&P 500's long-run historical average annual return before inflation — a common stand-in for "the market." Adjust either slider to stress-test your own assumptions — past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

30-year opportunity cost
$697,600

That's what you'd be giving up by buying instead of investing — in today's dollars, after inflation.

Invested in the market
Estimated asset value

Assumes you actually invest the full monthly amount you'd otherwise pay for this — down payment today, then every loan payment, every month, without fail.

In plain terms

Enter a purchase above to see what it means in plain English.

The Breakdown
Assumptions & disclaimers
  • The financed comparison assumes perfect discipline. For car and house purchases, the "invested" line assumes you put the full down payment into the market today, then invest every single loan payment — the exact amount you'd otherwise send to the lender — every month, for the whole loan term, without skipping a payment or spending it elsewhere. Real budgets don't always work that way; this is a best-case ceiling, not a prediction.
  • Market return and inflation are editable estimates, not guarantees. The default 10% market return and 3% inflation are long-run historical averages. Actual future returns can be much lower, negative in some years, or higher — markets don't compound smoothly.
  • Asset value is a rough approximation. Cars are modeled at roughly 15% depreciation per year with a floor around 8% of the original price; homes at roughly 3.8% annual appreciation, the long-run US average. Your specific vehicle or property, and your local market, can differ substantially. "Subscription" and "Other" entries are treated as fully spent, with no resale value and no financing option — a subscription instead assumes you invest that same monthly amount every month.
  • Figures are shown in today's dollars. All "invested" values are discounted by your inflation assumption to reflect purchasing power, not the raw nominal total. The "Opportunity cost" figure specifically discounts both sides of the comparison the same way, so it fairly reflects real growth rather than mixing discounted and undiscounted dollars.
  • Opportunity cost is never shown as negative. At extreme slider settings — a very low market return combined with strong asset appreciation over a long horizon, for example — the underlying math can technically work out in favor of buying instead of investing. Rather than surface that as a "buying wins" result, this tool floors the figure at $0. This keeps the story simple and consistent, but it means the displayed number can understate how favorable buying looks under unusual assumptions.
  • This tool is for illustration only and is not financial, tax, or investment advice. Talk to a licensed advisor before making a real purchase or investment decision.