Calculators › Kentucky

Private Sale vs Trade-In Calculator

Compare what you'd really net selling privately versus trading in, including Kentucky's usage tax savings on your next vehicle.

Selling privately

Expected private sale price

Selling costs (ads, detailing, small repairs)

Hours spent (listing, messages, showings)

What your time is worth per hour (optional)

Trading in

Trade-in offer

Price of the vehicle you're buying

Difference–

Private sale nets–

Trade-in nets–

Tax savings from the trade–

Estimates only. This isn't tax, legal, or financial advice. Your county clerk figures the actual usage tax, and your lender sets your actual rate and payment.

How it works

Private sale: the price you expect, minus what it costs to sell (ads, cleanup, small repairs) and, if you want, a value for your time.

Trade-in: the trade offer, plus the Kentucky usage tax you save on your next vehicle. Kentucky taxes the price minus your trade-in allowance, so a trade saves 6% of the trade value (how that works). If you sell privately and then buy, there's no trade to subtract.

Trading is often the smart default because of that tax credit and because the dealer handles the title and payoff, so there's no county clerk or bank trip. But if a private buyer will pay enough more to cover the tax savings and your time, selling privately can come out ahead, and this calculator will say so. Some things don't fit in a number: meeting strangers, test drives, and payment scams. The used-vehicle book-value floor isn't modeled here; see the usage tax calculator for that.

Full comparison: Should I sell or trade?

Want a real number on your car?Cal looks at every request personally.

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