How to calculate true cost of car ownership — TCO and hidden costs
How much does a car really cost? Complete TCO calculator — insurance, fuel, service, depreciation, and hidden costs of owning a car in Poland.
12 min czytaniaWhy purchase price is just the beginning?
When buying a car for 50,000 PLN, most people think that's their cost. In reality, over 5 years of ownership you'll spend 150,000-250,000 PLN on that car. The purchase price is often less than 30% of the total cost of ownership (TCO — Total Cost of Ownership).
Components of car TCO
1. Depreciation (value loss)
This is the biggest and most often ignored cost. A new car loses:
- First year: 15-25% of value
- Three years: 40-50% of value
- Five years: 55-70% of value
Example: Car bought for 100,000 PLN after 5 years is worth 30,000-45,000 PLN. You lost 55,000-70,000 PLN — that's 11,000-14,000 PLN annually, just from value loss.
2. Fuel
| Annual mileage | Consumption | Fuel cost/year |
|---|---|---|
| 10,000 km | 7 l/100km | ~4,600 PLN |
| 15,000 km | 7 l/100km | ~6,900 PLN |
| 20,000 km | 7 l/100km | ~9,200 PLN |
| 30,000 km | 7 l/100km | ~13,800 PLN |
*At gasoline price ~6.60 PLN/l
3. Insurance
- OC (mandatory) — 500-3,000 PLN/year (depends on age, city, history)
- AC (comprehensive) — 2-5% of car value annually
- NNW (accident insurance) — 50-200 PLN/year
- Assistance — 100-400 PLN/year
For car worth 80,000 PLN: total 3,000-7,000 PLN/year
4. Service and repairs
- Annual inspection — 100-200 PLN
- Oil service — 300-800 PLN (every 15-20k km)
- Tires — seasonal change: 200-400 PLN + new tires every 3-4 years: 1,200-4,000 PLN
- Timing belt — 1,500-4,000 PLN (every 100-150k km)
- Brakes — 800-2,000 PLN (every 40-60k km)
- Surprises — buffer 2,000-5,000 PLN/year
5. Registration and taxes
- Excise tax (for imports) — 3.1% or 18.6% (displacement > 2000 cm³)
- Civil law transactions tax — 2% of sale-purchase agreement
- Technical inspection — 99-162 PLN/year
6. Parking and tolls
- Home parking — 0-500 PLN/month (in big cities)
- Work parking — 0-300 PLN/month
- Highways — 500-2,000 PLN/year (with regular driving)
- Parking zones — cards, parking meters
7. Financing
If you buy on credit:
- Interest — additional 10-30% of car value over credit period
- Leasing — installment + buyout + GAP insurance
Complete TCO — example
Car: Compact for 80,000 PLN, 15,000 km/year mileage, 5 years ownership
| Cost | Annually | 5 years |
|---|---|---|
| Depreciation | 10,000 PLN | 50,000 PLN |
| Fuel | 6,900 PLN | 34,500 PLN |
| Insurance (OC+AC) | 4,000 PLN | 20,000 PLN |
| Service and repairs | 3,000 PLN | 15,000 PLN |
| Tires | 800 PLN | 4,000 PLN |
| Parking | 1,200 PLN | 6,000 PLN |
| Inspections, taxes | 300 PLN | 1,500 PLN |
| TOTAL | 26,200 PLN | 131,000 PLN |
That's 2,183 PLN monthly — or 1.75 PLN for each kilometer driven.
Car vs alternatives
| Option | Monthly cost | When profitable |
|---|---|---|
| Own car | 2,000-3,000 PLN | >15,000 km/year, outside city |
| Public transport | 100-200 PLN | City center |
| Car sharing | 500-1,500 PLN | Occasional needs |
| Bike + public transport | 150-300 PLN | Close to work, good climate |
| Taxi/Uber | 500-2,000 PLN | <500 km/month |
How Freenance can help
Freenance allows you to track car value as an asset (including depreciation) and all costs related to its maintenance. You see the true cost of car ownership in one place — and can make an informed decision whether a car pays off, or better to switch to alternatives.
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