Total Cost of Ownership Calculator
Compare two equipment, vehicle, or system options on everything they will cost over their life, not just the sticker price.
Example scenario—not a forecast or verified benchmark. Enable JavaScript to edit inputs, view charts, save locally and export your analysis.
Example inputs
- Name
- Budget model
- Purchase price
- 85,000
- Installation, integration & training (one-time)
- 8,000
- Annual maintenance, service & parts
- 8,000
- Annual operating cost (energy, consumables, licenses)
- 14,000
- Expected unplanned downtime
- 40
- Resale / salvage value at end of life (net of disposal)
- 8,000
- Name
- Premium model
- Purchase price
- 120,000
- Installation, integration & training (one-time)
- 10,000
- Annual maintenance, service & parts
- 5,000
- Annual operating cost (energy, consumables, licenses)
- 11,000
- Expected unplanned downtime
- 15
- Resale / salvage value at end of life (net of disposal)
- 25,000
- Ownership period
- 7
- Cost of one hour of downtime
- 500
- Annual cost escalation
- 3
- Discount rate (cost of capital)
- 8
Example results
Premium model has the lower total cost of ownership: $248K vs. $326K in present value over 7 years, a $77K advantage despite the higher sticker price.
- Lower-TCO option
- Premium model
- Lifetime savings (present value)
- $77,400
- Budget model TCO (PV)
- $325,532
- Premium model TCO (PV)
- $248,132
- Lifetime savings (undiscounted)
- $121,756
- Budget model cost per year
- $58,118
- Premium model cost per year
- $40,724
- Year Premium model breaks even
- 2
What stands out
Sticker price is only 21% (Budget model) and 42% (Premium model) of lifetime cost
Over 7 years, running costs, downtime and resale decide the winner more than the purchase price.
Premium model costs more upfront but wins by $77K in present value
It catches up with Budget model in year 2.
Downtime swings the result by $96K
At $500/hr, reliability is a major driver. Validate downtime hours with references or service records.
Next actions
- Ask both vendors for documented uptime, service response times, and maintenance schedules; downtime and maintenance are 45% of combined lifetime cost here.
- Negotiate on lifetime terms (extended warranty, included service, guaranteed buyback) rather than purchase price alone.
- Re-run with a shorter and longer ownership period; if the winner flips, the decision depends on how long you will really keep the asset.
Model assumptions & limitations
- Maintenance, operating, and downtime costs rise 3% a year; present value uses a 8% discount rate.
- Purchase and setup are paid in year 0; resale is received at the end of the final year.
- Taxes, depreciation, and financing costs are excluded.
- All inputs are your estimates; defaults are illustrative only.