Your out-the-door (OTD) price is the purchase total before loan interest. In this worksheet, cash down and the net value of your trade-in are shown separately: they change how you pay for the purchase.
Have a written quote? Check its totals in the car deal checker. Enter the dollar amounts printed on the quote; the tool does not look up your local tax rate.
Table of Contents
- Turn the quote into two numbers
- Worked quote: $32,900 to buy, $29,900 to finance
- What to request when the numbers differ
- Next, check the loan
- Annotated quote: where a deposit and old loan go
- Does an OTD quote guarantee there are no unwanted charges?
- Request a quote you can actually compare
- Use the checker at the point where it helps
- One more question before you act
- Does asking for the OTD price remove unwanted add-ons?
Turn the quote into two numbers
First calculate the purchase total:
Selling price − eligible rebates + tax + title/registration + dealer fees + accepted add-ons = OTD.
Then reconcile the balance to finance:
OTD − cash upfront − trade-in value + old loan payoff = estimated balance to finance.
Count each item once. If the selling price already includes a discount, do not subtract it again. Include a deposit in total cash upfront only once. Use the quote's actual tax amount: trade-in tax treatment and rebate rules can affect it.
Keep separately charged financing costs visible. A lender origination charge may belong to the financing calculation rather than the vehicle purchase total. Ask how the dealer has classified it before comparing a buyer's order with a loan disclosure.
Worked quote: $32,900 to buy, $29,900 to finance
This is a fictional purchase, with no trade-in or rebate.
| Quote line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Selling price | $30,000 |
| Tax entered from the quote | $2,100 |
| Title and registration | $300 |
| Dealer fees | $500 |
| Add-ons | $0 |
| OTD purchase total | $32,900 |
| Cash upfront | −$3,000 |
| Estimated balance to finance | $29,900 |
If the dealer shows $30,900 to finance, the difference is $1,000. Ask which line accounts for it. A mismatch can mean a missing input, a differently classified charge, or an error; the calculation alone does not establish misconduct.
To reproduce the table, open the checker, choose Lower payment, higher cost, and read Offer A. Its purchase inputs match this example. Use Start fresh before entering your own numbers. Leave a quoted total blank if the dealer has not supplied it; zero means an actual $0 quote.
What to request when the numbers differ
Ask for an updated itemized quote showing the vehicle, rebate conditions, taxes, fees, add-ons, cash paid, trade credit, and payoff. The FTC recommends obtaining the OTD price in writing before discussing financing. FTC guidance
Suggested message: “Please show the purchase total before cash down and trade-in, then show how you reached the balance to finance. Which line explains the difference from my worksheet?”
Labels vary across documents. Compare what each total includes before deciding two numbers should match. Separate prepaid finance charges or other contract adjustments may need their own explanation; this worksheet does not reproduce every lender disclosure.
| What you have | What to do next |
|---|---|
| Only an advertised price | Request the itemized OTD quote; missing fees are not zero. |
| An OTD total but no breakdown | Request the component amounts before treating it as verified. |
| A matching worksheet | Review the individual charges and eligibility conditions. Arithmetic agreement is only one check. |
| A different financed balance | Compare cash, trade-in payoff, added products, and financing charges line by line. |
Next, check the loan
Once the purchase reconciles, compare the two financing offers. If an old loan is part of the transaction, use the trade-in debt example. For an extra product, check its financed cost.
The checker verifies arithmetic under your inputs. It does not decide whether a fee is lawful, confirm rebate eligibility, or approve a loan.
Annotated quote: where a deposit and old loan go
This second fictional quote adds a rebate, an accepted product and a trade-in with debt. The numbers are entered amounts, not state tax estimates.
| Written quote line | Amount | Where it goes in the checker |
|---|---|---|
| Negotiated selling price before rebate | $30,000 | Vehicle price |
| Eligible rebate, not already in the selling price | −$1,000 | Rebate |
| Quoted tax | $2,100 | Tax amount |
| Title and registration | $300 | Title / registration |
| Dealer fee | $500 | Dealer fees |
| Accepted optional product | $1,200 | Optional add-ons |
| Purchase total before interest | $33,100 | Compare with quoted OTD |
| Deposit already paid | $500 | Part of cash upfront |
| Additional cash due at signing | $3,500 | Cash upfront totals $4,000, including deposit |
| Trade allowance | −$18,000 | Trade-in value |
| Dated old-loan payoff | +$22,000 | Trade-in payoff |
| Balance to finance | $33,100 | Compare with quoted financed balance |
Purchase: $30,000 − $1,000 + $2,100 + $300 + $500 + $1,200 = $33,100. Borrowing: $33,100 − $4,000 − $18,000 + $22,000 = $33,100. The two totals happen to match because $4,000 cash offsets $4,000 negative equity. They measure different things.
Does an OTD quote guarantee there are no unwanted charges?
No. A total can include products you do not want and still add up correctly. Request an itemized quote without those products and check whether tax, price or an incentive changes. Do not assume every fee is negotiable or every add-on is mandatory.
When the seller uses “OTD” for a figure after cash or trade-in, ask for the purchase total before those offsets as well. When financing charges appear, ask which total includes them. A shared label does not make different totals comparable.
Request a quote you can actually compare
Please send an itemized written quote for this vehicle, showing the purchase total before cash down, trade-in and loan interest; each tax, fee and optional product; every rebate and its eligibility conditions; the deposit already paid; remaining cash due; trade allowance; dated payoff; and balance to finance. Please identify any price change tied to a particular financing source.
That request creates a record you can check. It is not a trick that forces a discount or obliges a seller to accept a price. The FTC recommends obtaining a written OTD price before discussing financing.
Use the checker at the point where it helps
Check your itemized quote to reconcile the entered totals and compare two proposals. The tool uses your amounts; it does not look up local tax or verify a fee's legal status. Complete the missing cost lines first: blank cost inputs are treated as zero by the calculator. Then follow the loan-offer comparison for the interest and repayment decision.
One more question before you act
Does asking for the OTD price remove unwanted add-ons?
No. An itemized total may still include products you do not want. Request a revised quote without them and check whether tax, price or incentives change.