Step 1: Enter vehicle and on-road details
Start with the vehicle price (including GST). Then set your state — this determines stamp duty brackets, registration, and CTP estimates. The on-road cost section updates automatically.
- Vehicle class — passenger or light commercial. This affects stamp duty in several states (e.g., NSW charges different rates for passenger vs commercial).
- Business use toggle — for business buyers, stamp duty concessions apply in some states, and you may be able to claim GST on the vehicle purchase.
- Fuel efficient/EV toggle — activates the higher LCT threshold ($91,387 for FY2024–25) for qualifying fuel-efficient vehicles, and flags applicable state EV rebates. Note: the federal EV FBT exemption for novated leases is also applied automatically when this toggle is on in novated mode.
Step 2: Structure the finance
The finance inputs determine your repayment amount and total interest cost.
- Deposit and trade-in — both reduce the amount financed. If your trade-in has an outstanding payout, enter that separately — the payout is added to what you’re financing, not subtracted.
- Fees — enter the lender’s establishment fee here. It’s added to the principal (capitalised) in most loan structures.
- Term — use the slider from 6 to 120 months. Longer terms reduce repayments but significantly increase total interest. Watch the "Total interest" figure as you move the slider.
- Rate — enter the interest rate you’ve been quoted (or an estimate). The comparison rate field shows an approximate rate including the capitalised fee, for comparison purposes only.
- Frequency — weekly, fortnightly, or monthly. Fortnightly payments result in 26 half-payments per year (equivalent to 13 monthly payments) which marginally reduces total interest on daily-interest loans.
- Balloon / residual — for a secured loan, enter the balloon as a percentage of the vehicle price. The calculator shows the balloon amount in dollars and the total interest (which is higher with a balloon, because you’re paying interest on the full balance including the residual throughout the term).
Step 3: Switch to novated lease mode
Toggle "Arrangement" to "Novated lease" to access the FBT calculator. Additional inputs appear:
- Days held — the number of days in the FBT year (1 April to 31 March) the vehicle will be held. Defaults to 365 for a full year.
- Gross-up type — Type 1 (your employer is GST-registered) is the most common. Type 2 applies if they’re not. Your employer’s HR team can confirm which applies.
- Employee contribution (ECM) — post-tax contributions you make to reduce the FBT liability. Entered as an annual dollar amount.
- Running costs — annual estimate for fuel/charging, insurance, registration, servicing, and tyres. These are included in the novated lease package, paid from pre-tax salary.
- Residual — defaults to the ATO guideline minimum for the selected term (e.g., 28.13% for 60 months). Toggle "Use custom residual" if your arrangement differs, though setting a residual below the ATO minimum triggers additional FBT.
Step 4: Interpret the outputs
- Repayment per period — the amount deducted from your account (or salary for novated) each week/fortnight/month. For novated leases, this is the pre-tax portion only.
- Total paid — sum of all repayments plus the balloon, if any. Compare this to the amount financed to understand the total cost of borrowing.
- Total interest — the pure cost of the loan, excluding fees. A large number here usually means a long term, high rate, or large balloon.
- Comparison rate — approximate rate that includes the capitalised fee, calculated on a $30,000 / 5-year basis per ASIC convention. Use for comparison only; for your actual loan, the effective rate depends on the actual amount and term.
- On-road costs — breakdown of stamp duty, registration, CTP, and LCT where applicable. These are estimates — confirm with your state revenue office for exact figures.
- For novated leases: FBT annual figure, lease payment breakdown, and the employee net benefit — the estimated annual saving versus purchasing the same vehicle with post-tax income.
Step 5: Use the charts
Scroll down to see three charts that load once you’ve entered your details:
- Balance over time — shows how the outstanding principal decreases each period. Notice how a balloon keeps the balance high until the final payment.
- Payment breakdown (doughnut) — splits total outgoings into principal, interest, and fees at a glance.
- Interest vs principal by year (bar) — shows how the ratio of interest to principal shifts over time. In early years, most of each repayment is interest; in later years, it’s mostly principal reduction.
Worked example
Try this scenario: $65,000 car in Victoria, passenger, not business, not EV. 10% deposit ($6,500), no trade-in, $400 fees. 60 months at 7.99% monthly, no balloon.
Now change the balloon to 25% and watch: the repayment drops by around $270/month, but total interest increases by roughly $3,000 — because you’re paying interest on the balloon for 60 months. This is the balloon trade-off the calculator makes visible.
Next, switch to "Novated lease" mode with the same vehicle, add $12,000 in annual running costs, select Type 1 gross-up, and see the FBT and net benefit figures. Compare the net monthly cost to the loan repayment to understand which arrangement works better for your situation.