Cost to Own a Car in California

Of the $67,188 five-year average, about $34,202 is state-controlled — insurance, fuel or charging, registration and service labour. Across the 51 US jurisdictions that portion ranges from $22,139 in Idaho to $37,173 in Nevada, which is where essentially the entire gap between the cheapest and most expensive states comes from.

The single biggest ownership cost — depreciation — does not vary by state. A car loses the same share of its value in California as anywhere else, so moving state changes the running bill, not the whole picture. That is also why the ten cheapest cars to own look broadly similar in every state: depreciation anchors the ordering.

Full-coverage car insurance in California runs +7% against the national average — 16th most expensive of 51 US jurisdictions. Across the 81 vehicles we track, that works out to about $2,866 a year for the average car, though the figure swings widely by vehicle.

These are state-average ratios, not quotes. They come from the mean of two independent published rate surveys — ValuePenguin (January 2026) and Insurify (July 2026) — because published tables disagree by more than most buyers expect: different driver profiles, coverage limits and carrier mixes. Averaging two sources rather than trusting one is deliberate. Last recalibrated 2026-07-24.

California ties annual registration to what the car is worth, so an expensive vehicle costs more every year, not just at purchase. On a $35,000 car the annual figure works out to roughly $371 — 11th most expensive of 51 US jurisdictions.

Modelled from published DMV fee schedules, the NCSL state EV-fee tracker and Tax Foundation data (2026-05-26). These are five-year-average estimates, not quotes — county and municipal add-ons vary within a state, particularly where the recurring charge is collected as a local personal-property tax.

On energy alone, yes. Charging the average electric vehicle at home in California costs about 10.2¢ a mile, against 25.2¢ to fuel the average gas car — a saving of roughly $2,253 a year at 15,000 miles, or $2,135 once California's $118 EV registration surcharge is taken off.

Energy is not the whole story, though — and the ranking below shows why. The best-placed electric vehicle in California is the 2027 Chevrolet Bolt, at 4th cheapest to own overall. One electric vehicle reaches this state's ten cheapest cars to own. That position moves between states — from 2nd in Washington, where electricity is cheapest relative to gas, to 11th in Maryland and Rhode Island — because the charging saving has to overcome depreciation, which does not vary by state.

Assumes home charging at the state residential rate, no public fast-charging premium, and fleet-average efficiency across the electric and gas vehicles we track. Gas prices are AAA state averages (2026-05-25); electricity is EIA residential (2026-05-25).

Every vehicle we track, re-costed at California's insurance factor, registration formula, gas price and electricity rate. The 2026 Toyota Corolla comes out cheapest at $37,978 over five years — $633 a month.

The complete table, cheapest to most expensive in California. The final column is the difference against the same vehicle costed at national-average prices — so you can see exactly what the state adds or saves on each car.

Each vehicle is priced at its representative trim — the same basis as our cheapest cars to own ranking and the Ownership Cost Index, so the figures agree across the site. Five-year totals include depreciation, fuel or charging, insurance, maintenance, tyres, registration and loan interest. How these numbers are built.

Four independent per-state data sources drive everything on this page, each covering all 51 US jurisdictions. Nothing here is a national figure with a state name attached.

• Insurance — the mean of two published full-coverage rate surveys, ValuePenguin and Insurify (2026-07-24).
• Gas — AAA state averages (2026-05-25).
• Electricity — EIA Electric Power Monthly, residential rates (2026-05-25).
• Registration — state DMV fee schedules, the NCSL EV-fee tracker and Tax Foundation data (2026-05-26).

Two things we deliberately do not claim. Service and repair labour rates also vary by state, but no published survey covers all 51 jurisdictions the way premium data does, so we model it only for the largest markets and hold the rest at the national rate — rather than print a placeholder as though it were a finding. And depreciation, the largest cost of all, is drawn from resale-value data that is national: it does not vary by state, and this page does not pretend otherwise.

California sits 49th of 51 by average five-year cost. Its closest neighbours on that ranking:

• Cost to own a car in Maryland — $65,235 over five years
• Cost to own a car in Colorado — $65,593 over five years
• Cost to own a car in Rhode Island — $66,543 over five years
• Cost to own a car in Connecticut — $68,605 over five years
• Cost to own a car in Nevada — $70,160 over five years

See all 51 states ranked →