Methodology

Where do the listings come from?

LeaseGuru does not sell or originate leases. Listings are collected from licensed partner brokers and lease marketplaces and refreshed about every hour. Every listing is mapped onto the same fields: monthly payment, due at signing, term, annual mileage, and vehicle details, so two offers can be compared on identical terms.

We do not name the partner behind an individual listing on the site. If you ask to be matched on a listing, we introduce you to the licensed partner who published it, and your contract is always with that partner.

How is the LeaseGuru score calculated?

The LeaseGuru score rates a listing from 1 to 100 on its effective monthly cost (the payment plus the due-at-signing amount spread over the term) as a share of the car's MSRP. 50 is the baseline (an effective monthly cost of 1.65% of MSRP) and higher is better value. Listings without a published drive-off, term, or resolvable MSRP are shown unscored.

1. Effective monthly cost = monthly payment + (due at signing ÷ term in months).
2. That figure is divided by the vehicle's MSRP. The listing's own MSRP is used when it is published; otherwise the model's base MSRP.
3. Score = 50 + 50 × (1.65 − effective monthly cost as a percent of MSRP), rounded and limited to 1–100. An effective monthly cost of 1.65% of MSRP scores 50; 1.0% of MSRP scores about 83.

Worked example: $399 a month with $2,999 due at signing over 36 months is an effective $482.31 a month. On a $42,000 car that is 1.15% of MSRP, which scores 75.

A listing is shown unscored when it does not state a due-at-signing amount or a term, or when no MSRP can be resolved. Missing values are never assumed. Promotional badges do not change the score.

What the score does not include

• Local sales tax, registration, and dealer documentation fees.
• Your credit tier. Advertised payments usually assume top-tier credit.
• Rebates you may or may not qualify for, such as loyalty or conquest cash.
• Double counting on some listings: where the due-at-signing amount already includes the first payment, the score still adds it to the monthly cost.
• Whether the vehicle is still available. Inventory changes through the day.

The score is a way to shortlist. It is not a quote, a credit decision, or a guarantee. Confirm every number on the signing sheet.

Reference tables and guides

The by-brand tables in our guides (acquisition fees, disposition fees, mileage rates, and similar) are compiled from what each manufacturer's finance company publishes. Each table states the month it was checked. Fees change, and the signed contract always governs. Guides are written and maintained by the LeaseGuru editorial team and show both their published and last-updated dates.

How is LeaseGuru paid?

Browsing, filters, comparisons, guides, and calculators are free and need no account. If you work with a partner we introduce, that partner may compensate us. Compensation does not change a listing's score, which is computed from the listing's own numbers.

On curated lists (Best lease deals, Top picks, and the embed widget) listings from some partners may be placed higher than their score alone would put them. The score shown on a listing is never changed, and sorting the marketplace by value, payment, or drive-off uses the listing's own numbers only.

Corrections

If a listing, fee, or guide looks wrong, tell us and we will check it against the source.