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Revealed Feb 17, 2026, 4:30 PM EST
Tyler is an automotive journalist and dispute contributor at How-To Geek with over three years of expertise covering the automotive enterprise. His work makes a speciality of handing over clear, successfully-researched, and engaging dispute that helps readers better understand the automobiles they drive and the expertise at the back of them.
Sooner than entering automotive media, he spent 5 years as an academic editor, establishing a stable foundation in research methodology, factual accuracy, and structured analysis. This background informs his journalistic approach today, making certain that every article balances technical perception with accessibility for a broad audience.
Tyler specializes in automotive journalism, dispute strategy, and search engine optimization-driven publishing, with a particular hobby in performance, reliability, and the cultural position of cars. He approaches automotive writing with a certain philosophy: automobiles may peaceful be engaging and expressive, no longer merely functional tools. This angle shapes his coverage and allows readers to join with cars beyond basic specifications.
The value of a contemporary car in the United States has climbed so excessive that even households earning six figures can fight to afford one without stretching their finances. With the average contemporary car decal mark hovering around the $50,000 mark, and many popular SUVs, electrified units, and luxury-shapely variants pushing past $55,000 or more, what frail to really feel fancy a comfortable middle-class purchase now repeatedly feels out of reach for many traders.
This surge in pricing reflects broader tendencies in the automotive market: greater material and manufacturing prices, greater expertise and safety feature dispute, and consumers increasingly opting for larger automobiles with more equipment. But the gather consequence’s the same; more moderen cars provide more value and capability than ever, yet the value has exploded faster than wages for many Americans.
For many households, that means fascinated with frail automobiles, prolonged financing terms, or settling for base trims rather than the geared up, comfortable cars they really want. In a market the place the starting mark of a contemporary car now rivals, or exceeds, what have been once regarded as top class-brand automobiles, affording reliable transportation has change into a more complex financial decision than it frail to be.
In reveal to provide you with essentially the most up-to-date and accurate information imaginable, the data frail to bring collectively this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including Kelley Blue E book and Forbes.
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The average contemporary car buyer in America is paying around $50,000
The average is unaffordable to most Americans
Credit: Ford
For some time now, the value of the average contemporary car in America has hovered around the $50,000, with contemporary car prices back in December hitting an all time excessive. The rising prices of latest cars is a massive notify, with the affordability disaster getting worse and worse by the day. At the same time as you happen to take into account what the average American earns, the ‘average’ mark is successfully beyond what most of us can actually afford.
Of us are spending far too a lot on contemporary cars
According to Kelley Blue E book, contemporary car traders spent around $49,191 in January 2026, which is fairly absurd. Right here is actually down 2.2 p.c from December, the place traders have been spending $50,326. A mark fall in January is usually expected, with Americans generally purchasing for more luxury cars in the last month of year, which brings the average up.
How a lot procure it is best to earn to afford ‘average’?
The general rule of thumb is that you may peaceful easiest exercise around 10 to 15 p.c of your take-home profits on transportation. On average, of us are opting for longer car loan terms when it comes to financing, with most of us going with the 72-month plan. It is instantaneous that you make a selection for a shorter loan length of time when you happen to can afford the greater month-to-month payments, though.
With a 6.5 p.c hobby rate over 72 months, you’d have to exercise $825 dollars a month in your car payment to be able to afford a $49,000 car. This means that you may presumably have to be spending $9,900 a year in your car. Assuming the ten p.c rule, you may presumably have to earn suitable fearful of six figures to be comfortable. This all assumes that you have a correct credit rating and that you make a decision the longest repayment length of time.
According to Forbes, the average annual salary in the United States at the 2nd sits at $64,505, which is a lot lower than the salary you’d want to earn to afford the “average” contemporary car.
You to make a decision what you purchase
Credit: Toyota
Clearly, you don’t have to store at the value point of the average contemporary car. Compact SUV traders have a tendency to exercise much less money on a contemporary car, with the average purchase mark of a compact SUV sitting at around $36,414 in January 2026. Right here is probably judicious one of essentially the most perfect segments to store in, with a whole bunch comfort and practicality on provide at a reasonable mark.
Meanwhile, fat-dimension pickup truck traders have a tendency to drastically overspend on their automobiles. The average fat-dimension truck buyer spent around $70,000 on their car last month. Pondering about how popular this phase is, this clearly brings the average up
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The sub-$20,000 car is gone, and it just isn’t always more possible to ever near back
Cheap cars are changing into increasingly rare
Credit: Nissan
Something that has played a part in bringing the average mark of latest cars up is the disappearance of the $20,000 contemporary car. There frail to be a correct couple of alternatives accessible that you can procure for beneath $20K, but in 2026 every person of those alternatives has been pulled from the market.
