Percentage who later regret each choice. Bars and full ledger render below.
Financial
Last reviewed 2026-04-26
Evidence quality 3.38/5
Eight-dimension review score against the
quality rubric
. Each dimension scored 1–5.
D1 Source verification
2/5
D2 Source authority & independence
3/5
D3 Regret-rate accuracy
2/5
D4 Source comparability
2/5
D5 Gilovich pattern
5/5
D6 Prose quality
5/5
D7 Caveat completeness
4/5
D8 Sample quality
4/5
Average3.38/5
Proxy data — no direct regret survey exists for this decision. Rates are derived from satisfaction scores and access-barrier data rather than questions that directly asked about regret. See caveats below.
Action regret
Buying new
39%
39% of all car buyers (new and used combined) report purchase regrets — no survey isolates new-only
US car owners, online panel (new and used combined)
retrospective, mixed ownership durations
Inaction regret
Buying used
39%
39% of all car buyers (new and used combined) report purchase regrets — no survey isolates used-only
US car owners, online panel (new and used combined)
retrospective, mixed ownership durations
% who regret this choice
Buying newBuying used
39%39%
balanced — Roughly balanced — both choices carry similar regret.
Related decisions
Semantically similar decisions — same territory, different trade-offs.
About 39% of Americans who have bought a car report some form of
purchase regret, according to a LendingTree survey of 1,919 US car
owners. That figure covers all buyers — new and used combined; the
survey never separates the two, so it cannot tell us whether new-car or
used-car buyers regret more. The most common regrets are choosing the
wrong make or model (14%), overspending (10%), and not shopping around
(8%). Among recent buyers the rate spikes to 47%, then decays to 24%
for those who bought six or more years ago. A second all-buyer source,
CarGurus’ 2024 Consumer Insights Survey (n=3,150), found 79% of buyers
satisfied — again not broken out by new versus used, and satisfaction
is not the same thing as regret. Because no source isolates new-only
from used-only regret, both sides of this pair carry the same 39%
all-buyer baseline, and this entry is flagged as a proxy.
The financial mechanism is plausible even without pinning down exact
figures: new vehicles carry a substantially higher purchase price and
monthly payment than used ones, and depreciate fastest in the first
year or two of ownership. Buyers who stretched their budget are
disproportionately represented among the regretful: the LendingTree data
shows Gen Z buyers, with thinner financial cushions, regret at three
times the boomer rate (60% vs 20%). Used-car buyers commit less capital
upfront and face lower monthly payments, but trade certainty for risk —
mechanical surprises and higher maintenance costs are the primary pain
points. Cox Automotive’s 2023 study found 49% of all car buyers paid more
than expected, a figure that cuts across both segments but likely stings
more against a higher new-car baseline price than a lower used-car one.
The honest answer is that the survey data cannot rank new against used.
Neither the LendingTree nor the CarGurus study isolates new-from-used,
and the CarGurus figure measures satisfaction rather than regret. The
financial argument that committing more capital to a faster-depreciating
asset should generate more regret is plausible, but no source in the
evidence base actually measures it — so this pair reports the same
all-buyer regret rate on both sides and no measured gap.
Sources: action
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]LendingTree — Nearly 4 in 10 Who Bought a Car in the Past Year Have Regrets
Primary study
39% of Americans who have bought a car have regrets about their purchase; 47% of those who bought within the past year regret it
Excerpt
“"Nearly 4 in 10 (39%) Americans who have bought a car have regrets about their purchase. Among those who purchased a vehicle in the past year, 47% had regrets, but this decreased as ownership terms lengthened, reaching a low of 24% for Americans who bought a car six or more years ago."
”
Source data from
2024-02-14
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
LendingTree commissioned a Qualtrics survey of 1,919 US car owners (Dec. 14-20, 2021 per the published methodology). The 39% figure covers ALL car buyers (new and used combined). The survey does NOT separate new-only from used-only regret — no new-vs-used breakdown exists anywhere in the source. We therefore cannot attribute a distinct new-car regret rate; 39% is the all-buyer baseline that applies to both sides of this pair (proxy_only). Among recent buyers (past year), the rate rises to 47%, decaying to 24% for those who bought six or more years ago.
[2]Cox Automotive — Cox Automotive's Car Buyer Journey Study Shows Satisfaction With Car Buying Improved in 2023
Primary study
69% of consumers were highly satisfied with the buying process in 2023, up from 61% in 2022; 49% paid more than expected
Excerpt
“"The 2023 Car Buyer Journey Study presents a noteworthy increase in overall satisfaction, with 69% of consumers being highly satisfied with the process compared to 61% in the 2022 study. Regarding the price paid, 49% of buyers report paying more than expected, down from 54% in the 2022 study."
”
Source data from
2023-12-05
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Cox Automotive's annual Car Buyer Journey study tracks satisfaction across the full buying process (new and used). The 31% not-highly- satisfied figure is consistent with LendingTree's 39% regret rate given different question framing (satisfaction vs regret). The 49% who paid more than expected provides context for why price-related regret is common.
Sources: inaction
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]LendingTree — Nearly 4 in 10 Who Bought a Car in the Past Year Have Regrets
Primary study
39% of Americans who have bought a car have regrets; 24% for six-plus-year owners, 47% for recent buyers
Excerpt
“"Nearly 4 in 10 (39%) Americans who have bought a car have regrets about their purchase. Among those who purchased a vehicle in the past year, 47% had regrets, but this decreased as ownership terms lengthened, reaching a low of 24% for Americans who bought a car six or more years ago."
”
Source data from
2024-02-14
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Same LendingTree all-buyer survey used on the action side. Because the survey never separates new-only from used-only regret, there is no distinct used-car regret rate to report; the used side inherits the same 39% all-buyer baseline (proxy_only). Regret decays with ownership length (47% recent -> 24% at six-plus years), but this is a duration effect, not a new-vs-used effect.
[2]CarGurus — CarGurus Study Uncovers Shift in Car Shopper Sentiment as Prices and Selection Improve
Primary study
79% of car buyers were satisfied with the overall experience in 2024; 35% extremely satisfied
Excerpt
“"79% of car buyers were satisfied with the overall car buying experience in 2024, with 35% being extremely satisfied. Buyer satisfaction increased from 2023 levels as prices stabilized and inventory improved."
”
Source data from
2024-12-17
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
CarGurus 2024 Consumer Insights Survey (n=3,150: 3,008 opt-in + 142 CRM sample). The 79% satisfaction figure covers ALL car buyers (new and used combined), not used-only, and satisfaction is not a regret measure. Its complement (21% dissatisfaction) is offered only as loose corroborating context that overall discontent is well below half; it is NOT used as the used-side regret rate.
Caveats
No survey in the evidence base separates new-car from used-car regret. The LendingTree study reports a single 39% regret rate across ALL car buyers (new and used combined; n=1,919, Dec. 2021) and never breaks it out by purchase type. The CarGurus 79% satisfaction figure is likewise an all-buyer measure (n=3,150, 2024) and satisfaction is not the same construct as regret. Because neither side can be given a distinct, source-grounded regret rate, both inherit the same 39% all-buyer baseline and the pair is flagged proxy_only with no measured gap (regret_delta 0). The earlier "18-point new-vs-used gap" was not supported by any source and has been removed. What the data DO show are duration and generational effects: regret falls from 47% for recent buyers to 24% for six-plus-year owners, and Gen Z regret (60%) dwarfs boomer regret (20%) — suggesting financial stress and inexperience, not new-vs-used status, are the stronger predictors. Survey data are drawn exclusively from United States samples; rates in countries with different consumer norms, pricing, and market structure may differ substantially.
