Still think that buying a new car is always much cheaper than leasing if you’re playing for keeps? Not true, particularly when it comes to electric vehicles. We found that current factory lease offers on 22 different EV models dispel that myth with terms that pass the entire commercial clean vehicle Federal tax credit to the lessee, enabling the lessee to eventually own the vehicle for thousands of dollars less than paying cash upfront or taking out a loan.
1. 2024 VinFast VF8 Eco
Cash: $51,448; Lease-to-own: $34,063. Lease-to-own savings: $17,385
With an average monthly cost of just $218/month, the 36-month, zero-down, $199/month lease deal on the Vinfast VF8 Eco tops our list of factory lease offers for September and is currently by far the cheapest EV lease in the nation, made possible by a total of $18,500 in lease incentives. According to the Vinfast website, the lease comes with an option to purchase the vehicle at $21,712 after its three-year term is up. Adding 36 payments of $199 to the $21,712 residual, plus the $695 acquisition fee due at signing and $350 fee to exercise the purchase option (which is unusual – Vinfast and Nissan are the only ones I’ve seen that charge for this) adds up to $29,921. Assuming a 9% state tax rate on all payments as well as on the $18,500 lease incentive results in a total after-tax lease-to-own cost of $34,063. That’s over $17K less than the after-tax cost of buying the $47,200 SUV outright.
Capable of sprinting from zero to 60mph in five seconds, the VF8 can carry five passengers along with a conservatively measured 13.2 cubic feet of cargo behind the rear seats for up to 264 miles on a full charge. Find a Vinfast VF8 in your area.
2. 2024 Subaru Solterra Limited
Cash: $54,195; Lease-to-own: $37,801. Lease-to-own savings: $16,394
Subaru is now advertising a three-year, zero-down, $379/month lease on the 2024 Solterra in very-well-equipped Limited trim, which is $50/month more than the basic (albeit well-appointed) Premium trim that Subaru has been offering at $329/month since early spring. That extra fifty bucks a month buys additional safety features and amenities such as a 360-degree camera system, parking assistance, 20-inch rims and tires, LED fog lights, power folding mirrors, power front seats, a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, digital key, power tailgate, wireless phone charger, Harmon Kardon audio, and a huge 12.3-inch center display that replaces the Premium’s 7-inch display along with its annoyingly thick bezel.
According to Subaru’s website, the Solterra Limited lease comes with an option to buy for $20,385 (a 42% residual value) after making 36 monthly payments of $379, resulting in an after-tax lease-to-own cost of just $38,342, assuming a 9% state tax rate. That’s over sixteen grand six grand less than either paying cash up front or taking advantage of Subaru’s 72-month 0% financing offer, both costing $54,195 after adding a 9% tax on its $49,720 MSRP.
Visually, the Solterra bears an uncanny resemblance to the Toyota bZ4X, as the two are built on the same dedicated modular EV platform and share quite a bit of sheet metal. Currently available only in all-wheel-drive, the Subaru carries 29 cubic feet of cargo behind its rear seats, accelerates from standstill to 60mph in 6.5 seconds, and travels up to 222 miles on a full charge in Limited trim.
Folks that can live without the bells and whistles of the Limited trim might opt for the $46,340 Solterra Premium, which ekes out another 6 miles from a full charge for a total of 228 miles, thanks to rolling on a lighter 18-inch wheel and tire setup. The end-of-term buyout on its 3-year, $329/month lease is $20,390, yielding a tax-included lease-to-own cost of $35,840, which is $14,671 less than a cash-up-front after-tax cost of $50,511.
Despite offering enticing factory lease terms on the 2024 Solterra for most of the year, Subaru dealers in some areas are advertising deep discounts on the 2024 Solterra, many of them at $7K or more, to attract customers. Any discount from MSRP will drive a vehicle’s lease-to-own cost even lower, perhaps in this case to an after-tax outlay that may approach $30K. Check for Subaru Solterra deals near you.
3. 2024 Toyota bZ4X XLE AWD (NY/NJ/CT)
Cash: $49,067; Lease-to-own: $33,701. Lease-to-own savings: $15,366.
In New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, an all-wheel-drive 2024 Toyota bZ4X XLE (MSRP $47,309) can be leased at $219/month for 36 months, $3999 due at signing, with the option to buy for $17,977 at the end of the lease. These attractive terms are due in large part to a $16,250 lease incentive that significantly reduces the capitalized cost of this five-seat SUV with a 228-mile range, zero to sixty time of 6.5 seconds, and 29 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats.
During the three-year lease term, tallying up the $3999 plus 35 payments of $219 (the first month is paid for at signing) adds up to $23,464. After an assumed 9% tax rate on the up-front capitalized cost reduction, down, and first payment ($1732) as well as on each subsequent payment ($20/month), the total cost to lease the bZ4X is $14,106.
At the end of the lease term, buying the three-year-old bZ4X at its incredibly low 38% residual value will cost $17,977 plus $1618 tax for a total of $19,595. All-in, the lease-to-own cost adds up to just $33,701.
In comparison, paying cash up front at delivery or opting for Toyota Financials’ 0% APR loan instead of the lease will cost a whole lot more, even with a current $2500 purchase incentive: $47,309 MSRP plus $4,258 tax minus the $2500 incentive equals $49,067. That’s a whopping $15,366 more than taking the lease-to-own route!
In California, Toyota is featuring a cheaper bZ4X XLE lease, but the terms apply to a $45,699 front-drive model in XLE trim that can travel up to 252 miles on a full charge. At $219/month for 36 months, $2999 due at signing, and an option to buy for $17,823 after three years, the tax-included lease-to-own cost is $33,149, which is $14,671 cheaper than a $47,312 tax-included cash purchase at MSRP.
The bZ4x has been selling quite well this year, thanks to Toyota clearing out dealer lots last April in a matter of weeks by dropping the average monthly lease costs of 2023 and 2024 bZ4X XLE models down to bottom-testing $191/month and $227/month respectively. By May, dealers were taking reservations for allocated and in-transit vehicles, some of them charging a premium over MSRP. Toyota has been gradually ratcheting up lease prices in the months that followed, and at a current effective lease cost of $323/month, supply and demand seems to be balancing out as the number of bZ4X sitting on dealer lots slowly increases. Although most dealers are still asking for MSRP or more, we did find a handful of dealers offering bZ4X discounts between $1000 and $2000. Let us help you find a good deal on a Toyota bZ4X in your area.
4. 2024 Lexus RZ450e Premium
Cash: $53,731; Lease-to-own: $42,370. Lease-to-own savings: $11,361
Lexus currently has a lease offer on its $56,175 RZ450e Premium that includes an $18,500 incentive, resulting in an incredible $429/month for 27 months, $1999 due at signing. The option to buy at lease end with a residual value of 43% (per data from the Leasehackr.com “Rate Findr” tool) is $24,155. Summing the $1999 with 26 subsequent payments of $429 plus the $24,155 buyout, then applying an assumed 9% tax rate calculates to a tax-included lease-to-own cost of $42,370. Built on the same EV platform as the aforementioned Subaru Solterra and Toyota bZ4X, the RZ distinguishes itself from its two siblings with a more upscale look and feel inside and out. The five-seat all-wheel-drive luxury SUV capable of 220 miles on a full charge is slightly longer and wider, which accommodates a more spacious passenger volume and larger 34.9 cubic foot cargo hold behind the rear seats. It’s also much faster than the bZ4X and Solterra, blasting from zero to 60mph in 4.6 seconds.
Need to spend less as well as go further between charging sessions? The front-wheel-drive RZ300e (MSRP $51,475) has a lease offer of $399/month with $1999 at signing and a lease-end buyout of $22,134, which works out to an after-tax lease-to-own cost of $39,134, over $3K less than the RZ450e and just $1333 more than the Solterra Limited. Capable of 0-60mph runs of about seven seconds and going 266 miles on a full charge, the RZ300e sacrifices the RZ450e’s muscle car straight-line performance in favor of 46 more miles of range.
The RZ seems to be selling briskly, thanks to huge lease incentives and a bit of dealer participation, with dealer discounts from MSRP ranging from $500 to $3,326. Look for a great deal on a new Lexus RZ300e or RZ450e near you.
5. 2024 Volvo C40 Core RWD
Cash: $59,836; Lease-to-own: $52,360. Lease-to-own savings: $7,476
Volvo currently has a lease offer on a rear-wheel-drive C40 in Core trim that is $459/month for 36 months and $3949 due at signing. According to lease calculators on Leasehackr.com and Edmunds.com, the residual on a 3-year, 10K mi/year lease is 50%, which calculates to an option to buy for $27,448 at lease end, resulting in a lease-to-own deal that’s over $7K less than an all-cash transaction at a 9% tax rate.
This four-door five-seater with 15 cubic feet of cargo space aft of its rear seats goes from zero to 60mph in 6.9 seconds and runs for 297 miles on a full charge in rear-drive configuration. Those yearning for more performance can opt for the all-wheel-drive twin-motor configuration that rockets from standstill to 60mph in 4.5 seconds and travels 257 miles on a full charge. The C40 in either form may seem a bit pricey compared to its competition, but a number of Volvo dealers are offering hefty C40 discounts to compensate. Find a great deal on a Volvo C40 in your area.
6. 2024 Nissan Ariya Engage FWD
Cash: $45,251; Lease-to-own: $39,023. Lease-to-own savings: $6,228
Nissan is currently running a $10,000 incentive on the 2024 Ariya, which translates into some of the most alluring lease terms since its introduction last year. In its most basic form, which is the Ariya Engage in front-drive, standard battery configuration with an MSRP of $45,515, leases at $289 per month for 24 months and $4119 at signing. Leasehackr.com and Edmunds.com lease calculators show a 56% residual on a two-year, 10K mi/year lease, which when multiplied by the MSRP, calculates to an option to buy for $23,548 at lease end after adding a $300 fee that Nissan charges to exercise that option. With an assumed 9% tax rate, its lease to-own cost comes out to $39,203, which is over $6K less than a tax-included all-cash purchase of this five-passenger SUV that carries 22.8 cubic feet of cargo behind its second-row seats, goes 216 miles on a charge, and accelerates from standstill to 60mph in 7.5 seconds.
Those that have more of a need for speed, range, and amenities might want to consider a $56,565 Ariya Platinum+ e-4ORCE, which is a decked-out all-wheel-drive Ariya equipped with a larger battery that hustles from zero to 60mph in five seconds flat and travels up to 257 miles on a full charge. At $419/month for 24 months, $4249 at signing, and an option to buy at $34,239 at lease end, its after-tax lease-to-own cost is $58,874. That’s a $2,781 savings from a tax-included all-cash purchase, but it seems a bit expensive at almost $20K more than the lease-to-own cost of the base model. However, there are a number of dealers offering incredible Ariya lease terms that makes the well-equipped Ariya worth considering. Get a great Nissan Ariya offer at a dealership near you.
… and the rest
Below is a list of EVs included in this study, sorted from highest to lowest lease-to-own (LTO) savings. Here are a few random thoughts/observations after staring at the list for too long:
- The cheapest EV we evaluated – the 2025 Nissan LEAF S (MSRP $29,815) – is even cheaper in the lease-to-own scenario, with an after-tax lease-to-own cost of $27,880. That’s $3218 less than the after-tax cost of an outright purchase at MSRP, assuming a 9% tax rate.
- Those that have been cross-shopping GM Ultium platform siblings probably know that the MSRP of a Chevrolet Blazer EV AWD LT is $1600 cheaper than that of a Honda Prologue AWD EX. However, leasing to own the Prologue should result in a nearly $5000 after-tax savings over a cash sale, making the lease-to-own Prologue cheaper than a Blazer EV cash purchase by over $3000. But what about leasing the Blazer EV? By our calculation, the two-year Blazer EV lease featured on Chevy’s website results in an after-tax lease-to-own cost that’s $1146 more than a cash purchase, due in part to a high residual (65%, according to Edmunds.com), thereby making the Prologue an even more attractive choice from a cost perspective.
- At the bottom of the list are eight EV models with lease-to-own costs that are greater than a cash purchase. So is it a bad idea to lease these EVs if you’re playing for keeps? Not necessarily, if your plan is to actually finance the purchase. For six of those eight EVs, the lease-to-own strategy should cost less than taking out a loan with the same drive-off amount as the lease it’s being compared to. Two outliers, the Cadillac Lyriq and Ford F-150 Lightning, were the only EVs on the list that should be cheaper to finance rather than lease-to-own, specifically for buyers that qualify for the $7500 Federal EV tax credit. Why? Well, for the $62K Caddy, a ridiculously inflated residual on its two-year,10K mi/year term (80%, per Edmunds.com) makes it cost-prohibitive to buy out the Lyriq lease. As for the F-150 Lightning, taking advantage of Ford’s financing incentives (1.9% rate and $2000 cash back on 2024 models, or 0% interest rate and $2750 cash back on 2023 models) result in a lower cost-to-own than employing the lease-to-own strategy using the current factory lease terms.
One final note: Although some manufacturer lease offers conveniently state a residual value, most ads don’t make mention of it or contain weasel words like “Option to purchase at lease end for an amount to be determined at lease signing.” In any case, if you’re playing for keeps, ask for the residual value during negotiations to set expectations and verify that it’s not inflated, then check what’s written in the contract before signing on the bottom line.
As always, check our Electric Vehicle Price Guide and Electric Vehicle Lease Guide for the best deals on EVs in the US.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments