When Is the Best Time To Buy Cars? (2024 Guide) (2024)

The best time of year to buy a car is towards the end of December, especially if you want a new vehicle. If you aren’t able to go car shopping at the end of December, May is another good option. Unlike in wintertime, you’ll have a large stock of departing models to choose from.

End-of-the-Year Deadlines

Like the end of the calendar year, the end of the model year is a prime time for buying a car. Dealers offer more discounts and rebates at the end of a model year because they want to make room for the next year’s new supply. You can also probably get deeper price cuts on models that are selling slowly or are about to be redesigned or discontinued.

End of the Model Year

A great time to buy is when a car’s model year has passed. While other shoppers are more interested in buying newer models, you can get a lower-priced older model. This could especially work if you don’t care about the bells and whistles the new model may have.

Model years generally end around Labor Day for domestic brands (those made in the United States) and in October or November for imports (those made in other countries). New car models generally start arriving in September or October.

End-of-Car Cycles

Along with end-of-the-year sales, you should take advantage of end-of-cycle deals. There are two cycles to keep in mind if you want savings: an end-of-car-design cycle and an end-of-car-life cycle.

End-of-Car-Design Cycle

This is when an automaker completely redesigns a car model. Similar to the end of a model year, there are attractive sales for outdated models.

End-of-Car-Life Cycle

This is when a car is discontinued. You can save even more money than you would on a car that’s being redesigned. Even though cars depreciate quite a bit with end-of-car-life cycles, they’re worth considering if you want to keep a car for the long haul.

For safety reasons, it’s important to know why a vehicle is being discontinued. If it’s due to lack of interest, that may not be a big deal. However, if that car model has low performance or is undependable, you should probably walk away from it.

You’re likely to find competitive car-buying deals toward the last week of any month or quarter. This is when car salespeople are more motivated to slash sticker prices even if it means they’ll get lower commissions. The lower commissions are balanced out by getting company bonuses for meeting quotas.

If you are concerned with buying within this short timeframe, Edmunds recommends test-driving the car you want earlier in the month and buying the car towards the end. Many of the car buying incentives also tend to roll over a couple of days into the new month so there is extra time.

Monday is usually the best day of the week to buy a car. This is when showrooms will be the least busy, which means you’ll likely get more time and attention from the sales staff and have more time to go on test-drives.

Edmunds suggests Tuesday is a better option than Monday if the car dealership is closed on Sunday. Dealerships that close on Sunday are often much busier on Monday because salespeople are catching up with their work. Automotive dealerships are far busier on weekends, but you could get lower car prices on a holiday weekend.

It’s especially important to look for the best times of year to buy because the auto market is struggling with inflation, supply-chain issues like the microchip shortage and more.

“Projections for car prices in 2023 are dicey, at best,” says Julie Bausch, managing editor of Car Talk, the companion website for the long-running NPR show of the same name. “The industry is still recovering from the production issues and shortages caused by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. There is a little evidence that prices are beginning to ease, but things are still a bit inflated for the moment.”

According to Kelley Blue Book, the average new car in the U.S. sold for $49,507 in December 2022, hitting a record high. While prices fell for the next two months, February’s average of $48,763 was still 5.3% higher than the figure in February 2021.

KBB also reports that the average used car in the U.S. cost $27,143 in December 2022, down $1,050 from the same time in 2021. Costs decreased again in January, dipping to $26,510.

To save money, don’t just rely on buying during a peak car shopping period. Being prepared and knowing how much car you can afford will make you less likely to go over budget. This can also help you avoid having the car salesperson talk you into something that isn’t right for you.

You’ll also have greater haggling power — no matter how good a deal is — if you get preapproved for an auto loan from your bank or credit union and compare the offer to dealer financing. Protect yourself by reading the fine print and asking about other incentives, rebates and financing deals.

If you have a less-than-desirable credit score, try to improve it before you go car shopping. This is especially helpful if it’s January or February, when discounts and lower sticker prices are scarce.

If you plan to trade your current car in, here are some things you can do before stepping foot into a showroom:

• If you have an auto loan, ask your lender what the payoff amount is.
• Get an estimate of your car’s trade-in value.
• Collect service records and other paperwork for your car.
• Get your car detailed.