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. 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. On the used-car side, CarGurus’ 2024 Consumer Insights Survey found that 79% of buyers were satisfied with their experience, implying roughly 21% dissatisfaction — a figure consistent with the lower financial stakes and reduced depreciation shock of used purchases.
The financial mechanism is straightforward. New cars lose roughly 20% of value in year one, and the median new-car payment now exceeds $700 per month. 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 stings more when the baseline price is $48,000 (new average) rather than $27,000 (used average).
The 18-point gap is moderate and should be read cautiously. Neither survey isolates new-from-used cleanly, and the CarGurus figure is a satisfaction inverse rather than a direct regret measure. The directional signal — that committing more capital to a depreciating asset generates more regret — is plausible and consistent across data sources, but the pattern is closer to balanced than strongly one-sided.