New car payments reach all-time high as affordability challenges persist in US

The average new car payment rose to an all-time high in the first quarter as American households continued to face affordability challenges in the economy.

A new report by LendingTree citing data from Experian for the first quarter of 2026 found that the average monthly payment for a new vehicle rose 2.9% from a year ago to a record of $770.

Lease payments on new vehicles rose at a faster rate, rising 3.2% over the last year to $619 on average in the first quarter.

Used car payments saw a smaller increase over the last year, rising 1.5% to an average monthly payment of $531.

Among borrowers with varying tiers of credit scores, the borrowers making the highest average monthly payments on new vehicles were nonprime borrowers with scores in the 601 to 660 range, who paid $811, followed by subprime borrowers with scores between 501 and 600 who paid $792.

Super-prime borrowers with scores between 781 and 850 had the lowest monthly payment at $753 for a new vehicle, the data showed.

The average auto loan amount in the first quarter was $43,925 for new vehicles and $27,070 for used vehicles, according to Exerpian’s data. The new vehicle loan average rose from $43,582 in the prior quarter, while the average used vehicle loan declined from $27,528 in that period.

Borrowers in the prime credit tier, with scores from 661 to 780, took out the largest loans for new vehicles at an average of $46,244. Among buyers of used vehicles, borrowers in the super-prime tier had the largest loan amount at $29,599, per Experian.

Consumers’ loan balances have grown in part because of higher prices for vehicles. The most recent consumer price index (CPI) inflation data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for the month of May showed new vehicle prices were up 0.2% year over year, whereas prices for used cars and trucks were down 2% from a year ago.

Nationwide, outstanding auto loan debt totaled $1.685 trillion in the first quarter of 2026 – which represented an increase of 57.3% from the first quarter of 2016 when the total was $1.071 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

While mortgages make up the largest share of U.S. consumer debt at 70.2%, auto loans accounted for 9% at a total of $1.685 trillion. Auto loans ranked as the second-largest category of consumer debt as they narrowly exceeded the $1.658 trillion in student loan debt.

The amount of auto loan originations was $182.1 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up slightly from $180.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025 but below last year’s high of $187.9 billion in the second quarter.

The New York Fed’s data shows that the highest recorded total of auto loan originations was in the second quarter of 2021, which saw $201.9 billion in auto loans originated.

Americans in their 30s and 40s originated the most auto loan debt in the first quarter, totaling $38.6 billion and $40 billion respectively, narrowly topping borrowers in their 50s who originated $38.3 billion.

Consumers aged 18 to 29 originated $25.3 billion in auto loans, while those in their 60s also took out that amount of auto loans in the first quarter.