These Used Cars Give You the Most Bang for Your Buck

• Used car shoppers can get over 100,000 miles of use for less than $10,000 from the Chevrolet Impala

• Toyota Prius is available for less than $14,000 with up to 130,000 miles of remaining life, along with exceptional fuel economy

• SUVs and minivans, including the Honda Odyssey and Ford Expedition, can provide more than 100,000 miles of family transportation for just $15,000

• Toyota Avalon can be purchased for less than $16,000 with over 143,000 miles of remaining lifespan

How can consumers get the most remaining life out of a used car while paying the lowest purchase price? Used car shoppers should consider one of these top 20 best used cars for the money. By analyzing over 2 million used vehicles, iSeeCars.com identified models with the longest lifespan and then compared those models with their current used car values. This allowed iSeeCars.com to identify the best values for 10-year-old vehicles ranked by the price of their remaining potential lifespan (the lowest price per remaining 1,000 miles of lifespan).

“Although used car pricing is slowly dropping, it remains near record levels, putting a serious financial pinch on first-time buyers or used car shoppers needing to replace their current vehicle. And new vehicle pricing is simply unrealistic for many consumers,” said Karl Brauer, Executive Analyst for iSeeCars.com. “But we now know shoppers can buy a 10-year-old car that costs substantially less than 1-5 year-old used models, yet these vehicles still have 80,000 or more miles of life left in them,” continued Brauer. “Some, like the Toyota Prius, Toyota Avalon, and Honda Ridgeline, have more than 125,000 miles to go. And all of these top 20 cars provide a potential lifespan above 200,000 miles.”

Top 20 Best Used Cars for the Money: Wide Range of Brands and Vehicle Types

The average price for these top 20 best used cars for the money is just $12,814, with an average remaining lifespan of 101,923 miles, or more than 46% left of their total usable lifespan. This top 20 ranking also has a good mix of vehicles here, with everything from small hatchbacks to midsize sedans, three-row SUVs, minivans, and a pickup truck represented. 

Top 10 Best Used Cars for the Money: 5-Year-Old Models Still Offer Big Savings

Shoppers not comfortable buying a 10-year-old car can still find savings and plenty of remaining life by shopping for 5-year-old cars. Of course the average cost of these top 10 models is higher than a 10-year-old car, but still reasonable at $20,428 versus today’s used car price average of approximately $33,000, especially when the average remaining lifespan of 150,526 miles – or 69% of total lifespan remaining – is taken into account. 

Top 10 Best Used SUVs for the Money: Family Flexibility for Around $15,000

The cargo space and functionality of SUVs and crossovers has made them popular over the past few years. Everything from a compact SUV like the CR-V to the exceedingly roomy Chevrolet Suburban makes the list. Most of these models are available with all-wheel drive to bolster confidence in cold-weather states.

Top 10 Best Used Trucks for the Money: All With Over 90,000 Miles of Use Left

Trucks face some of the toughest use cases of any vehicle, yet these 10 models can be purchased for an average of less than $20,000 while offering an average remaining lifespan of more than 100,000 miles.

Top 4 Best Used Minivans for the Money: Plenty of People-Moving Still To Do

A wide spectrum of minivan pricing is available for used shoppers looking for maximum life at a minimum price. The Sedona starts things off below $10,000, and with more than 87,000 miles remaining, that price buys a lot of future use. The Toyota Sienna is the most expensive minivan, at $16,289, but it offers another 112,000 miles of people-toting to go.