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Calculator
Cost per use
The receipt is a one-time number. Cost per use is the number you actually live with. Add upkeep, subtract what you can resell it for, and divide by the uses you honestly expect.
Start from an example
Example figures, not quoted prices — replace them with the ones in front of you.
Work boots — cost per wear
$0.44
- Purchase price
- $180.00
- Maintenance
- + $40.00
- Resale value
- − $0.00
- Net lifetime cost
- $220.00
- Divided by 500 wears
- $0.44
Sanity check
Halve your use estimate and look again: at 250 wears this costs $0.88 each. Optimistic use counts are the most common error in this calculation.
This is a simple net-cost model. It ignores the time value of money, financing costs, warranty value, and the cost of the item failing early.