How much car can I afford?

Brett T. Evans for Edmunds

How much car can I afford?

As if car shopping weren't challenging enough already, figuring out how much to spend on a car is a moving target even among financial experts. Some believe that, all combined, automotive expenses, including gas, insurance, car payments and maintenance, should not exceed 20% of your pretax monthly income. Other experts say that a vehicle that costs less than half of your annual take-home pay may be affordable. Some frugal personal finance gurus say you should spend no more than 10%-15% of your annual income on a vehicle purchase. Pretax, take-home, annual income — these terms are enough to make a person ask: "How much car can I afford?"

Since every financial situation is different, there's no perfect formula for how much you can affo