Produced by IntelliChoice, Inc, Total Cost of Ownership is the total expected ownership cost to own and operate a vehicle for five years. The Total Cost of Ownership calculation includes depreciation, financing, insurance, state fees, fuel, maintenance and repairs. Vehicle trim configurations used to calculate ownership cost differ by class. Vehicles are priced using the most popular features equipped in two-thirds or more of the vehicles sold in each class. For instance, in recent model years, over 90% of all midsize vehicles sold were equipped with cruise control, while less than 50% of subcompact models sold had this feature. Therefore, cruise control is included in calculating ownership cost for the midsize class, but not for subcompacts.

This definition is in context to Auto Pricing. See more contextual defintions for Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).