Data Sources & Resources

    Everything the calculator and the guides rely on, in one place: what each source publishes, which part of our model it feeds, and how often it changes. If a number on this site is not your own input or arithmetic we show our working for, it came from something on this page.

    For the formulas themselves, see the methodology deep dive.

    How we qualify a source

    Before we list a source here, we check four things: it must be a primary publisher of the data (not a content aggregator), the data must be publicly retrievable without a paid account, the page must carry a publication or update date, and we must be able to cross-check its figures against at least one other independent reference. If a source fails any of these tests, we either remove it or replace it with a more authoritative one.

    We do not scrape or republish licensed datasets. For example, Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds residual-value tables are proprietary, so we link to their free consumer lookups and explain how to derive your own residual from live vehicle listings. This keeps the calculator free while respecting the data providers' terms.

    Fuel and electricity prices

    Energy inputs are the easiest part of the model to get right, because the federal government publishes the prices weekly and the efficiency ratings per model.

    • EIA — Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update

      Weekly retail gasoline and diesel prices, national and by PADD region.

      How we use it: Default price per gallon in the calculator, and the pump prices used in worked examples.

      Update cadence: Published Mondays; we refresh our defaults quarterly.

    • EIA — Open Data API

      Programmatic access to the same petroleum and electricity series.

      How we use it: How we pull series rather than transcribing tables by hand.

      Update cadence: Continuous.

    • EIA — Electric Power Monthly (Table 5.6.A)

      Average residential electricity price per kWh by state.

      How we use it: EV charging cost defaults.

      Update cadence: Monthly, roughly a two-month lag.

    • fueleconomy.gov (U.S. DOE / EPA)

      Official EPA combined MPG and kWh/100mi by year, make, model and trim.

      How we use it: The efficiency figure you should enter instead of a manufacturer marketing number.

      Update cadence: Annually per model year.

    • DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center — vehicle cost calculator

      Side-by-side fuel and emissions comparison for specific EV and gas models.

      How we use it: Cross-check on our EV vs. gas energy math.

      Update cadence: Ongoing.

    Taxes, registration and title fees

    Fee structures differ so sharply by state — flat versus value-based registration, trade-in tax credit or not — that only the issuing agency is authoritative.

    • USA.gov — State motor vehicle agencies

      Directory linking to every state DMV / BMV / MVD fee schedule.

      How we use it: The registration and title figures we tell you to look up for your own state.

      Update cadence: Fee schedules typically change with each state legislative session.

    • Federation of Tax Administrators — state tax agencies

      Official state revenue departments publishing sales and use tax rates.

      How we use it: Verifying state and local sales tax rates, and whether a trade-in reduces the taxable amount.

      Update cadence: Rates change on statutory effective dates, often January and July.

    • IRS — Clean Vehicle Tax Credits

      Current eligibility rules, credit amounts, income caps and assembly requirements.

      How we use it: Whether an EV example may legitimately subtract a credit.

      Update cadence: Changes with legislation and Treasury guidance.

    Insurance

    There is no such thing as a useful average premium for an individual driver. What is public is the regulatory record — rate filings, complaint data and coverage definitions.

    • NAIC — Auto Insurance Resource Center

      Coverage definitions and a directory of every state insurance regulator.

      How we use it: How we define the coverage level assumed in examples (100/300/100, $500 deductibles).

      Update cadence: Ongoing.

    • SERFF Filing Access — public rate filings

      The actual rate and rule filings insurers submit to state regulators, where the state publishes them.

      How we use it: Checking which rating factors an insurer is permitted to use in a given state.

      Update cadence: Continuous as filings are approved.

    • Insurance Information Institute — auto insurance basics

      Plain-language explanation of coverages and rating variables.

      How we use it: Background for the insurance guide.

      Update cadence: Ongoing.

    Vehicle values and depreciation

    Residual value data from Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds and NADA is proprietary and licensed — we do not republish it. We link to the free consumer lookups and, more importantly, show you how to derive a residual from live listings yourself.

    • Kelley Blue Book — value lookup

      Consumer-facing trade-in, private party and retail values by year, model, mileage and condition.

      How we use it: One of the two or three quotes we suggest you gather before accepting a trade-in offer.

      Update cadence: KBB revises values on a rolling basis.

    • Edmunds — appraisal and True Cost to Own

      Independent valuation and Edmunds' own five-year cost projection.

      How we use it: A second opinion to sanity-check both a trade-in offer and our own output.

      Update cadence: Rolling.

    • NHTSA — recalls and safety ratings

      Open recalls and crash-test ratings by VIN or model.

      How we use it: Pre-purchase checks in the buyer guides; open recalls affect resale.

      Update cadence: Continuous.

    • BLS — Consumer Price Index, new and used vehicles

      Official price-level trends for new cars, used cars, parts and maintenance.

      How we use it: Judging whether the used market as a whole is rising or falling before we describe a trend.

      Update cadence: Monthly.

    Consumer protection and financing

    What a dealer or lender is required to disclose, and what you can do when they do not.

    What we deliberately do not republish

    Licensed residual-value tables, proprietary insurance scoring models and paid market datasets stay off this site. Where a figure would require one of those, we either link you to the provider's own free lookup or show you how to derive an equivalent number from live listings. A statistic we cannot let you verify is one we would rather not print.

    Outbound links go to third-party sites we do not control. This site uses cookies for analytics and personalized ads (see our Privacy Policy).

    Spot a broken link or a source that has moved? Email us at contact@ynbautomotive.com and we will update the page.