Audi Financing: What To Know Before You Buy
Since Audi is an expensive luxury brand, many buyers end up financing their new or used cars. One option is Audi’s own lending arm — Audi Financial Services (AFS).
Audi financing rates aren’t always the lowest, although AFS sometimes offers rebates and incentives, including low-interest deals that can be very competitive. AFS is also more convenient for Audi buyers, since everything is handled at the dealership.
If you do consider AFS for your Audi financing, make sure the rate you’re quoted is reasonable, based on your credit score. Check this by using the tables further down on this page.
How do your Audi payments compare to the average?
Use our auto loan calculator to determine how much car you can afford.
How do you know if your potential Audi financing annual percentage rate (APR) is a good deal?
No matter where you get your loan from, your credit score is usually the most important part of the equation. If you’re not sure what your score is, you can find it for free via LendingTree Spring or other online services.
Below you’ll find estimated monthly payments for various Audi models, both new and used, based on data from Kelley Blue Book (KBB), Experian and other sources. Find the column that matches your credit score to see what a typical payment should look like for you.
But be aware that, besides your credit, other factors can affect your monthly bill, including the size of your down payment, the loan term and any add-ons you may purchase, like extended warranties, paint protection or prepaid maintenance.
For example, you may notice that some payments for customers with excellent credit might be higher than those with average credit. This is because, according to Experian, those with better credit tend to choose shorter loan terms, which usually have higher payments but lower interest rates.
Still, if you don’t think you’re getting a good deal with Audi’s own financing, then you’ll probably want to shop around and compare other auto loan rates.
(Learn more about how we calculated average monthly Audi payments.)
Estimated average monthly payments for new Audis
| Model | Starting MSRP | Monthly payment (501-600 credit score) | Monthly payment (601-660 credit score) | Monthly payment (661-780 credit score) | Monthly payment (781-850 credit score) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 Audi A3 | $35,800 | $576.91 | $523.20 | $500.53 | $531.56 |
| 2024 Audi Q3 | $37,400 | $608.62 | $551.95 | $528.03 | $560.77 |
| 2024 Audi A4 Sedan | $41,900 | $697.77 | $632.81 | $605.39 | $642.92 |
| 2024 Audi Q5 | $45,300 | $765.14 | $693.90 | $663.83 | $704.99 |
| 2024 Audi Q8 | $73,700 | $1,327.83 | $1,204.21 | $1,152.02 | $1,223.44 |
Estimated average monthly payments for used Audis
| Model | Fair purchase price | Monthly payment (501-600 credit score) | Monthly payment (601-660 credit score) | Monthly payment (661-780 credit score) | Monthly payment (781-850 credit score) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Audi A3 | $15,917 | $390.21 | $250.24 | $219.63 | $214.51 |
| 2018 Audi Q3 | $16,941 | $313.99 | $271.99 | $238.71 | $233.15 |
| 2018 Audi A4 Sedan | $16,479 | $302.66 | $262.18 | $230.10 | $224.74 |
| 2018 Audi Q5 | $19,082 | $366.48 | $317.45 | $278.61 | $272.12 |
| 2019 Audi Q8* | $32,903 | $705.30 | $610.95 | $536.20 | $523.71 |
*Although other examples in this table are 2018 models, the first Audi Q8s sold were 2019 models.
Audi finance options
While the payments shown above are good as a general guide, your Audi financing rate and terms will depend a lot on your personal situation.
You have many choices when it comes to funding, including special AFS offers, banks, credit unions, online lenders and others. It’s good to keep these options in mind as you decide how to pay for your Audi.
Audi Financial Services
Best if...
Most major car manufacturers offer their own auto financing because it’s another way they make profit. But it can also be very convenient for buyers.
Automaker lenders rarely offer the same APR across their product lines. The year and model of the car, the season you’re buying the car and even your ZIP code can all affect the interest rate you’ll pay on a car, although credit score is still the most important.
You may be able to get prequalified or preapproved for auto financing on a dealer’s website. Or you can just visit your local dealer to go through the process from the start.
Most dealers don’t tell you the minimum credit score you’ll need to get the best rates, but you may be able to find that information online before you apply.
Automakers don’t always offer the best financing rates, but they sometimes have excellent deals through special programs and incentives, such as 0% financing, cash back or discounts for certain groups. Here are some:
College Graduate Program
Audi financing has a program for those who graduated from an accredited U.S. or Canadian college or university within the past 24 months.
If you’re a U.S. citizen or permanent resident with a job (or written job offer) — and if your monthly payment won’t exceed 25% of your income — then Audi will waive requirements for a credit history, a cosigner or a security deposit for a lease.
First-Time Buyer Program
If you’re a new buyer and you’ve lived in a dealer’s area for at least one year, you might qualify for the First-Time Buyer Program. You don’t need a credit history, but if you have one, it must be in good standing.
You’ll need to show proof of income and residency, as well as two complete personal references that Audi can contact, including at least one from a relative.
Foreign Business Professionals Program
If you’re working in the U.S. on an employment visa and you have verifiable income of at least $45,000 per year, you may qualify for the Foreign Business Professionals Program.
You’ll need contact information for you and your employer, your visa information and two personal references that Audi can contact.
Expatriate Program
Working via International AutoSource, foreign expatriates moving to the U.S. can purchase, finance or lease an Audi before they arrive in America.
Military Sales Program
Audi works with Military AutoSource to provide new Audi vehicles to active-duty military, Defense Department employees and others based outside of the U.S. Cars can be delivered either overseas in Europe or in North America.
Bank and credit union auto loans
Best if...
Local banks — and especially credit unions — tend to have better APRs than auto dealers, since they’re usually more willing to work with borrowers to get the financing they need at a decent rate.
A drawback, however, is that going through a bank or credit union involves an extra step. Your lender will first have to preapprove you for an auto loan, and then they will have to work directly with Audi to get the financing for the exact vehicle you want.
However, you can often apply for these loans easily online, and many banks and credit unions will even offer a loan discount of 0.25% if you set up automatic payment.
PenFed Credit Union, for example, offers rates as low as 4.74%, loan amounts up to $150,000, financing up to 125% of the car’s value and online preapproval in minutes.
Navy Federal Credit Union offers rates as low as 4.09%, online preapprovals valid for 90 days and discounts for military members.
Online auto loans
Best for...
If you look for auto financing with an online lender marketplace — such as LendingTrees’s list of top auto lenders — you compare multiple lenders and even apply to several lenders at once, making it more likely to find the best deal.
On the downside, you may receive offers from unfamiliar lenders that could be harder to vet. However, the convenience of handling the loan online and the chance to snag a low APR may make online lenders a great choice for some borrowers
| Auto purchasing resources: | |
|---|---|
| Borrowers with bad credit | Trading in a car |
| Auto refinancing | New car depreciation |
| Borrowers with no credit | Questions to ask when buying a car |
In-house financing
Best for...
Also known as “buy here, pay here,” in-house financing doesn’t refer to getting a loan through an auto company’s finance arm, like AFS. Instead, it means you’re asking the dealer to finance your purchase directly.
If you go this route, expect to pay a very high interest rate. It’s an option mostly for customers who have struggled to get more traditional financing.
In-house financing has many downsides. The main advantage is that getting approval is usually pretty easy, even with poor or nonexistent credit. This is because the high APR will compensate for the risk.
It may be hard to find an Audi dealership that will offer in-house financing, but it’s usually available at used-car lots.
How we calculated average monthly Audi payments
To calculate average monthly Audi payments, we found the estimated starting manufacturer’s suggested retail prices (MSRPs) and the fair purchase prices for some of Audi’s most popular models.
Next, we subtracted an average down payment from each. According to Edmunds, the average down payment on a new vehicle was $6,682 in Q1 2024. For used vehicles, it was $4,133. The resulting figure represents the total amount our hypothetical borrowers financed.
From there, we used our auto loan calculator to figure out average monthly Audi payments, using average APRs and loan terms as reported by Experian’s State of the Automotive Finance Market Q1 2024.
You’ll find this data in the tables below. Please note that loan terms were rounded to the nearest whole number during our calculations.
| Subprime (501-600) | Near prime (601-660) | Prime (661-780) | Superprime (781-850) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average APR | 12.85% | 9.62% | 6.89% | 5.38% |
| Average loan term | 73.05 months | 73.81 months | 70.91 months | 63.31 months |
| Subprime (501-600) | Near prime (601-660) | Prime (661-780) | Superprime (781-850) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average APR | 18.97% | 13.72% | 9.04% | 6.80% |
| Average loan term | 66.35 months | 68.28 months | 68.63 months | 65.53 months |
Frequently asked questions
As of this writing, Audi isn’t offering 0.00% financing on a national basis. However, individual dealers may have special incentives or APR deals of their own, so you’ll have to check locally. In the past, Audi has offered 0% financing on select models, so if you’re a patient buyer, you may find that offer again in the future.
According to Audi El Paso, yes, you can get approved for Audi financing, even with bad credit. However, the dealership stresses that your credit history and your debt-to-income ratio will play a big role in what rate you may get.
Audi Stratham agrees, saying that financing an Audi is possible, even with no credit. However, the dealership says you’ll want to build/improve your credit as much as possible before you apply, and that you may have to make a higher down payment and/or accept a higher interest rate.
Audi Stratham also suggests that you keep your financing applications within a two-week window, as extra applications outside of that time period will result in additional hits to your credit report.
According to individual dealers, it’s not difficult to get financed through AFS. But you should be prepared to pay higher interest rates if you have lower credit. You may also be asked to make a larger down payment to reduce the lender’s risk.