Whether you buy brand-new or used cars, vehicles are an essential investment for personal use, work, or anything in between. But just because they’re a crucial investment doesn’t mean they should be overly costly.

Begin with the End in Mind: Getting the Most Money for Used Cars

There are ways to ensure you’re getting the most bang for your buck when car shopping. One way is to think about the initial and resale value of the vehicle you’re buying before you purchase it.

To help with that, we’ve assessed what brands have the highest resale value for their vehicles and what brands have the best value for new and used cars. From these, we’ve created the ultimate list of automotive brands that would be the best investment from start to finish!

Automotive Brands Known for Excellent Affordable New and Used Cars?

First, we found a few brands with affordable vehicles that were also highly rated in terms of reliability and safety or had unique features that made them stand out to the public.

Toyota

Toyota tops this list by being the brand best known for being reliable and durable. If you’re looking for a safe, reliable vehicle that won’t make your wallet weep, everyone recommends a Toyota. This brand proves that great cars don’t have to be expensive ones, leading many to become lifelong fans of the automaker.

The only negative opinion about Toyotas is that some consider them bland in things like design and power, but that’s a small price to pay for an otherwise excellent vehicle.

Kia

Kia has turned their brand around from being overly cheap and low quality to being a leader in reliability and performance while remaining affordable for everyday drivers. In fact, Kias are known as having the third lowest amount of recalls after Porsche and Mercedes-Benz.

With Kia cars becoming more and more popular as the brand rises in reputation, now may be the best time to buy one of your own.

Nissan

Nissans, while well-rated, are on the lower end of the vehicles on this list when considering safety and reliability. Instead, these vehicles can shine with their unique styles and features.

This means you get a striking vehicle design and quite a few interesting standard features without spending more on them. And it allows Nissan to stand alongside better-rated brands like Toyota and Honda as affordable cars that consumers have always favored.

Honda

Unlike other brands, Honda is best known for its diversity as a vehicle manufacturer -for example, many heard of Honda first as a motorcycle manufacturer. Similarly, the company’s cars range from sporty Civics to family-friendly CR-Vs.No matter what vehicle you’re looking for, you’ll find a reliable one you can trust if you purchase one from Honda. You won’t be unhappy with the price they’re sold at, either.

Which Brands Offer the Best Resale Value on Used Cars?

Next, we looked at some brands with the highest overall resale value on used cars in the past few years.

Toyota

Due in large part to its longstanding history of reliable vehicles, Toyota has found a way to ensure their used cars maintain a high standard that prevents their resale value from dropping too much. Anyone buying a used Toyota would be willing to pay more for a vehicle they know will last a long time.

This means that anyone wanting to sell a Toyota can still get as much as 60% of the vehicle’s original value during the first five years it’s owned, according to Motortrend.

Jeep

Off-road capability and versatility are what make vehicles made by Jeep stand out. This is also what makes them Jeeps most valuable. And no matter how old a car gets, these factors don’t change or depreciate, allowing many Jeep vehicles to retain their original value better. It also doesn’t hurt that Jeeps have a distinctive look.

Interestingly, Jeep Wranglers are the best at retaining value and are the main reason Jeeps have a higher average resale value than other brands.

Subaru

Subaru won the hard-earned award of being named the best resale value brand in 2015, according to Kelly Blue Book. Factors like a high safety rating, low maintenance costs, and famous performance contributed to this status.

Subaru’s are also known for accommodating any driver’s needs. Many current and past Subaru drivers are ready to recommend a vehicle from the brand to family and friends, helping keep the resale value of this brand high.

Honda

Like the Subaru, Honda has won Kelly Blue Book’s award for best resale value, and for many, the brand name alone is enough to prompt a person into being willing to spend more. That’s because Hondas are known for being reliable and smooth rides that are well worth their cost.

Honda vehicles also have a variety of appeals that make them suitable options for the needs of all drivers, helping the brand retain higher-than-average resale values when compared to similar automakers.

The Ultimate Best Value Brands for Used Cars

It may already be obvious, but the brand that stood out the most was Toyota: it combined higher resale value with a lower upfront cost. This makes new and used cars from Toyota an outstanding buy as both a regular purchase and a reselling investment opportunity.

Honda comes in at a close second to Toyota. It has less reliability and a lower resale value when compared to our winning brand. However, Hondas are practically household names for everyday drivers, and their affordability and versatility make them stand out as a strong brand. Kias ended up as the third-place choice. Despite having an arguably bad resale value compared to other brands, Kia has experienced dramatic growth that is worth keeping an eye on in the next few years. In the meantime, Kias are one of the best investments for a used car due to their affordable, technologically advanced, high-quality vehicles.

Therefore, these are the three best brands to search for if you want to get the most out of your money when investing in used cars.