Instant offers to sell your car

1. Sell 100% online. Upload documents and complete a self-inspection. Then we’ll pick up your car from your location and you’ll get paid.
2. Sell to a local dealer. Bring your offer, documents, and ID to the dealership. The dealer will inspect your car, verify your offer and pay you on the spot.

• An offer from a local dealer. You’ll complete your sale at a nearby dealership and get paid immediately.
• A 100% online offer. You’ll complete your sale online by uploading a few documents, completing a self-inspection, and scheduling your pick-up. A driver will pick up your car from your location and you'll get paid.

• Bank transfer. Link your bank account through our secure portal for the fastest, most hassle-free way to receive your funds. You’ll receive payment in one to three business days.
• Check. Request a check and you'll have to wait a few hours for it to be activated before you can deposit it on pick-up day. Some banks have deposit limits and may hold funds for several days before depositing the funds into your account.

Selling to a local dealer. The dealer will pay you on the spot. To increase your purchasing power and potentially save on taxes, consider trading in your car. By applying your trade-in value to your down payment, you can decrease or even eliminate it. Depending on your state's tax laws, a trade-in could potentially save you thousands of dollars in sales tax.

Some cars won't be eligible for an offer. Reasons include branded vehicle titles, extensive damage, high mileage, old age, exotic or rare models, non-drivable condition, or no local interest.

Yes. You can sell a car that you haven’t finished financing. The process varies depending on to whom you’re selling the car.

• If you’ve accepted an 100% online offer from CarGurus and the offer is greater than the amount you owe on your car loan, we'll pay off your loan and send you the difference. If your offer is less than the amount you owe, you'll need to either pay off your loan before we can pay you, or pay us the difference before we can pay your lender.
• If you sell your car to a local dealer, the dealer will guide you through the loan settling process as part of the sale or the purchase of your next vehicle.

For more information, see our guide: How to Trade in a Car That Isn’t Paid Off.

In most states, no. Rules around car titles vary by state, but—generally speaking—if you’ve lost your vehicle’s title, it should be possible to obtain a replacement by contacting your state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Note: obtaining a new title invalidates a car’s old title.There are other reasons why you might not be in possession of your car’s title, such as if the car still has a lien against it, or if it was bought from a previous owner that didn’t have the title. Our guide to how to sell a car without a title explains what to do in these scenarios.

The rules and laws on what taxes you pay when selling your car to a private party vary by state (and in some cases even by city). The most important thing to know is that you only pay tax on any profit made from the car sale. If you sell a car for less than you paid for, there’s no sales tax. However, if you sell your car for more money than you paid for it, the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) considers that a capital gain, and you’ll need to report it when you file your federal and state income taxes. Only then will you know if you owe any taxes. For more information, read out full guide: Understanding Taxes When Buying and Selling a Car

If you want to save on taxes, consider trading in your car. Depending on your state's tax laws, a trade-in can potentially save you a substantial amount in sales tax, in some cases, as much as thousands of dollars.

If you’re worried that selling a financed car might hurt your credit, the important point to consider is whether you can settle your debt as agreed with the lender. Contact your lender and ask for your payoff balance, which is a figure based on the remainder of the loan payments plus accompanying interest and fees. If you can sell your car and settle the payoff loan with the lender, then it won’t hurt your credit. If you sell your car but still can’t meet the payoff balance, there are other options open to you, such as refinancing the remaining balance to make payments smaller. Doing this shouldn’t hurt your credit because you’ll still be paying the loan back in full.

Alternative routes that will harm your credit include paying a settlement balance, voluntary surrender of the vehicle or repossession of the vehicle. If you’re struggling to pay back your car loan, it’s important to speak to the lender to see what options might be available to you.