Small lots often pay monthly fees that grow with users, modules and renewals. To judge fairly, add up the full cost over several years, including add-ons and what it costs to leave. Dealer Garage has a free plan and one-time Basic ($99) and Pro ($149) licences, with no monthly fee.
What the problem looks like
You started with a plan that looked affordable. Then you added a second user, the website module, the lead tool and a reporting package. The invoice grew, and so did the notice period on the contract. A lot that sells a handful of cars a month now spends a noticeable slice of each sale on software.
The worry is not only the bill, but the lock-in: your inventory and customers live on someone else's servers, and leaving means exporting data and learning something new.
Why it happens
Subscription pricing rewards the vendor for adding things: more seats, more modules, more tiers. It is a sensible model for companies that need a vendor-run cloud service. It is a heavy one for a small lot that mainly needs inventory, costs, leads, deals and forms.
It is also hard to compare. Prices vary by user count and modules, and published figures are often the lowest tier.
How to total the real cost
- Collect twelve months of invoices, including add-ons and taxes.
- Add set-up, training and any payment-processing charges.
- Multiply by the number of years you expect to use the software.
- Add the cost of leaving: data export fees and the time to move.
- Compare with the one-time cost of an alternative plus any support or update fees.
See one-time versus monthly dealer software cost for a worked comparison, and desktop versus cloud dealer software for the other trade-offs.
Where Dealer Garage fits
Dealer Garage is installable software that runs on your computer. The free plan covers inventory, costs, leads, customers, deals, the calendar, window stickers, the dashboard and backups. Basic ($99 once) adds the bill of sale and wider forms, the garage register, listing-site lead sync, online forms, Marketplace posting and email campaigns. Pro ($149 once) lets other computers in the office share the same data.
There is no monthly fee, so the cost does not grow with your volume or your headcount. See pricing.
What you give up
Cloud software gives you access from anywhere and vendor-managed updates and backups. Dealer Garage runs on your computers, so you manage backups and it is not a web login. If you need remote access from many locations or an extensive integration ecosystem, a cloud product may be the better fit.
Questions people ask
Is there any recurring charge?
No. Dealer Garage plans are one-time purchases.
Can I start free?
Yes. The free plan is usable on its own, and Basic and Pro are upgrades.
What about updates?
See the pricing page for what each licence covers.
Try Dealer Garage
Dealer Garage is installable dealer management software for independent used-car dealers in the US and Canada: inventory, leads, deals, dealer paperwork, Facebook Marketplace posting and email campaigns, with records stored on the dealership's own computer..