Repair or replace calculator: the 50% rule plus cost-per-year math
Your washing machine dies mid-cycle and the tech quotes a fix. Should you pay it — or shop? This calculator runs your numbers through the two frameworks consumer sources actually use: the 50% rule (repair cost vs. half the price of a new unit) and a cost-per-remaining-year comparison that weighs your machine's age against sourced lifespan averages. It labels the answer with honest confidence wording, because a rule of thumb is exactly that — a rule of thumb, not gospel.
FixOrBuy decision calculator
No network calls — plain JavaScript on this page. Pick an appliance to pre-fill the sourced lifespan, then edit anything.
Key takeaways
- Two checks, not one: the 50% rule (quote vs. half the new price) and cost-per-remaining-year (quote ÷ years left vs. price ÷ full new-unit lifespan). When they agree, the answer is usually safe; when they disagree, it's a judgment call.
- Age flips the answer. A $300 repair on a $900 machine passes the 50% rule at 33% — but on a 9-year-old washer with 1 statistical year left, it costs $300/yr versus $90/yr to replace.
- Lifespans are averages, not expiry dates. Pre-filled figures come from the NAHB "Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components" (Feb 2007); industry ranges run wider.
- Use real out-the-door prices: include tax, delivery, installation and haul-away in the replacement price.
Methodology: the two frameworks and their assumptions
Framework 1 — the 50% rule
If the repair quote is more than half the price of a comparable new unit, lean replace; if it's under, lean repair. It's a widely cited consumer heuristic — commonly attributed to Consumer Reports' product-repair guidance and repeated by consumer and repair-industry outlets (Angi's repair guides, updated Oct 2026, phrase it as: repair is "often the better choice" when the unit is under about eight years old and the repair costs under 50% of the new price). Consumer Reports' own repair-or-replace tool sits behind a membership wall, so we state the rule as the published consensus, not a verbatim quote. Its full story — and where it breaks — is covered in the 50% rule explained.
Framework 2 — cost per remaining year
The 50% rule ignores age, so we add a second check. The repair path's cost is spread over the machine's remaining life: lifespan − age, using the NAHB-sourced lifespan table (if your tech gives you a remaining-life estimate, we honor it but cap it at the statistical figure). The replace path spreads the new price over the new unit's full expected lifespan. Comparing dollars-per-year puts an old machine's short runway on equal footing with a new machine's long one.
Assumptions (read before trusting any verdict)
- Lifespan figures are national averages for first-owner use (NAHB, Feb 2007) — heavy use, hard water, poor maintenance or luck move any single unit far from the average.
- The repair quote is assumed accurate and the fix assumed to restore normal function; a misdiagnosed board that fails again in six months breaks the math.
- Energy efficiency is not counted here — an old refrigerator can cost real money per year to run (see energy payback thinking).
- Resale, recycling fees, delivery delays, floor-model discounts and your tolerance for shopping are outside the model.
- Gas appliances: any repair involving the gas line, burner or venting is a licensed-technician job, whatever the calculator says (see DIY safety lines).
Worked example: the 9-year-old washer
Quote $300, age 9, washer lifespan 10, replacement $900. The 50% rule says repair — $300 is 33% of the new price. But remaining life is 10 − 9 = 1 year, so the repair costs $300 per remaining year, while replacing costs $900 ÷ 10 = $90 per year. The calculator flags the disagreement as a judgment call, leaning replace — and notes the unit is at 90% of its expected life. Flip the age to 4 and the same $300 repair becomes $43/yr vs. $90/yr: both checks agree, repair wins. That flip is the whole point of the second framework.
Home-warranty / appliance protection plans (concept explainer)
If breakdowns keep repeating, a service plan is one way people cap repair bills. We don't review or rank providers — start with the FTC's service-contract checklist and our warranty math article before signing anything.
Compare plan types →FAQ
Is the 50% rule a hard rule?
No. It's a screening heuristic, not a law — its provenance is consumer-advocacy guidance repeated across outlets, and it ignores age, energy costs and how much you value your time. Treat the calculator's "judgment call" and "close call" labels literally: when the checks disagree, either path is defensible.
Where do the lifespan numbers come from?
Primarily the NAHB / Bank of America "Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components" (February 2007), Table 1 — washers 10 yrs, dishwashers 9, dryers 13, refrigerators 13, gas ranges 15, microwaves 9, gas water heaters 10, electric 11. The full sourced table shows the wider industry ranges alongside.
Does the calculator send my data anywhere?
No. It's a static page; the math is plain JavaScript running locally in your browser.
What should I put in the replacement price?
The out-the-door cost of a comparable unit: price + tax + delivery + installation + haul-away. The like-for-like price, not the dream model.
Not advice — and gas is gas
This tool is educational arithmetic, not professional repair or financial advice. And any repair touching gas lines, burners or venting belongs to a licensed technician — utility safety guidance is blunt: gas appliances "should only be installed, moved, replaced and serviced by qualified service technicians."
Related reading
- The 50% rule explained (and where it comes from)
- How long appliances last: the sourced lifespan table
- Washing machine: repair or replace
- How to find a good repair tech (and a fair quote)
Last verified: 2026-11-16 — sources: NAHB/BofA "Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components" (Feb 2007, Table 1); Mr. Appliance life-expectancy chart (23rd annual Portrait of the U.S. Appliance Industry); Angi repair-cost guides (updated Oct 2026, fetched 2026-11-16); Texas Gas Service appliance-safety page (fetched 2026-11-16). All outbound links on this site are nofollow.