Free calculator
Total Cost of Ownership Calculator
Calculate the lifetime cost of any asset across acquisition, maintenance, downtime, fuel, overhead and residual. Supports heavy equipment, light fleet, small plant, tools and IT. Then see how much proactive asset tracking removes from the addressable portion.
GM of Operations
What TCO actually includes
The five-line TCO formula:
TCO = acquisition
+ (annual_maintenance + downtime_cost + fuel + overhead) × useful_life
- residual_value
Each line is its own decision lever. The maintenance and downtime lines together are typically 40-60% of lifetime TCO for revenue- producing equipment. Those are the lines proactive asset tracking, preventive maintenance and OEM telematics integration affect directly. Acquisition, fuel and overhead are less elastic but second-order improvements (better right-sizing of fleets from utilisation data) compound over multiple replacement cycles.
Frequently asked questions
What is total cost of ownership (TCO)?
TCO is the lifetime cost of acquiring, operating, maintaining and disposing of an asset, less any residual value at end-of-life. The formula is: acquisition + (annual maintenance + downtime cost + fuel + overhead) × useful life - residual value. TCO is the right number for capital-allocation decisions because it includes the operating costs you commit to when you buy. Looking at acquisition price alone consistently understates the true cost by 60-80% for heavy equipment.
How accurate are the default benchmark values?
Defaults are sourced from industry benchmark studies and MapTrack customer data across construction, mining, civil, manufacturing and facilities operations. They are reasonable starting points. Adjust each input to match your actual operating data for a defensible TCO figure. The two inputs with the largest impact are typically downtime cost per hour (varies 20x across industries) and annual maintenance percentage (heavy equipment runs 6-12% of acquisition cost per year).
Why is downtime cost so important?
Downtime cost is often the largest single TCO component for revenue-producing equipment. A heavy excavator at A$750/hour downtime cost × 80 hours per year × 8 years = A$480,000 lifetime downtime cost. That can exceed the original purchase price. Reducing downtime by 25 to 35% through preventive maintenance and proactive asset tracking changes the TCO equation more than any other lever.
How does MapTrack reduce TCO?
MapTrack reduces the maintenance + downtime portions of TCO (typically the addressable half). Preventive maintenance scheduling fires on hour or kilometre thresholds before failure. OEM telematics fault codes auto-create work orders so machines come out of service before they fail catastrophically. Parts inventory alerts ensure spares are on hand. Compliance certificates surface before expiry. The mechanism is documented in customer outcomes: RIX Specialist Contracting reduced overdue maintenance 80%, Saunders International 90% time savings on asset tracking, Hacer Group 25-35% hire-cost reduction.
Should I use AUD or USD?
Use the currency your finance team plans in. The calculation logic is identical; only the formatting changes. For mixed AU/US operations, run the calculator twice or convert at your standard exchange rate before entry.
Why does the residual value matter?
Residual is the asset's value at end-of-life (sale, trade-in, scrap). It reduces TCO. Heavy equipment with strong secondary markets (Caterpillar, Komatsu) holds 15 to 30% of acquisition value at 8-10 years; light fleet at 5 years typically holds 30 to 40%. Tools and IT typically hold near zero. The residual decision interacts with proactive maintenance: well-maintained assets with full service history fetch 10-20% more at resale than assets with patchy records.
Related tools
Depreciation calculator
Straight-line and diminishing value depreciation per asset.
Downtime cost calculator
Annual cost of unplanned equipment downtime with industry benchmarks.
Maintenance savings calculator
Quantify savings from preventive vs reactive maintenance.
Asset register builder
Interactive wizard for a starter asset register with custom fields.
Asset tracking features
QR, GPS, BLE and OEM telematics in one register.
Pricing
Per-asset, unlimited users. From A$1/asset/month.
Ready to track every asset?
Join construction, mining and field service teams across Australia.
4.8 on G2 · 4.9 on Capterra
- No credit card required
- 30 days free trial
- Cancel anytime