Car-Buying Services: Are They Right For You? (2024)

Finding a new or used car that aligns with your budget and needs doesn’t have to be a daunting task. Car-buying services can handle the heavy lifting for you. Here’s how these services work and which ones may be the best for your needs.

What Is a Car-buying Service?

A car-buying service helps you with the entire process: searching for a vehicle, choosing the right one and negotiating an acceptable price.

Not all car-buying services are alike. In fact, there are different types of services to accommodate the needs of most anyone shopping for a vehicle.

How to Find the Best Car-buying Service

First, you’ll have to decide on the type of service that best suits you. Then, balance that against how much the service will save you in time, how it might reduce the stress of negotiating and the overall costs associated with the service.

You’ll have several different options to choose from, including online car-buying sites, car brokers, membership discount programs and car concierges.

Online Car-buying Website

Estimated cost: Free

A good first place to look is at some online car-buying websites. These usually have inventory ranging from used and new cars, to used cars only, to former rental units coming out of a national rental car fleet.

Related: With a car-buying website like CarMax, Carvana or Vroom, you’re able to shop inventory on the website to find a match that meets your needs—from your car-buying budget to preferred vehicle choice and more.

Car Broker

Estimated cost: $0 to $1,000

Using a car broker is a great way to save time and money. Often car brokers are former car dealership salespeople who know the inside workings of a dealership. They’re more aware of information and negotiation surrounding sticker price, best price and lowest price.

Brokers can use their experience and industry retail-channel networks to find the best price on the vehicle that meets your needs. A broker works either as an independent contractor or as part of a larger firm that specializes in helping consumers with the car-shopping process.

The best part about using a car broker is that the fee is considerably less than concierge fees. You might not have to pay a fee at all if the car dealership covers it. But if your broker’s fee is being paid by the dealership as a commission or flat fee, this can raise a red flag.

Note that this type of relationship between a car broker and a dealership could mean that the broker settled for a higher price knowing that they were in line for a commission from the dealership based on the sale price. So, do your research before working with a broker to ensure they have your best interests in mind.

Membership Discount Program

Estimated cost: Cost varies by membership

You may already be a member of a car-buying service and not even realize it. For example, if you’re a member of Costco, Sam’s Club, AAA or even a credit union, you have access to purchase certain manufacturer models at discounted pricing. Chase Bank also offers a service through its partnership with TrueCar, a national car-buying service.

Some perks of using your membership for a car-buying service include:

• Special pricing: After you enter your make and model features online, the company begins a search of its certified dealer networks. The quid pro quo is that the dealerships offer low, designated vehicle special pricing in exchange for referrals from the membership program.
• Vehicle advice: Plus, if the vehicle you want is not available, the company representatives can advise you on best-in-class features of similar makes and models you have not considered that are part of its multi-manufacturer participating dealer network.

Tip: Even though you’re locking in the price of the vehicle with your club membership, the dealership salesperson will take the opportunity to upsell you on warranties, insurance products and more. Just keep in mind that these are optional, not mandatory, so don’t feel pressured to take on these extra costs.

Car Concierge

Estimated cost: $200 to $1,000 and/or a percentage of your savings

If you live a busy life and need to purchase a vehicle, a car concierge service goes above and beyond when it comes to the car-buying process. With a car concierge, you’ll have the advantage of off-loading the search and negotiation to someone who is knowledgeable and plugged into the car industry and who brings an insider’s perspective, for your benefit, to the transaction.

A car concierge can help you with:

• Finding a vehicle
• Handling the purchase
• Signing the paperwork
• Delivering the vehicle to your doorstep

Car concierge services can start at $200 and increase up to $1,000 by the time the vehicle is delivered to your home. There is also the possibility you’ll have to pay a percentage of the amount you save by using the concierge during negotiations.

Pros and Cons of a Car-buying Service

Using websites like Edmunds or Kelley Blue Book might give you all the pricing and performance information you need to negotiate a deal for a vehicle. But you should still weigh the positives and negatives of a car-buying service before you decide what’s best for you.

Pros of a Car-buying Service

Car-buying services typically help you get a better deal than you would on your own. Plus, these services can leverage the experience of its experts to negotiate for you, so you can skip the unnecessary stress of negotiating with a car sales professional.

Additionally, one big advantage is the time you’ll save by outsourcing the entire process, including haggling over price or aftermarket products and reviewing the paperwork.

Cons of a Car-buying Service

The downside to car-buying services is that you may not get the exact vehicle, new or used, that you imagined owning.

Additionally, you might find that the expense of the service is just not worth it—especially with a car concierge who charges an upfront fee and an additional payment when the deal closes.