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The ultimate guide to the best car valuation services.
When getting your car or a vehicle that you’re looking to buy evaluated, it’s important that you get an accurate valuation. Valuations are used to help buyers and sellers figure out how much a car is worth, meaning that an inaccurate valuation can cause issues and problems.
Thankfully, there are plenty of places where you can get a reasonable and well-informed valuation for your vehicle. Here’s some insight on how to get an accurate car valuation and the best sources to get your car valued online in 2024. If you need to find out more data about specific vehicles, such as their MOT or tax status, you can find all this out with our tools on Car Adviser.
A car valuation estimates how much a particular car is worth. Each car will have its guide price, which can let buyers and sellers know roughly how much a car should be sold for, which helps regulate the market.
Online, many different tools can help you get an accurate valuation. These tools use various factors about your car and search different car information databases to provide you with a price range that the searched car is worth.
Depending on the quality of the tool, each valuation might be a bit different from the other simply because of a few factors. This includes the database it uses to get its prices and the information the tool knows about the searched car.
A valuation you get from an online valuation tool isn’t a defined price, and if you want, you can sell your car for more or less than this. However, these valuations are good guides to let you know what kind of values are accurate and what you should expect to get or have to pay for a certain vehicle.
When trying to sell your car, knowing how much it’s worth can help you be better prepared to get the best price for it. If you haven’t an accurate idea of how much your car is worth, you may sell it for too little, resulting in you losing money. Plus, not having a good idea of what your vehicle is worth can also mean that you may be asking too much for it, resulting in you being unable to sell the car.
By getting a valuation, you’ll be able to know how much to advertise your car for and also understand what offers you should ignore and what you should consider. When accurately priced, cars will usually sell faster, and buyers will also be more confident in you.
Knowing the value of a car can also help when buying a car too, as it will prevent you from getting into any bad deals and can also make you far more confident. A car’s value is just another piece of helpful information that can help you with negotiations and haggling to get the best deal possible.
Many different things can impact the valuation of a car, and it’s this stuff that you’ll need to consider when trying to get an accurate valuation for your vehicle. If a tool provides a valuation without considering or asking for information about the following, it’s likely that the tool may not be as accurate as you’d like. Here are some of the top things that can impact the value of a car.
Things that can increase the car’s value include:
Things that can decrease the value of a ca include:
There are many tools and websites online where you can get your car evaluated. That said, many of them don’t offer the best accuracy and could give you a valuation that isn’t close t the true valuation of your car. This is because many valuation tools will check your car’s registration and use that information to give you a rough estimate.
In truth, various factors can dictate how much your car is worth, and only the best valuation tools can use these factors to give you a reasonable, accurate valuation. Plus, when getting your vehicle evaluated, you want to use a knowledgeable source in the know. That’s why the best valuation tools are usually part of a wider website that deals in some way with the auto industry. A business that buys and sells cars will have a much better understanding of a car’s value than a different kind of business, which is why we at Car Adviser recommend using those websites.
Below are some of the best car valuation providers online. Although most of these can be trusted, we recommend using a handful of different valuations to ensure that there’s not too much deviation between the providers. By collecting a lot of valuations, you can use that data to work out an accurate range of where your vehicle falls into.
When reviewing these providers, we ran a valuation on a test vehicle to see how much the valuations differ on each platform. For reference, our test car is a 2013 plate Ford Fiesta with 60,000 miles and is in a like-new condition.
The following represents the cream of the crop regarding car valuations.
ExchangeMyCar is a trusted and reliable platform for both buying and selling cars. However, the main focus of this section will be on its car valuation services.
The company understands that getting an accurate valuation is crucial when it comes to buying or selling a vehicle. Their process is designed to make things as simple and convenient as possible for their customers.
To get your car valued on ExchangeMyCar, all you need to do is enter your car’s registration and mileage. Within 30 seconds, you will receive an instant offer from their network of partner car buyers.
If you’re not satisfied with the initial offer, you have the option to provide more details about the car to get a more precise valuation.
Overall, ExchangeMyCar has proven to be reliable in their car valuations, with their panel of buyers making competitive offers to buy customer vehicles. They also offer a free home collection service, making the process even more convenient and adding extra value for their customers.
ExchangeMyCar has built a formidable reputation in the automotive industry, primarily for its car valuation services, which are often hailed for providing some of the best prices in the market.
This competitive edge is achieved through a vast network of partner car buyers and a sophisticated system that adeptly matches each vehicle with a specific buyer interested in purchasing. Such precision in pairing not only boosts the chances of a quick sale but frequently results in considerably higher offers for sellers.
In addition to its efficient and customer-friendly valuation process, ExchangeMyCar is known for its transparent and fair dealings. The company prides itself on providing accurate and realistic valuations, while also offering the option for customers to provide additional information to enhance the offer further. This level of transparency builds trust between buyers and sellers, making the entire transaction experience smooth and hassle-free.
Overall, we give ExchangeMyCar a Car Adviser score of 4.8/5 for their accurate and user-friendly car valuation tool. Their commitment to providing the best offers and excellent customer service makes them a top choice for anyone looking to sell their car quickly and conveniently.
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Cazoo is a popular website for people to both buy and sell their cars, and because of that, Cazoo includes a handy car valuation tool that can give you an estimation of how much your vehicle is worth.
This tool is straightforward, as all you need to do is enter your registration to begin your valuation. From there, the tool prompts you to provide extra information about the car’s condition, service, mileage, and more. It will then use all this data to give you a valuation.
What’s good about this tool is that Cazoo will honour this valuation and buy your car for this price, providing it’s in the condition you described. This means that the valuation tool is also like an offer for your car, which can speed up the car-selling process.
Cazoo can be trusted because it uses real-time market data that accurately reflects the changing state of the market.
When using the tool to get a valuation of our test car, we were given a valuation of £3,450.
As an overall business, Cazoo has a good reputation and has obtained a score of 4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot. This means that it’s a reputable business that can be trusted and provides a good service.
When reviewing its valuation tool in isolation, it’s clear that it’s one of the easiest and quickest to use. It is also very in-depth, considering many factors that can affect the condition and value of the car.
Many people praise how Cazoo sticks to this valuation when you go to sell your car with the company. This pledge from the business makes selling a car much easier and quicker, especially as the valuation is fair and accurate.
That said, some people complain that you can only get a valuation with Cazoo online. The business has many physical stores and customer centres where you have the option to drop off your car; however, the company doesn’t offer an in-person valuation service. This isn’t a huge issue, but it would have been a nice option.
As a result of its ease of use and accuracy, we give Cazoo a Car Adviser score of 4.5/5.
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Heycar is a great website where you can buy used cars in great condition. The business is always in the market of buying cars, meaning that they have a helpful valuation tool of their own to inform customers how much they think your vehicle is worth.
The Heycar tool is pretty simple to use, like the Cazoo one, with the only difference being that you need to enter your mileage in addition to your registration to start your valuation. This valuation tool uses data from thousands of car sales daily to help deliver a valuation that should be accurate and true to life.
That said, Heycar admits that their valuation will be less than what dealers will be selling similar models of your car for. This means you could find a better price if your car is valued elsewhere.
The Heycar tool isn’t detail-orientated and won’t ask for additional information about the car’s condition. As a result of this, they offer a bit more of a range. When getting a valuation for our test car, it was valued between £4,067 – £5,050.
Heycar is a well-reviewed used car dealership and has obtained a 4.5 out of 5-star rating on Trustpilot. This means selling or buying a car with Heycar should be a good, reliable experience.
However, there are a few flaws when looking at its valuation tool in isolation. The main issue is that it’s very barebones and doesn’t ask for much data before giving you a valuation. This can make it a bit less trustworthy. Heycar isn’t using this valuation as an offer for your car, meaning that the valuation range should instead be used as a guide price.
People praise how swift it is to get a valuation from Heycar, and many also like how you don’t need to sign up with an email to receive your valuation.
In terms of complaints, people can be annoyed about how some valuations fall short compared to what a dealer sells a similar car for. Plus, its surface-level tool does make it slightly less reliable.
As a result of these factors, we’re giving Heycar’s valuation tool a score of 3.5/5.
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Webuyanycar may be one of the most recognisable auto businesses in the UK due to its heavy marketing campaign, but it’s also one of the country’s most used and well-liked used car buyers.
Webuyanycar has a unique selling point where they will buy most cars regardless of condition, making them a good place for people to get rid of low-value and old vehicles. Webuyanycar has its own valuation tool that says you can get a valuation in just 30 seconds.
The tool is very similar to the tool provided by Heycar, as it only asks for your registration and your car’s mileage. Once you input this, there are no other prompts for any extra information, and you also need to input your email address and postcode to get your valuation sent to you.
When getting a valuation for the Car Adviser test vehicle, webuyanycar valued it at £3,695. Considering that there were no extra checks and information required, having a single price and not a range feels a bit bold and may not be the most accurate.
To get this price, Webuyanycar assumes that your car has no damage, has two sets of keys, a full-service history, and more. This means that if your information is different from this, then the valuation isn’t that accurate.
On Trustpilot, Webuyanycar has an overall review score of 4.8/5 after 160,000 individual reviews. This shows how popular the company is and how revered and trustworthy the service is.
However, where the valuation tool is concerned, it’s perhaps not one of the most robust tools. This is because it doesn’t require much information and assumes a lot about your car to give you a valuation.
People praise how quick it is to get a valuation and how simple the site is to use, although many complain about how the valuation isn’t a true reflection of their vehicle. Many people come to Webyanycar to sell old and perhaps flawed cars that are tough to sell elsewhere, so offering valuations that assume the car is in a like-new condition isn’t that helpful.
As a result of all these factors, we’re giving the valuation tool offered by Webuyanycar a 3/5.
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Motorpoint is an excellent place to sell a car or buy various vehicles, and they have a very competitive valuation tool that you can use to generate a price for which you can sell your car to the business.
Much like Cazoo, the valuation you are offered will be what you can sell your car for to the website, making it easy to sell your vehicle. When you get a valuation, this offer is valid for 14 days, meaning that you have an opportunity to look around and find a better valuation before selling with Motorpoint.
Their tool works similarly to many others, where you enter your registration and mileage to generate a price. The tool uses an in-house valuation system with real-time market data to provide accurate results. Once you’ve put in your basic information, the tool will ask for more information about the condition of your car and its service history, making it a reasonably in-depth tool.
That said, you need to enter your contact details to get a valuation. When using the valuation tool for our test car, it generated a value of £4,216.
Motorpoint has one of the best Trustpilot scores out of all these valuation tool providers, with the business being rated 4.7/5. This means that the company is considered excellent and provides a good service.
The specific tool is also a well-performing part of the website and is both accurate and very in-depth so that it can offer a good valuation.
Many praise how the website clearly details what makes a good, average, and excellent condition car so that you can judge it fairly. People are also impressed with the massive 14-day valuation guarantee, which allows people to search for better deals before selling with Motorpoint.
There isn’t much to complain about, although people mention that this valuation tool takes a bit longer to use and fill out. However, with that speed sacrifice, you get an accurate and generous price, which is why we give it a Car Adviser rating of 4.75/5.
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Motorway is a unique website to sell your car, as the platform will advertise your listing to various dealers and then have them bid on your vehicle in an auction-style sale. This means that your car is sold to the highest bidder, increasing your chances of getting a good price for your vehicle.
To help you get a better grasp of how much you should expect for your car, Motorway also offers a valuation tool. This is a very quick and simple tool; you just need to enter your registration number to start. It will then also ask you to confirm your mileage before then asking for your email to continue the valuation.
When they give you their valuation, the website also provides information about how they’ve come to that conclusion, saying that the price is based on the number of offers that they have for similar vehicles. This makes the valuation slightly more trustworthy, although there is no prompt to input more details about the condition of your car.
When using this tool, Motorway gave our test vehicle a valuation of £4,572, meaning that’s what you can expect to get for your car if you advertise it on Motorway. Compared to some of the other valuations, this is a pretty good price, although it’s not guaranteed, so what you actually get for your car may be a bit less than this.
Motorway has a good reputation among its customers and obtained a good rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot. This means that the business is very reputable and is one that you can trust to provide a good service for you when selling your car.
When looking only at its valuation tool, it’s clear that it’s a good one. It uses its own database of dealers to see what is being offered for cars similar to yours to give you an accurate and true-to-life valuation. It’s also a quick tool with people praising how you can get a valuation in mere moments, helping them better understand what can be expected for their car.
That said, it isn’t a detail-oriented valuation tool, and it doesn’t ask for much information about the condition of your car. This has led to a few people complaining that the price they actually got for their car was a little less after it’s been inspected.
The tool is very clean to use and super responsive, and although basic, it is a trustworthy tool and gets a Car Adviser score of 4/5.
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AutoTrader is a long-lasting business within the motor industry, and because of its legacy, it’s become a highly trusted and well-respected brand. People use the site to advertise cars that they’re selling and for buying cars at a fair price.
It makes sense then that AutoTrader offers a valuation tool. This tool is quick to use and provides an instant valuation after using your car’s registration and current mileage to give you a guide price. AutoTrader does not buy cars from you; it’s instead a site that sellers can use to advertise their vehicles. This is why this valuation can be used as a guide.
The tool is well respected and won awards in 2019 for being one of the best valuation providers on the internet, meaning that it can be well-trusted. Unlike the others tested, this tool uses a Captcha tool to ensure that bots can’t use it, making it even more trustworthy. In fact, you need to make an AutoTrader account to get your valuation, which makes it secure but also a bit more of a hassle.
When getting a valuation for our test vehicle, the tool valued the car at £4,620.
AutoTrader is a well-reviewed car buying and selling website with a Trustpilot score of 4.7/5. This means that it’s well-liked, and you are very unlikely to have any problems or issues with the quality of service.
That said, its valuation tool is more on the simple side and doesn’t ask for much information to give you your valuation. However, you can get a more tailored and accurate valuation if you choose to sell your car to AutoTrader for cash. Once you select this, you can provide more details about the car’s condition to get a more realistic offer.
People praise AutoTrader for its trustworthiness and how once you have a valuation, you can create an advert and sell it for that price. That said, people complain that the process of getting a valuation is long-winded, with many unhappy that they need to waste time creating an account to get a valuation.
With everything considered, this tool gets a Car Adviser score of 3.75/5.
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The AA is the leading breakdown cover provider and an essential car maintenance and care resource. To help keep drivers informed, the AA also offers a fee car valuation tool.
This tool is unique because, unlike the other providers, the AA isn’t a business that sells cars, meaning that the valuation is a more general guide price and isn’t tailored for the company. Instead, the AA partners with Motorway, which is where you can use this valuation if you’re interested in selling your vehicle.
When using the valuation tool on the AA, you’re required to enter your email address, registration plate, and an estimated timeframe of when you’re selling your car. With this information, The tool will then use Motorway’s live market data to give you an estimated value.
In fact, once you enter your information, you’ll be directed to an affiliate page on Motorway to complete the valuation, meaning that the process is exactly the same as when you use Motorway directly.
This means that when we valued the test car, it generated the same guide price of £4,572. Due to how this tool links to the Motorway valuation tool, the AA valuation tool isn’t actually a tool at all and instead is a link that directs you to their partner for them to complete the valuation.
The AA has a Trustpilot score of 4.1 out of 5, making it a good standard business, with a few faults and bad reviews that can impact the score. The AA is the UK’s leading breakdown cover provider, meaning it’s well-respected and well-trusted.
However, when looking at the review tool offered by the AA, it’s a little disappointing simply because it provides no extra functionality than what Motorway does. When you enter your information, you’re redirected to the Motorway website, meaning that the AA doesn’t really provide a valuation for you at all.
The AA’s tool can be praised because it provides a lot of useful information about how a valuation tool works and why you should use one, but that’s about it. They do make it clear that Motorway provides the valuation, but still, people can complain about how it redirects you to a different site and doesn’t conduct the valuation itself.
With everything considered, giving this tool more than a 2/5 rating is tough simply because it redirects you to a different car valuation tool when you attempt to use it.
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Carwow is a great online website where you can buy and sell cars. When selling your car, the website uses a similar model to Motorway, where dealers all over the UK bid against each other to buy your vehicle.
Carwow is a trusted brand in the auto industry because of its popular YouTube channel, which provides reviews on popular cars and guides on how to maintain your vehicles. They’re a source of good information, and their valuation tool is no different.
To start a valuation on Carwow, you must enter your vehicle’s registration into their search box. Once you do that, you’ll then need to complete a simple questionnaire detailing things like the mileage of the car. You can also provide more details about your car’s features, its service history, and any cosmetic damage. This helps the valuation tool get a more accurate idea of your car is worth. To complete your valuation, you’re actually going to need to include photos of your car, which can be a bit of an inconvenience as you may not have pictures of your car to hand.
Once we’ve completed our valuation for the test vehicle, it generated a value of £4,250.
Carwow has a good review score on Trustpilot, meaning that the overall business is good and trustworthy while providing excellent customer service. Its score of 4.6/5 is very high and indicates that it’s a fantastic business.
In terms of its valuation tool, it’s clear that it is also an excellent resource for those serious about selling their car. It asks for many details about the vehicle, helping the tool generate a very reliable and accurate price. In fact, many people praise how comprehensive the tool is and how they can use the price to influence how much they sell and advertise the car for.
That said, some people also consider its thoroughness to be a negative aspect of the tool. Many complain about how you need to submit an image of your car to get a valuation. This makes it far from convenient and can even prevent people from being able to get a valuation from Carwow.
This is something that we had to factor into our rating. Although it’s a robust and accurate valuation tool, the process of getting a valuation is longwinded, which is why this tool gets a 3.75/5.
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In addition to using a car valuation tool, which is still one of the most recommended things that you do, there are other valuable things you can do to get a good grasp of the value of your car.
One option is to look at the current advertised prices for cars of the same make and model that are being sold online and at dealerships. If your vehicle is similar in many ways to these ones, then it's likely that you'll be able to get a price close to this. However, if you're looking to sell your car to one of these dealerships, then be aware that you may be offered a lower price so that they can build a profit when they sell your vehicle.
Another place to check the prices of similar cars is to look at listing on eBay, Gumtree, and even Facebook Marketplace. If you're looking to sell your car independently and directly to the new owner, then you should be able to sell your car for a similar price to what you see on these websites.
If you want a personal touch, you can also get your car valued in-person. By taking your vehicle to a dealership, you’ll be able to have the staff put in an offer for your car. The amount that you’re offered will give you an idea of how much your car is worth. When dong this, it’s a good idea to have completed a few online valuations first so that you can better tell if you’re being offered a fair price.
Because online valuations use algorithms and data to get a valuation of your car, they only take a matter of minutes to generate a price for which you should be able to sell your vehicle.
When you valuate your car, you'll need to input a few details about the car through a survey. How thorough this questionnaire is will dictate how long it takes to get an accurate valuation. This means that knowing how much your car is worth shouldn't take much time at all.
Depending on your valuation tool, the accuracy of your car valuation can fluctuate and differ drastically. Most will only provide a general estimate; however, even this is a helpful guide to see what your car is worth.
Online car valuation tools that ask for extra details, such as the condition of your car and if there have been any modifications, will usually provide a more accurate valuation, as that information affects value.
If a tool or car valuation service does not ask for this information, then it means that it may not be the most precise tool available, even if it's pulling its information from an up-to-date and well-informed database.