As the world moves toward the genius that is the pocket super-computer (a.k.a. the smartphone), we know that consumers are readily looking to their appropriate app stores to find the solution to any issues they might have. This is especially true when it comes to buying something as big as your next used car. It’s hard to know who to trust with such a big purchase, with so many scam artists trying their luck with buyers, so heading to the personal ad sites, or even car finder websites, isn’t as good a choice as it used to be.
Luckily, there is a solution and it can be downloaded onto your phone before you can say “find used cars online”. Below, we take a look at the best car buying apps available to download on both Android and Apple, taking into consideration the most-requested features you said you require in a car selling app, today. Be sure to check out the key features in each type, to see which used car app best suits your lifestyle.
The Best Car Buying Apps
Cars.com
Cars.com is one of the most popular car buying websites available online and, luckily for us, they’ve produced the best used car app for anyone wanting to carry out a used car search. This car selling app produces detailed descriptions of used cars and matches you with cars, based on your needs. They also have a section where you can figure out your average payments plans and costs for buying a car with one of the many sellers registered with them.
Download Here: Google Play Store
This free app is one of the most trusted available, particularly since it can be quite daunting to buy a car online. Any information that isn’t provided by the seller themselves is filled in by the team over at Cars.com and you can even filter out unsuitable cars through the “Search by Lifestyle” option! Found a used car search that seems to fit your needs exactly? Save the search itself with just a tap- or even shortlist cars that you’d like to mull over.
Download Here: App Store
CarMax
Used car websites might be falling into the history books with the rise of car buying apps, especially if the CarMax app is anything to go by. Available exclusively in app form, CarMax gives a modern-day update compared to standard car websites, including the ability to check out your new car from the inside, with a 360-degree viewing angle.
Download Here: Google Play Store
You can narrow down your choices by comparing features and images, easily and even create custom alert settings- so you know when a new car has been added that fits your terms. Check out used cars online, in real time, by filtering with terms as broad as price settings- or narrow it down with specifics like “4WD” or “leather interior”.
Download Here: App Store
Autotrader is one of the most popular car buying sites online and their app is increasingly popular for many of the same reasons the used car sites are. This car app helps you find new, used and certified vehicles. You’ll need to sign up to a “My Autotrader” account before you can save your results, shortlist cars or retrieve info but, once this is done, you’ll then be able to fetch your results when you’re back at your laptop or desktop, making it easier to share info with a partner or friend. You can also share your results via email or text, should you prefer.
Download Here: Google Play Store
Despite a few teething issues, which are apparent in the reviews, it seems that most customers are happy with the filters and design of the app as a whole. The main qualm does seem to be that you can’t select multiple car types at a time, although it’s likely this will be fixed with a patch in the near-future.
Download Here: App Store
The Kelly Blue Book app is designed as more of a researching app than a buying app, however this is a great addition to your arsenal if you’re planning on buying a used car and want to make sure you’re not being ripped off.
Download Here: Google Play Store
Using this car app can help you locate sellers near you, but the biggest selling factor of this app (and its corresponding car buying site) is how you can check the prices of each car you find. If you’ve found a used car that you’d like to know more about, then simply input the details onto the app and check out the average cost, even comparing vehicles that fall into a similar price range.
Download Here: App Store
Autolist
Autolist is a great car buying app that utilises it’s “search and find” technology. In other words, they check out ALL of the car buying sites available in your area and brings you a list of what is available. As I’m sure you’re aware, it can be pretty tiring, hopping from site-to-site, trying to get the best deals available on used cars, so having something like this on your device can make your life so much easier- at least, when it comes to buying used cars!
Download Here: Google Play Store
With Autolist, you can browse literally millions of the cars currently available online and even filter them down to find the right car for your lifestyle and preference. You can also connect with sellers directly, as all the contact details available from these sites are also included with the downloads. Finally, one of the biggest plus points for Autolist is that this app has the ability to check out the previous prices of similar cars, so you can be sure the car is listed at the right price.
Download Here: App Store
TrueCar
The TrueCar app is less about browsing what cars are available in your area and more about giving you a selection of dealerships who would like to contact you with their offers. This can be a great way of getting the best prices to come to you, rather than having to haggle your way around a price, like you would at a dealership.
Download Here: Google Play Store
The app gives you some great context about what the right pricing is for the car you’re looking for. Then you’ll be asked to share some information, in order to allow their certified dealers to contact you with their offers, based around a car of your choice. The TrueCar app recognises that some sellers might raise their prices once you’ve had a test drive and their commitment is to ensure that the price you see, is the price you pay when it comes to buying a used car.
Download Here: App Store
Edmunds
Edmunds has made it’s name as one of the industry’s leading authorities on the automotive industry. This car buying app includes reviews from experts right through to car calculators, which give more precise estimates on prices, based on the age, condition, make and type of car you’re looking in to.
Download Here: Google Play Store
You can also do all the usual malarkey- checking which cars are available in your area, based on a series of filters. You’re also able to work out monthly payments in-app to see if the car of your choosing is within your budget- but the cherry on the top of this cake is that you can check out what incentives your local garages may have on offer at the time of searching. This can be a great way to see how much you can save not only on the car itself but on any added extras that sellers are looking to shift, as well.
Download Here: App Store
AutoGravity is the best way to check for finance available for you. So, if you’ve used one of the apps above to find a great car but aren’t sure whether you can afford it or not, then get yourself on to this app and see what’s out there.
Download Here: Google Play Store
The general idea is that you pop all the info you have into your app, including your own details, as well as the details of the car itself, and then you’ll be contacted by brokers who are interested in lending you money. You can also select a lease or loan based on one of the cars available through the app itself- in this case, you’ll be able to select the car you like the look of, customise a loan that you find suitable and then apply through the app.
Download Here: App Store
iSeeCars
The ISeeCars app has been reported on by multiple news outlets for being a great app that makes the life of the consumer much easier- so much so that is has even been given an award in just that. There are over 40,000 dealerships registered with this app which means that customers get to choose from the millions of vehicles available through it’s search functions. Speaking of which, the filters come in every range you could possibly thing of, meaning the right car can be found at your fingertips, within minutes.
Download Here: Google Play Store
Each car is also analyzed in detail and given an easy-to-read sticker from the get-go, so you can see which cars are overpriced, below value or just right given the current market. They’ll also let you know how good a dealer is, including how transparent the dealership is with their pricing strategies and how competitive they are in comparison to other local garages.
Download Here: App Store
Instamotor
A relatively new entry on to the market but time is certainly proving to be in their favour, as they have already stacked up a few thousand great reviews. Currently only available in a few states, the Instamotor car buying app allows you check the details of the car for signs of any scams or prior issues relating to the car you’re looking to buy and this is certainly proving popular with users!
Download Here: Google Play Store
Each listing gets a free fraud check, free recall check and free vehicle history report that is available to any users who are interested in seeing these. The used car app also helps you to check for any loans you might qualify for, allowing you to see what’s in your price range and giving you near-instant decisions on credit.
Download Here: App Store