Used Auto Drops 0.129 Points;
General Auto Holds Flat After Three-Week Slide
Week Ending May 04, 2026

Auto loan rates posted divergent moves this week. Used auto led declines at −0.129 points to 6.350% APR — the largest single-category move — while general auto held exactly flat at 6.036%, stopping a three-week slide that had pulled the category down 0.270 points. New auto edged just 0.023 points lower to a fresh cycle low of 5.629%.

📊 Full week-over-week data for all 3 auto loan categories tracked by MonitorBankRates.com across all 50 states.

NATIONAL — National auto loan APRs posted divergent moves for the week ending May 04, 2026, with the overall national average barely moving at 6.080% APR — down just 0.005 points from last week’s 6.085%. Underneath that flat headline, the picture is more interesting. Used auto loan rates dropped 0.129 points to 6.350% APR, posting the week’s steepest decline. New auto loan rates edged 0.023 points lower to 5.629%, a fresh cycle low. General auto rates held exactly flat at 6.036% — halting a three-week slide that had pulled the category down 0.270 cumulative points.

Used auto loan rates fell 0.129 points to 6.350% APR, posting the largest weekly drop in the used category since this rate-tracking series began. The two-week cumulative move on used now stands at 0.225 points from 6.575% the week of April 13. Used auto’s acceleration this week is notable because the category had been the slowest of the three to respond during the prior decline phases. The 0.721-point premium over new auto compressed sharply from last week’s 0.827, reflecting used pricing catching down to the broader downtrend.

New auto loan rates eased 0.023 points to 5.629% APR, a small follow-through after last week’s 0.123-point sharp move. The three-week cumulative decline on new auto now stands at 0.179 points from 5.808% the week of April 13, and the current 5.629% is the lowest rate in this rate-tracking series. New vehicle financing remains the lowest-priced category by a comfortable margin, and the smaller weekly move suggests pricing pressure has begun to moderate at the lower end of the curve. General auto loans — which include refinance products and non-specific vehicle loans — held flat at 6.036%, breaking a three-week pattern of being the steepest-declining category. After cumulative drops of 0.115, 0.138, and 0.157 points across recent weeks (with one brief reversal), the category has now fully digested the broader rate decline and stabilized.

For borrowers, this week’s divergence is informative. New auto at 5.629% extends a series of cycle lows, but the pace of decline has slowed from −0.123 last week to −0.023 this week — a five-fold deceleration. Used auto at 6.350% offers the larger week-over-week opportunity for purchase shoppers, with a 0.129-point drop translating to roughly $1.60 in monthly payment savings on a $25,000 used vehicle loan over 60 months. Refinance candidates focused on general auto loans, however, may be near a pricing floor for the immediate term — the flat read this week suggests further declines in that category may take a renewed move in the broader rate environment to materialize. Comparison shopping across lenders for the best auto loan rates remains the most reliable way to capture the available pricing in any of the three categories.

This week’s divergent picture is the inverse of last week’s uniform sharp decline, when all three categories fell together and the overall average dropped 0.183 points. The pattern this week — used falling fastest, new slowing, general flat — suggests the categories are finishing the current adjustment cycle on different timelines. Used auto, which had been slower to respond during the prior decline phases, is now catching down to the broader downtrend. New auto, which led recent declines, has begun to stabilize at the new cycle low. General auto, which had been the steepest-declining category for three weeks, has reached what appears to be a near-term floor.

The macro context aligns with the broader pattern visible across the deposit and mortgage data this week. Treasury yields stabilized after several weeks of decline, and that stabilization is showing up in the slowing pace of auto loan rate changes. The earliest categories to respond — general auto, then new auto — appear to have completed the bulk of their adjustment, while used auto continues to play catch-up. For shoppers, the more meaningful question now is whether further declines materialize next week or whether this week’s mixed pattern marks the end of the current decline cycle. Track how auto loan averages evolve through weekly auto loan rate movements.