Kelley Blue Book is the default because it is free, well known and good enough for a ballpark. It is not the only option, and for some jobs it is the wrong one.
Here is the honest landscape.
The alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Cost | What it asks for | Best for | Main weakness |
|---|
| Kelley Blue Book | Free | Year, make, model, trim, mileage, ZIP, condition | A recognised ballpark that dealers accept as a reference | You self-report trim and condition, and the trim question is where most people get it wrong |
| Edmunds | Free | Year, make, model, trim, mileage, ZIP | A second opinion, no signup | Same self-reporting problem, and values often differ from KBB on the same car |
| NADA / J.D. Power | Free | Year, make, model, trim, mileage | What lenders and insurers reference | Tends to run high for consumers; it is built for the trade |
| CarGurus | Free | Listing-based | Seeing real asking prices near you | It is a marketplace first, so you are inside its inventory |
| Carvana / CarMax | Free | VIN or plate, mileage, condition questions | A real, bindable offer you can actually take | It is a wholesale-ish buying price, not what the car is worth to a private buyer |
| iSeeCars | Free | Year, make, model | Depreciation and market analysis | Aggregate analysis rather than a figure for your specific car |
| CarWorthIt | Free VIN report; valuation from $2.99 | VIN, mileage, ZIP | Pricing the exact car, at its mileage, against listings near you | Paid, and it does not give you an offer you can accept |
The problem all the free guidebooks share
KBB, Edmunds and NADA all start from year, make, model and trim, and then ask you to describe the condition. Two things go wrong with that.
Trim. Most people do not know their exact trim, and the difference between an LE and an XLE, or an EX and an EX-L, can be thousands of dollars. Pick the wrong one and every number after it is wrong.
Condition. Almost everyone rates their own car one grade higher than a dealer will. The guidebooks know this, which is part of why their private-party figures tend to run optimistic.
A VIN sidesteps the first problem entirely, because the trim and the factory options are encoded in it. It cannot fix the second: nothing can see the condition of a car remotely.
Check a VIN: you can run any US VIN on CarWorthIt for a free VIN report (specifications, open recalls, safety ratings and running costs), with an optional paid report that prices it against cars actually for sale near you and shows what it cost new.
Which one should you actually use?
- Selling to a dealer, or want cash this week: get real offers from Carvana and CarMax. They are free and bindable, and they set your floor
- Selling privately: check what comparable cars are actually listed for near you, then price slightly under the ones that have been sitting
- Buying and want to know if a price is fair: compare against local listings for the same trim and mileage. This is what our VIN pricing guide walks through
- Insurance or a total-loss dispute: NADA/J.D. Power is what many insurers reference, so start where they start
- Just curious: KBB is free and takes a minute. There is no reason to pay for a ballpark
Use two, not one
The single most useful habit is to get two independent numbers. If KBB and a real Carvana offer are within a few hundred dollars, you know where you stand. If they are $4,000 apart, something in your inputs is wrong, or the car is unusual, and that gap is worth understanding before you negotiate.
Related: KBB vs Edmunds vs NADA and Carvana vs CarMax offers.
Check any car before you buy
Run a VIN free: specs, safety ratings, recalls and running costs in seconds.
The VIN is on the dashboard, door jamb, or title.