What am I spending on vehicles and equipment?

Why vehicle and equipment costs are easy to underestimate

You lease two work trucks at $650/month each. That is $15,600 a year, and it feels like the whole cost. But last year you also spent $4,200 on fuel, $3,800 on maintenance and tires, $1,400 on a transmission repair, and $2,100 on commercial auto insurance. Your real cost was $27,100, not $15,600.

Equipment is the same. You bought a $22,000 CNC machine three years ago. The monthly loan payment feels manageable, but the $1,800 annual maintenance contract, replacement parts, and the $3,600 in depreciation your accountant books each year add up. The total annual cost of ownership is much higher than the payment.

Because these costs are spread across multiple accounts (auto expense, depreciation, interest, insurance, repairs), most business owners never see the combined total. And without that total, you cannot know whether a vehicle or piece of equipment is earning its keep.

What goes into your total vehicle and equipment cost

• Lease or loan payments: Monthly payments on financed vehicles and equipment. The interest portion shows up as an expense; the principal reduces your liability.
• Fuel and operating costs: Gas, diesel, electricity for electric vehicles, consumable supplies for equipment.
• Maintenance and repairs: Oil changes, tires, scheduled service, and unexpected breakdowns.
• Depreciation: The annual write-down of the asset value. This is a non-cash expense but reflects the real cost of the asset wearing out.
• Insurance: Commercial auto policies, equipment insurance, or inland marine coverage specific to these assets.

How to find vehicle and equipment costs in QuickBooks Online (5 steps)

1. 1
   Open the Profit and Loss report

   From the left sidebar, click Reports. Search for “Profit and Loss” and set the date range to the current month (or year-to-date for the full picture).

2. 2
   Search for vehicle and equipment accounts

   In the Expenses section, look for accounts like “Auto Expense,” “Vehicle Expense,” “Equipment Rental,” “Repairs and Maintenance,” and “Depreciation Expense.” These names depend on your Chart of Accounts setup.

3. 3
   Check for costs in other accounts

   Fuel is sometimes in “Auto Expense” and sometimes in “Gas and Fuel.” Equipment insurance may be in a general “Insurance” account. Click into accounts to see if vehicle or equipment transactions are mixed in.

4. 4
   Check the Fixed Asset section of the Balance Sheet

   Go to Reports → Balance Sheet. Under Fixed Assets, you will see the book value of your vehicles and equipment. The accumulated depreciation tells you how much has been written off.

5. 5
   Total everything up

   Add lease/loan payments + fuel + maintenance + repairs + depreciation + asset-specific insurance. This is your true monthly or annual vehicle and equipment cost.

How to find vehicle and equipment costs in Xero (4 steps)

1. 1
   Go to Accounting → Reports → Profit and Loss

   Set the date range and click Update.

2. 2
   Identify vehicle and equipment expense accounts

   In Operating Expenses, look for “Motor Vehicle Expenses,” “Equipment Hire,” “Repairs and Maintenance,” and “Depreciation.” Xero's default Chart of Accounts often uses “Motor Vehicle Expenses” as a catch-all for vehicle costs.

3. 3
   Check the Balance Sheet for fixed assets

   Go to Accounting → Reports → Balance Sheet. Under Non-Current Assets, you will see vehicles and equipment at book value along with accumulated depreciation.

4. 4
   Sum all related costs

   Combine all vehicle and equipment expense accounts for your total cost. Use the “Compare with: Previous Period” option to spot changes.

What it takes to track vehicle and equipment costs monthly

• 8-10 minutes per month to gather costs from multiple P&L accounts and the Balance Sheet.
• Inconsistent categorizationis the biggest problem. If fuel goes into “Auto Expense” one month and “Miscellaneous” the next, your numbers will be wrong.
• No per-asset view. Your P&L shows total vehicle expense, not cost per truck. Knowing the total is useful, but knowing which specific vehicle or machine is costing the most requires separate tracking.

Or see your vehicle and equipment costs automatically

Bottomline consolidates all vehicle and equipment-related expenses from your accounting data and shows the combined total alongside your other expense categories:

Bottomline groups all vehicle and equipment costs together regardless of which accounts they are booked to. You see the combined total, the trend, and how it compares to other expense categories, all without digging through multiple reports.