September 17, 2026
Mustang GT vs Camaro SS: Which V8 Is Cheaper to Actually Own?
The pony car war is the oldest rivalry in American performance, and it usually gets settled with quarter-mile times. We settled it with a spreadsheet instead: payment, insurance, fuel, maintenance, the whole 5-year picture. One of them is cheaper to buy, cheaper to own, and makes more power. It is not a close fight.
The numbers
| Mustang GT | Camaro SS | |
|---|---|---|
| MSRP | $46,560 | $48,895 |
| Horsepower | 486 | 455 |
| 5-year true cost (new) | $83,980 | $84,722 |
| Monthly true cost | $1,400 | $1,412 |
| Insurance range | $2,050-$2,900/yr | $1,600-$3,800/yr |
| Maintenance | $1,079/yr | $585/yr |
| Fuel economy | 18 mpg | 19 mpg |
| 5-year true cost (used) | $71,330 | $74,805 |
New, the Mustang costs $742 less over five years, or about $12 less a month. Buy used and the gap triples: the Mustang is $3,475 cheaper over five years. The kicker is that the Mustang also makes 31 more horsepower. Cheaper to buy, cheaper to own, faster in a straight line.
Where the Camaro fights back
The Camaro has two genuine advantages. Maintenance is nearly half the Mustang's at $585 a year, and its insurance floor of $1,600 a year is the lowest here. It also sips slightly less fuel at 19 mpg. And here is the big one: Chevy killed the Camaro after 2024, so every Camaro SS is now a used car. No more depreciation cliff on a new one, and clean examples are sitting on lots with room to negotiate.
The bottom line
If you want the cheapest V8 pony car to own, it is the Mustang GT, and the math agrees in every scenario we ran. If you are Camaro-or-nothing, buy used: the discontinued status means somebody else already ate the depreciation, and $585-a-year maintenance is genuinely cheap for 455 hp. Either way, run your own numbers in the calculator before you sign anything.
Compare them head to head Mustang GT full breakdown
More from the blog
- The Cheapest V8s to Own, Ranked by Real 5-Year Cost
- Mustang GT Cheap Horsepower: Stage-by-Stage Build Guide
- Used Hellcat Buyer's Guide: What 717 Horsepower Really Costs
Figures are estimates based on national averages and our standard assumptions (10% down, 60-month loan at 7% APR, 12,000 miles/year). Data last updated September 2026.