Depreciation head-to-head
Audi A3 vs BMW 1 Series: Which Holds Its Value Better?
By Juan Pedro Nguema · Updated
Quick verdict
The BMW 1 Series loses value slightly more slowly (5.4% a year v 6.0%) and is less affected by mileage, although the difference is small.
Audi A3
- Cars analysed
- 333
- Median asking price
- £19,299
- Value lost per year
- 6%
- Value lost per 10,000 miles
- 5.1%
- Automatic premium
- +17.7%
Fuel mix: petrol 75%, plug-in hybrid 21% and diesel 5%.
BMW 1 Series
- Cars analysed
- 293
- Median asking price
- £19,349
- Value lost per year
- 5.4%
- Value lost per 10,000 miles
- 4.8%
- Automatic premium
- +13.6%
Fuel mix: petrol 89% and diesel 11%.
| Year | Audi A3 median price | Cars | Median miles | BMW 1 Series median price | Cars | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | £16,899 | 25 | 35,129 | £16,499 | 41 | 39,407 |
| 2022 | £17,499 | 66 | 29,882 | £18,199 | 44 | 32,199 |
| 2023 | £19,299 | 77 | 24,147 | £19,724 | 58 | 24,623 |
| 2024 | £21,399 | 43 | 20,517 | £22,899 | 39 | 17,970 |
| 2025 | £26,999 | 43 | 6,686 | £25,799 | 29 | 9,469 |
| 2026 | £28,699 | 29 | 5,341 | £25,449 | 27 | 7,800 |
What the numbers mean
These premium hatchbacks are priced within about £1,500 of each other for every year from 2021 to 2025. The A3 starts higher when nearly new, but from two years old the 1 Series tends to be the same price or slightly dearer, which fits its slower yearly drop. 89% of the 1 Series cars listed are petrol, whereas 21% of A3s are plug-in hybrids. Most 1 Series buyers choose an automatic (76%), so a manual can be harder to sell on.
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