Toyota Highlander Depreciation & Resale Value

The 2021 Highlander is our best all-around pick in the current dataset. Its median asking price is $30,404, about $1,908 more than the 2020, while average mileage is roughly 2,999 miles lower, and it is a settled fourth-generation year on the TNGA-K platform past the 2020 launch year. That does not make every 2021 better than every 2020 or 2022: trim, drivetrain, gas-or-hybrid powertrain, mileage, condition, and local price should decide between two specific vehicles. Compare at least three configuration-matched examples and negotiate from the cleanest comparable one, not the national median alone.

Start with a 2017 Highlander LE or XLE. Its current median ask is $20,960, about $2,193 more than the 2016, and it gives you a late third-generation, pre-redesign Highlander without newer-vehicle pricing. The tradeoff is mileage: these listings average 114,710 miles, so buy the best-documented vehicle rather than the cheapest one. Confirm maintenance history, inspect the V6 driveline, cooling system, and suspension, scan for stored fault codes, and pay for an independent pre-purchase inspection. Keep part of the budget for age-related service instead of spending every dollar on the purchase, because deferred maintenance on a three-row SUV erases the savings quickly.

It is a strong option in this snapshot. The 2023 median ask is $33,587, about $5,402 less than the 2024, yet the 2023 sample carries roughly 15,122 fewer average miles, so the newer year buys almost nothing extra here. Both are fourth-generation Highlanders. Before you commit, compare the exact trim, drivetrain, and whether the car is a gas V6 or a hybrid, then weigh a discounted new 2024, 2025, or 2026 with incentives and a full warranty against an overpriced used one. Verify whether a low-mileage listing was a rental, loaner, or demo before treating low age as low use.

The 2020 Highlander was an all-new fourth generation, redesigned from the ground up on Toyota's TNGA-K platform. It was offered with a V6 or a new-generation hybrid: a 2.5-liter four-cylinder hybrid system making 240 total system horsepower with an EPA-estimated 34 mpg combined. The third generation it replaced ran from 2014 through 2019. For a used shopper, that means the 2020-and-newer vehicles are a genuinely different product from the 2015-2019 cars, so compare within a generation and read cross-generation price gaps as reflecting the platform, powertrain, and equipment rather than age alone.

In our fitted five-year curves the Highlander's retention is strong relative to both three-row peers, which fits Toyota's resale reputation. Our data shows the Highlander losing about 7.7 percentage points less than the Pilot over five years. The Explorer gives up roughly 15.9 more points over the same horizon, which is one reason a used Explorer often lists cheaper. Retention still is not a reason to overpay: match trim, drivetrain, mileage, and condition, then let the price you negotiate drive the decision.

34.1% of Highlanders in our listing sample already have more than 100,000 miles, and about 8.1% have crossed 150,000, with high-mileage examples asking a median around $17,500. That shows an active high-mileage market, not a guarantee that any individual vehicle has remaining life. A high-mileage Highlander can make sense when the service history is complete, wear items are priced into the deal, the driveline and cooling system check out, and an independent inspection is clean. Ask the inspector to separate normal wear from deferred repairs and to price each near-term item, because on a three-row SUV those costs add up fast and can erase the purchase-price savings.

Our mileage-adjusted fitted curve estimates that a Toyota Highlander loses about 29.9% of its original value after five years, retaining roughly 70.1%, which is among the stronger figures in the three-row midsize segment. That is based on 2,612 listings across multiple model years, with asking prices adjusted toward an estimated sale price. It is a nameplate-level trajectory, not a quote for a specific VIN. Your purchase price, trim, drivetrain, gas-or-hybrid powertrain, mileage, condition, and the new-vehicle market at resale can move the result materially. For a real purchase, calculate the dollar loss from the price you negotiate on a configuration-matched Highlander, not from an abstract national MSRP.