Introduction

As one of the most luxurious car brands in the UK, Audi are renowned for their prestige, quality and build standard, which is why they’re one of the best-selling manufacturers in the country. Despite their popularity, however, they aren’t totally infallible, and, like most cars, they’re impacted quite significantly by depreciation.

Over the last few years, Audi have lost some of their market share, dropping 9.24% of their sales. However, EV sales have been strong, so how does this impact the brand's overall residual values?

In this guide, we’re examining the depreciation levels of the most popular Audi models on the market (based on available data), comparing their initial retail price and used resale values.

First, though, let’s take a look at some of the basics.

What Are The Top 10 Audi Models? (2026)

1. Audi A1
2. Audi A3
3. Audi Q3
4. Audi A5
5. Audi A6
6. Audi Q4 e-tron
7. Audi Q5
8. Audi Q8
9. Audi A8
10. Audi e-tron GT

Although Audi readily reports it’s leading market share as the UK’s number one premium brand, there’s no official sales data for the top 10 best-selling models. Instead, our ‘Top 10’ is compiled from readily available data and an amalgamation of other industry-leading lists.

What Causes Car Depreciation?

A wide range of factors can cause depreciation. However, typical culprits include higher-than-average mileage (or mileage which breaches ‘milestones’, such as 100K+), the number of owners, types of owner, make and model, servicing history, MOT information, wear and tear and, increasingly, fuel economy and type (with diesels, for example, seeing higher levels of depreciation in recent years).

It’s not a totally ‘black and white’ issue. There are steps you can take to minimise your car’s depreciation level, although completely negating it will be all but impossible.

We’ve covered depreciation in greater depth in our guide: Why Do Cars Depreciate?

Are There Any Other Downsides To Depreciation?

Depreciation & Car Finance

Depreciation means your car will be worth less whenever you decide to sell it or trade it in as a part exchange. Most drivers understand this and treat it as a typical part of car ownership.

If your Audi is financed, however, further issues could arise. If the level of depreciation on your car outpaces the amount of your total finance balance, then you will be left in ‘negative equity’, where the amount you owe is greater than the value of the vehicle. 

For example, an Audi A3, financed at £25,000 with repayments of £250 per month, will have an overall balance of finance left after 12 months of £22,000 (£25,000 - 12 x £250). In that time though, the car could have depreciated by £5,000, being worth just £20,000, leaving a shortfall (the ‘negative equity’) of £2,000 (£22,000 finance balance - £20,000 car value).

This makes selling, or trading in your car much more complex (and expensive), as you need to cover that difference. If you’re trading in, dealerships may offer ‘negative equity loans’, essentially financing that difference, plus the cost of your new vehicle, but this means you’re playing ‘catch up’ and monthly repayments will be considerably more expensive. 

If you’re looking to sell your car outright, you won’t be able to do this without first clearing the difference, which means, ultimately, you’ll be left out of pocket. (We’ve covered this further in our guide: Buying, Selling & Trading In A Car With Outstanding Finance).

Depreciation & Total Loss or Write-Off

Depreciation can also cause issues if your car is ever declared a total loss (or ‘write-off’) by your motor insurer. This typically happens after an accident, theft or fire, where the car is unrecoverable or deemed too expensive to repair.

When this happens, your motor insurer will usually offer you the current market value of your car, which, due to depreciation, could be less than the amount you originally paid or still owe on finance (as we’ve discussed above).

This is a problem as you won’t be able to pay off the finance balance, or replace your car (like-for-like) without contributing further money yourself (topping up the shortfall). 

Audi Gap Insurance is an optional insurance product which can help with this. It pays out the difference between your motor insurer’s final settlement figure (based on the current market value) and the amount you owe on finance, or the amount you need to replace the car like-for-like, depending on the policy you choose.

Read More: The Complete Gap Insurance Guide.

Other Optional Cover To Consider

• Audi Tyre & Alloy Insurance: Tyre & Alloy Wheel Insurance can protect your wheels against scrapes, scuffs, kerb damage and punctures, helping maintain it's overall appearance and potentially help resale values.
• Audi Scratch & Dent Cover: Scratch & Dent Cover protects against smaller bumps and scratches that would otherwise go untreated. This helps keep your car in the best possible condition.

How Much Does The Average Audi Depreciate?

Depreciation levels vary from model to model, depending on the factors we’ve discussed above. However, as a general rule of thumb, Audis will depreciate around 15-35% in the first year, rising to 50% over three years.

If you want a general overview of depreciation, try our Free Depreciation Calculator.

Read More: How To Improve Your Car Resale Value.

Depreciation In The Top 10 Audi Models (2026)

Audi A1

The Audi A1 retails new between £24,295 and £33,540, depending on specification, which makes it one of the more expensive superminis on the market, but does that extra cost upfront translate to good residuals?

We weighed up the depreciation levels of one of the more popular models, the 1.0 TFSi S S Line Sportback (of which there were many readily available on Autotrader) and found that it lost just over £4,000 (£4,080 to be exact) and £5,252 of its value in years one and two, respectively. 

That represents a depreciation level of 15.5% in year one and 20% in year two.

• New Price: £26,245
• One Year Old: £22,165
• Two Years Old: £20,993

Audi A3

The Audi A3 has consistently delivered high sales, often being the brand’s best seller and in the mix for the ‘UK’s Top 10 Best Sellers’. 

Here, we’ve used the TFSI 30 model, narrowing our search to sportback models only, so we’re comparing like-for-like. New, the 30 model retails for £31,835.

In year one, the average A3 depreciates 15.2%, losing £4,845. In year two, this rises to £10,135, representing a depreciation level of 31.8%

• New Price: £31,835
• One Year Old: £26,990
• Two Years Old: £21,700

Audi Q3

The bigger, beefier SUV version of the A3, the Q3 mixes instantly recognisable Audi style with everyday practicality, Quattro offerings and a higher ride height, which should translate to better resale values, but does that work in reality?

In year one, the Q3 loses just over £10,000 (£10,086), which equates to a depreciation level of 24.5%. In year two, this only marginally increases, with two-year-old models losing £11,652, or 28.4% of their value.

• New Price: £41,100
• One Year Old: £31,013
• Two Years Old: £29,447

Audi A5

Sitting between a sporty hatchback and an executive saloon, the Audi A5 does fill a gap in the market, but can be a bit ‘hit and miss’, depending on the driver’s individual needs and tastes. It’s no surprise then that it suffers quite heavily from depreciation, particularly when compared to smaller Audi marques.

From new, the A5 loses a massive £12,437 in its first year and £17,561 in its second. That’s  depreciation levels of 27.5% and 38.8%

• New Price: £45,260
• One Year Old: £32,823
• Two Years Old: £27,699

Audi A6

Here, we’ve used the ever-popular S Line model of the A6 as our starting point and for good reason. It’s one of the most recognisable mid-sized saloons on the market, alongside its counterparts the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E-Class, with 119,463 still on the road as of 2025.

If you buy an A6 S Line from new (retailing at £53,410), expect to lose £10,240 in year one (a depreciation level of 19.2%) and a shocking £24,815 in year two (a loss of 46.5%)

• New Price: £53,410
• One Year Old: £43,170
• Two Years Old: £28,595

Audi Q4 e-tron

We covered the Q4 e-Tron in our previous guide: How Much Do Electric Vehicles Depreciate, where, sadly, it topped the list as the biggest depreciator (based on overall amount lost).

New, on-the-road prices for the Q4 e-tron start at £46,200, which, based on average resale values, drops to £33,803 after one year of driving, with an average mileage of 8,000 miles. This equates to a depreciation level of 26.9%

In the second year, depreciation reaches 37.3% with a two-year-old model averaging a resale value of £29,000.

• New Price: £46,200
• One Year Old: £33,803
• Two Years Old: £29,000

Audi Q5

The Q5 2.0 TDI S Line (the model we’ve compared here) has an on-the-road RRP of £54,960, depreciating 23.6% in year one, losing £12,983 and 42.9% in year two, losing £23,568.

• New Price: £54,960
• One Year Old: £41,977
• Two Years Old: £31,392

Audi Q8

As Audi’s flagship SUV, billed as ‘luxurious, extravagant and stylish’, it’s no surprise that the Q8 cabin is a nice place to be. Its market is among the most expensive cars on the road, with the likes of Range Rovers and BMW X7’s in the same bracket.

Unfortunately, that bracket is notorious for depreciation and, in cold, hard cash at least, the Q8 is no different. In just one year of ownership, the 55 TFSI S Line (the most popular model we could find) loses £16,774, a depreciation level of 21.9% 

Whilst that’s not the highest level of depreciation on our list by any means, due to the high initial cost of the car, it does equate to a pretty hefty drop in value. 

There wasn’t enough data to accurately calculate the second-year depreciation level, but assuming a modest 30% reduction, drivers should expect to lose around £22,000.

• New Price: £76,335
• One Year: £59,561

Audi A8

Built to rival the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S Class, the Audi A8 offers the highest level of luxury, tech and premium features, with a price tag to match. (60 TFSle) S Line models retail at a massive £101,030. 

After one year, their value drops a staggering 35.5%, equating to a monetary loss of £35,832.

Unfortunately, as with the Q8, there wasn’t enough accurate and comparable data available to calculate the second year depreciation level.

• New Price: £101,030
• One Year Old: £65,197

Audi e-tron GT

If you’re after a fully electric, high-performance sports car, but you don’t want a Porsche Taycan, the e-tron GT should be a real contender. It delivers 384 miles of range, fast charging and a rapid 0-62 time of 2.5 seconds. 

Sadly, it depreciates pretty quickly too. From new, the e-tron GT loses £25,657 in one year, representing a depreciation level of 28.9%

• New Price: £88,555
• One Year Old: £62,898

What Are The Highest Depreciating Audi Models?

In our study, the highest depreciating Audi models are:

• Audi A8: Highest depreciation based on a percentage of initial value (35.5%)
• Audi A8: Highest depreciation based on overall amount lost (£35,832)

Our Methodology

Throughout this depreciation guide, we used the new, standard list price (RRP) of one consistent model variation (per model). For example, when comparing the new, year one and year two prices of an Audi A1, we ensured we only compared the 1.0 TFSI S Line Sportback variant throughout, removing any misleading price differences from other variants, such as a Black Edition or 1.5 TFSI.

We looked at the selling price of the same models on the used market (via Autotrader), with an average mileage of 8,000 per year (so, 8,000 miles in year one and 16,000 miles in year two). This wasn’t always feasible, but mileage was kept between 5,000 and 15,000 miles where possible.

Depreciation has been calculated using the amount lost as a percentage of the RRP. 

Considerations: Our method doesn’t account for any discounts, sales, or offers that may be available from time to time. Our method also doesn’t consider any extras that may be added to each available used model.

Where possible, we have avoided any used car declared a write-off in any category.

Our Final Word

Audi’s reputation for quality and desirability has entrenched them as one of the UK's leading manufacturers, which can help when it comes to resale values. However, as with most brands, they aren't immune from depreciation, with our figures highlighting how dramatically residual values can vary depending on the model you choose.

‘Smaller’ models such as the A1 and A3 fare pretty well, keeping a respectable proportion of their value (compared to other similar models in their bracket), whilst more executive models such as the A8 and A5 struggle.

Depending on whether you’re buying new or used, those changes in value can have a major impact on your motoring and finances (remember, though, that depreciation also affects used cars too, at roughly the same levels), so a bit of prior research can go a long way.

We wouldn’t choose an Audi based on depreciation alone. But if two models are already on your shortlist, understanding how well each has historically held its value could make that final decision considerably easier.

As always, the numbers above should be treated as a useful snapshot rather than a guaranteed forecast. We’ve compared consistent variants and broadly similar mileages wherever possible, but real-world values will move with the used-car market, dealer discounts, optional extras and the condition of each vehicle.