Three numbers decide the month. Most software tracks none of them.
What the car really cost. What it will really make. How long your money has been sitting in it. Deelary keeps all three current on every car, from the moment the receipt prints.
Used-car work is reconditioning work. The costs are not on a price list, they are not predictable, and they do not arrive in one piece. They arrive as a tow on Monday, a set of tires on Wednesday, a $40 part on Thursday and a detail the morning of the showing.
Software built for new-car franchises was never designed for that. It handles warranty claims and factory incentives, which a used lot does not have, and it assumes the cost of a vehicle is known on the day it arrives, which on a used lot it never is.
How the number is built
A $9,500 car that sells for $12,000 looks like $2,500. Here is what usually sits between the two:
| Line | Where it usually goes |
|---|---|
| Auction fee | Remembered for a week, then forgotten |
| Transport | Paid in cash, no receipt kept |
| Parts and labour | On the shop invoice, in the glovebox |
| Detail | Too small to write down |
| Listing and registration | On a card statement nobody reconciles |
| Days in stock | Never counted as a cost at all |
Each of those is small. Together they are routinely the difference between a good month and a flat one. The true cost of a car works a full example through.
What Deelary does with them
- Photograph the receipt and it is read on the device: amount, date, category
- The cost attaches to that car, not to a general ledger
- Total cost, margin and projected profit update immediately
- Days in stock run from the day you bought, with alerts at 45 and 75
- Month-end reporting by source and by make, so you learn which auction and which badge actually pays
Knowing which source pays
Over a year, the profit-by-source report usually surprises people more than anything else in the app. The lane that feels cheap often is not, once transport and reconditioning are counted. Copart versus IAAI covers the fee structures that drive it.
Price and platform
iPhone and iPad, iOS 26.0 or later. Free for up to two active cars with every feature; Deelary Pro $8.99 a month or $49.99 a year, 7-day free trial, billed through Apple. See the pricing page.
Related: car lot software for small dealers and the car flipping app page.
Questions
What makes used-car software different from new-car software?
New-car software is built around a manufacturer: franchise reporting, warranty claims, factory incentives. Used-car work has none of that and all of the reconditioning. The costs are unpredictable and they arrive one receipt at a time, which is what Deelary is built to capture.
Does it pull vehicle history reports?
No. Deelary records what you spend and what you sell for. History reports come from Carfax, AutoCheck or NMVTIS, and the comparison of the three is on the blog.
Does it price cars for me?
No. It tells you what the car has cost and what a given asking price leaves you, including the negotiating room. What the market will pay is your call, and you are better at it than an algorithm that has not seen the car.
Will it work outside the United States?
Yes. Amounts are in your own currency, and nothing in the app is tied to one country’s title system. Dealers in the UK, Canada and Australia use it the same way.
What does it cost?
Free for up to two active cars with every feature. Deelary Pro is $8.99 a month or $49.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, billed through your Apple ID.