Calgary, Alberta

The used-car appraisal app built in Calgary, for Calgary dealers

Appraise for Dealers is a used-car appraisal app started by a Calgary dealer. It turns a VIN into wholesale grades, retail comps from listings around Calgary and a max buy, scans the engine for codes cleared before the trade-in, and prices hail, gravel and salt damage from your own rates. Free Bluetooth OBD reader with your 14-day trial for the first 25 dealerships, in Calgary and across Canada.

Key facts

  • Free OBD readerFree Bluetooth OBD reader with your 14-day trial for the first 25 dealerships, one per dealership.
  • Local comps firstSame trim, similar km, within your search range (300 km by default) before widening to Alberta.
  • Cleared-code flagsRed flag at under 200 km, 10 warm-ups or 5 hours since codes were cleared.
  • Salt-weighted rust checksFrame rails, rockers, rear arches, brake lines and subframes get extra attention.
  • Your numbersRecon, labour rate, pack, holding and target gross all come from your settings.
  • Canadian dataPrices in CAD, distances in km, data hosted in Montréal.
Local conditions

What makes appraising in Calgary different?

Calgary trade-ins carry a particular mix of weather and work. These are the things a Calgary appraisal has to catch.

Hail alley

Calgary and the corridor north to Red Deer get some of the most frequent damaging hail in Canada, and major storms in 2020 and 2024 left thousands of vehicles dented. Check the roof, hood and trunk lid in raking light, ask about claims, and look for a salvage brand on written-off units.

Chinook freeze-thaw

Chinooks melt the snow several times a winter, so salty slush keeps re-wetting the underbody. Calgary cars rust like any salt-belt car: look at the frame rails, rockers and brake lines.

Road-salt checklist

Gravel and rock chips

Winter gravel and fast traffic on Deerfoot Trail, Stoney Trail and Highway 2 chip hoods, bumpers and windshields. On newer vehicles, a windshield replacement also means recalibrating the driver-assist camera.

Trucks and 4x4s

Pickups and 4x4 SUVs make up a big share of Calgary trades. Engage four-wheel drive on the test drive, and remember aluminum-body trucks cost more to dent-repair.

Oilfield and fleet hours

Lease and fleet trucks idle for hours on job sites. Where a truck reports total engine run time, compare hours with km, and look for upfit holes, strobe wiring and fleet-graphic shadows.

Deep cold

Minus-thirty mornings find weak batteries, cracked block heater cords and tired starters. The scan reads battery voltage, and Appraise flags anything under 12.2 V with the engine off.

Value

How does Appraise price a car for the Calgary market?

Type or scan the VIN and enter the km. Appraise decodes the vehicle and prices it against Canadian dealer listings near your rooftop.

  • Same trim and similar km within your search range first: 300 km by default, which reaches Red Deer and Lethbridge, or 160 km to stay with Calgary, Airdrie, Cochrane, Okotoks, Strathmore and High River
  • Widens to Alberta, then to Canada adjusted to Alberta, only when local listings are thin, and tells you when it does
  • Recently sold listings count ahead of asking prices when there are at least three
  • Four wholesale grades, Extra clean to Rough, with your own max buy underneath

Values are estimates built from comparable listings. Each shows how many comps it used and a confidence label.

Appraise Value screen for a 2014 Ford F-150: max buy $13,100, trade-in offer $12,350 and four wholesale grades
Fraud flags

How does the scan catch cleared codes on Calgary trade-ins?

Alberta has no routine emissions test, so nothing at registration checks whether a check-engine light was cleared last week. Plug in a Bluetooth reader and Appraise reads what a quick clear leaves behind.

  • Permanent codes that a scan tool can’t erase
  • Km, warm-ups and minutes since the codes were cleared
  • Readiness monitors that haven’t finished
  • An engine computer VIN that doesn’t match the car

How to read it: spotting recently cleared codes.

Founding dealer offer

How do Calgary dealers get a free OBD reader?

Book a demo and start your trial. Free Bluetooth OBD reader with your 14-day trial for the first 25 dealerships, in Calgary and anywhere else in Canada. It works with iPhone and Android.

One reader per dealership, while the first 25 spots last. Open to dealerships anywhere in Canada. No card needed for the trial.

Made here

Who uses Appraise in Calgary?

Appraise was started by a Calgary used-car dealer for the way local lots actually work, from franchise stores on the Macleod Trail corridor to independent lots across the city and dealers in Airdrie, Cochrane and Okotoks.

  • Used-car managersEvery appraisal is shared with the team, and rates are set once for everyone, so the number doesn’t depend on who walked out to the car.
  • Appraisers on the lotBig buttons you can hit with gloves on, and a high-contrast Lot Mode for bright snow and dark parkades.
  • Wholesale buyersText photos and a clean write-up to your wholesalers for bids. Your internal numbers stay private.
  • OwnersData hosted in Canada, each dealership sees only its own cars, and inventory shows days in stock and money tied up.
Start to finish

What does a Calgary appraisal look like start to finish?

Use one tool, any two, or all three on the same VIN. Results stack on one car.

  1. Scan the VIN barcodeFrom the door jamb or windshield, or type it. Appraise decodes year, engine and trim.
  2. Plug in the readerCodes, readiness monitors and since-clear counters, with a verdict at the top.
  3. Walk around with the cameraDents, hail, paint, rust and tires flagged for you to accept, edit or dismiss.
  4. Get the valueWholesale grades, Calgary-area comps and a max buy with every line of the math.
  5. Show the customerA branded offer sheet with comparable cars and recon, never your internal numbers.
  6. Add it to inventoryOne tap, then track days in stock and price against similar cars nearby.
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Something else? Email hello@appraisefordealers.ca or book a demo.

Is the OBD reader really free?

Yes. The first 25 dealerships that start a trial, in Calgary or anywhere else in Canada, get one Bluetooth Low Energy reader per dealership, free. Book a demo to claim yours; the trial itself needs no card.

Do you have to be in Calgary to get the free reader?

No. The founding offer is open to dealerships anywhere in Canada: the first 25 to start a trial get one reader each. Ask when you book a demo.

Can you show us in person?

Yes. When you book a demo you can choose an in-person visit, a video call or a phone call.

Are the values Calgary prices or national averages?

Local first. Appraise looks for comparable listings within your search range (300 km of your rooftop by default), then widens to Alberta and finally to Canada adjusted to Alberta, and labels the value when it has had to widen.

Does it handle hail damage?

The photo inspection flags dents panel by panel with size and PDR eligibility, priced from your own PDR rates. For a heavily hailed car, use it to document the damage and get your PDR tech’s count before you commit.

Ready to know your max buy before you shake hands?

Try it free for 14 days, no card needed. Or book a demo and we will run a real VIN with you.