How to use the college cost calculator
- Enter the yearly tuition and required fees, housing and meals, books and supplies, and any transportation and personal costs.
- Enter the grants and scholarships you expect each year. Do not include loans, which you repay.
- Enter the years of study and, if you expect prices to rise, the yearly increase in percent. Leave it at 0 for a flat cost.
- Read the total cost, the aid and what is left for you to cover, with a year by year table.
Formula
Year 1 cost = tuition + housing + books + other costs
Cost in year n = year 1 cost x (1 + yearly increase)^(n - 1), rounded to the cent
Aid in a year = the aid you entered, but never more than that year cost
Left to cover = total cost - total aid
The cost for each year is rounded to the cent before the years are added, so the table adds up exactly.
Four years at $23,000 a year
Tuition of $12,000, housing and meals of $10,000 and books of $1,000 total $23,000 a year. With no increase, four years cost $92,000.
If costs rise 3% a year, the years cost $23,000.00, $23,690.00, $24,400.70 and $25,132.72, for a total of $96,223.42. With $5,000 a year in grants on the flat cost, $20,000 of aid leaves $72,000 to cover, which is $1,500 for each of the 48 months of study.
Use real figures from the school
Colleges publish estimated costs for tuition, housing and fees, and an aid offer shows what the school expects to give you. Use those numbers rather than a general estimate, and check what is included. Housing varies a lot by choice, and some costs, like travel home, are easy to forget.
Costs shown are the numbers you enter. They will be different from school to school and from year to year, and this tool does not know what yours will be.
Planning how to pay
Once you know the cost, the next question is how it gets paid. The college savings calculator shows what to save each month toward a goal, and the student loan payoff calculator shows what a loan will cost afterward. The inflation calculator helps judge a yearly increase.
Use the savings goal calculator when you have a target and a deadline.
Assumptions and limits
- All costs and aid are the numbers you enter. None are built in.
- The yearly increase applies to all cost items equally.
- Loans, interest, taxes and tax credits are not modeled.
- The study period is whole years from 1 to 12. This is not financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate the cost of college?
Add the yearly tuition, housing, books and other costs, then multiply by the years of study. For $23,000 a year, four years cost $92,000 if prices stay flat.
Should I include loans in aid?
No. Aid in this tool means grants and scholarships that you do not repay. Loans are money you owe later and should stay in the amount you need to cover.
How do I account for rising prices?
Enter a yearly increase. Each year is the year before multiplied by one plus that percent, so a 3% increase on $23,000 makes the second year $23,690.
Why does aid stop at the cost of the year?
A grant cannot reduce a year below zero, so the tool never subtracts more than that year cost. Any extra is not counted against other years.