College cost calculator

Estimate your Student Aid Index (SAI) — the number the FAFSA calculates to determine your need-based aid — and your possible Pell Grant. Everything runs in your browser; nothing you type is sent to us unless you choose to save it.

This is an estimate, not a guarantee.

Parent finances

Parent income (AGI)Adjusted gross income from the 2024 tax return — the FAFSA uses income from two years before the aid year.Parent untaxed incomeParent federal income tax paidChild support receivedParent cash and savingsParent investmentsDo NOT include retirement accounts or the home you live in — they are not counted.Business or farm valueA business with 100 or fewer full-time employees that your family owns and controls, or a farm your family lives on, is not reported for 2026–27 — enter 0 for those.

Student finances

Student income (AGI)Student untaxed incomeStudent federal income tax paidStudent cash and savingsStudent investments

Household

Household sizeFamily members in collegeState

Looking for a specific number?

Parent contribution calculator EFC calculator — the number is now called SAI Student Aid Index (SAI) calculator Pell Grant estimator FAFSA estimator — know your number before you file Financial aid calculator

Families like yours leave thousands in free aid on the table — see what you’re missing.

These numbers are the diagnosis. Knowing what to do about your number — which strategies could lower it, which scholarships fit your student, what to say in an appeal — is the work families pay a private college consultant thousands of dollars for. It’s what My School Advisor is for.

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