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Calcimator

College Cost Planner

Comprehensive college planning calculator with cost estimates, 529 savings projections, financial aid estimation, and student loan planning. Plan for one or multiple children.

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How to Use This Calculator
  1. Follow the step-by-step wizard — complete each step before moving to the next. This guided approach ensures you provide all the necessary information in a logical order.
  2. Planning Mode — Calculation mode to use. Choose from: Cost Estimate, 529 Savings Plan, Loan Projection, Comprehensive Plan. default: 3.
  3. College Type — enter your preferred option from the dropdown. Choose from: Public (In-State), Public (Out-of-State), Private Non-Profit, Private For-Profit, Community College. default: 0.
  4. Years of College — enter a numeric value. Accepts values from 1 to 8 (default: 4).
  5. Number of Children — Number of dependent children. Accepts values from 1 to 6 (default: 1).
  6. Years Until College — enter a number in years. Accepts values from 0 years to 18 years (default: 10 years).
  7. College Cost Inflation — Expected annual inflation rate. Accepts values from 0 % to 10 % (default: 4 %).
  8. Household Income — enter a dollar amount. Accepts values from $0 to $500,000 (default: $75,000).
  9. Current 529 Balance — Amount currently saved. Accepts values from $0 to $500,000 (default: $10,000).
  10. Monthly Contribution — Amount contributed each month. Accepts values from $0 to $5,000 (default: $400).
  11. Expected Return — enter a percentage value. Accepts values from 0 % to 12 % (default: 6 %).
  12. Expand "Advanced Options" for additional fine-tuning. These optional inputs let you model more specific scenarios:
  13. Expected GPA — enter a numeric value. Accepts values from 0 to 4 (default: 3.5).
  14. Expected SAT Score — enter a numeric value. Accepts values from 400 to 1,600 (default: 1,200).
  15. Target Coverage — enter a percentage value. Accepts values from 25 % to 100 % (default: 100 %).
  16. Loan Amount — Total amount borrowed. Accepts values from $0 to $200,000 (default: $30,000).
  17. Loan Type — enter your preferred option from the dropdown. Choose from: Federal Subsidized, Federal Unsubsidized, Parent PLUS, Private. default: 0.
  18. Repayment Plan — enter your preferred option from the dropdown. Choose from: Standard (10 years), Extended (25 years), Income-Driven (20 years). default: 0.
  19. Expected Starting Salary — enter a dollar amount. Accepts values from $20,000 to $200,000 (default: $55,000).
  20. Once all inputs are set, review your results in the Results panel. Here's what each output means:
  21. Total Cost (One Child) — shown as a dollar amount. This is the primary result of this calculator.
  22. Projected Savings — shown as a dollar amount. This is the primary result of this calculator.
  23. Monthly Payment — shown as a dollar amount. This is the primary result of this calculator.
  24. Total College Cost — shown as a dollar amount. This is the primary result of this calculator.
  25. Total Cost (All Children) — shown as a dollar amount.
  26. Annual Cost (Today) — shown as a dollar amount.
  27. Cost at Start — shown as a dollar amount.
  28. Estimated Financial Aid — shown as a dollar amount.
  29. Merit Scholarship Estimate — shown as a dollar amount.
  30. Net Cost (One Child) — shown as a dollar amount.
  31. Net Cost (All Children) — shown as a dollar amount.
  32. Savings Goal — shown as a dollar amount.
  33. Shortfall — shown as a dollar amount.
  34. Surplus — shown as a dollar amount.
  35. Required Monthly — shown as a dollar amount.
  36. Total Contributions — shown as a dollar amount.
  37. Investment Growth — shown as a dollar amount.
  38. Est. State Tax Savings — shown as a dollar amount.
  39. Coverage % — shown as a percentage.
  40. Loan Amount — shown as a dollar amount.
  41. Interest Rate — shown as a percentage.
  42. Total Loan Cost — shown as a dollar amount.
  43. Total Interest — shown as a dollar amount.
  44. In-School Interest — shown as a dollar amount.
  45. Capitalized Balance — shown as a dollar amount.
  46. Loan Term — shown as a numeric value.
  47. IDR Payment Estimate — shown as a dollar amount.
  48. Debt-to-Income % — shown as a percentage.
  49. Cost per Child — shown as a dollar amount.
  50. Gap After Savings — shown as a dollar amount.
  51. Estimated Loans Needed — shown as a dollar amount.
  52. Future Loan Payment — shown as a dollar amount.
  53. Total Loan Cost — shown as a dollar amount.
  54. Savings Coverage — shown as a percentage.
  55. Years to Save — shown as a numeric value.
  56. Scroll down to explore 3 charts (Cost Breakdown, Funding Sources, Yearly Costs) for a visual breakdown of the data.
  57. Check the Year-by-Year Breakdown for a detailed row-by-row breakdown. This is useful for spotting trends or finding values at specific points.
  58. Explore the related calculators below if you need deeper analysis or want to approach this topic from a different angle.
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