For parents
En españolParent PLUS planner
Starting July 1, 2026, all parents together can borrow up to $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total in Parent PLUS for each dependent student. See what that covers for one child, year by year, and what is left. The 2026-27 rate of 9.07% and the 4.228% origination fee are built in.
New to the changes? Read what changed for parents.
Fill in what you know and choose “Show my plan”. Your results appear here.
Ways to cover what is left, cheapest first
This list is the same for every family and always in this order.
1.Ask the financial aid office to take another look
If your family's situation has changed, or another school offered more, you can ask for a review of the aid offer. It costs nothing, and the school decides.
Write an aid appeal letter2.Use a school payment plan and savings
Many schools let you spread a term's bill over monthly payments instead of paying it all at once. Money in a 529 plan or other savings can also go toward the bill.
Read the college funding guide3.Compare schools by what families actually pay
A school with a lower net price can shrink the gap more than any loan. Net price is the cost after grants and scholarships, not the sticker price.
Compare schools on Worth It4.Look at your student's own options
Scholarships and work-study can help. If a parent applies for Parent PLUS and is denied because of credit, the student may be able to borrow more in federal loans in their own name. The aid office decides how much.
Search scholarships5.Private loans, last
Private loans exist, but they are not federal loans. Rates and terms depend on the lender and on credit, and they usually come with fewer protections than federal loans. If you consider one, compare carefully and only after the options above.
How private student loans compare
About this planner
How does the planner work out what Parent PLUS can cover?
For each school year, the planner starts with the cost of attendance and subtracts grants and scholarships, your student's own federal loans and what your family will pay from savings or income. What is left is the amount still needed. Parent PLUS can fill that need up to the yearly and total limits, and never more than the cost of attendance minus other aid. Anything the limits do not cover is shown as still uncovered. This is an estimate, not a loan offer, and your school's financial aid office decides what you can borrow.
Does Parent PLUS I already borrowed count toward the $65,000 limit?
Yes. As of the 2026-27 award year, all parents together can borrow up to $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total in Parent PLUS for each dependent student, for school years starting on or after July 1, 2026. Parent PLUS borrowed for that student before July 1, 2026 counts toward the $65,000, even if it has been repaid. The planner subtracts what you enter as already borrowed for this student from the $65,000, so a parent who has already reached it sees no more room to borrow once the limits apply.
Why is "What the school receives" less than what I borrow?
Parent PLUS has an origination fee. For loans first paid out in the 2026-27 award year, the fee is 4.228%, taken out of each payment before it reaches the school, so the school receives the amount you borrow minus the fee. You repay the full amount you borrowed. The planner applies the $20,000 and $65,000 limits to the amount you borrow, before the fee, which never overstates what reaches the school. Unconfirmed: check with your school's financial aid office.
How does the planner estimate the monthly payment?
It uses the Tiered Standard plan, the repayment plan for new Parent PLUS borrowing on or after July 1, 2026: fixed payments of at least $50 a month, over a term set by your total federal Direct Loan balance (under $25,000, 10 years; under $50,000, 15 years; under $100,000, 20 years; and $100,000 or more, 25 years). The planner adds the new borrowing to the other Direct Loans you entered to pick the term, then figures the payment on the new borrowing at 9.07%, the fixed rate for loans first paid out in the 2026-27 award year. Rates for later years are not set yet, so later years use the same rate as an assumption, not a promise.
Does the planner save or send the numbers I enter?
No. Everything you enter stays in your browser tab. It is not saved, not sent to us and gone when you leave, and the planner does not ask about income.
How does the planner handle a student enrolled before July 1, 2026?
It asks three questions: whether your student was enrolled in their program on June 30, 2026, whether you or your student got a federal Direct Loan for that program before July 1, 2026, and whether your student is still in that same program with no withdrawal or transfer. If all three answers are yes, the planner sets the yearly and total limits aside for up to 3 school years, fewer if the program ends sooner, then applies them. Parent PLUS borrowed in those years still counts toward the $65,000 afterward. Your school's financial aid office decides whether this applies.
Rates are for loans first paid out July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Rules can change, so check studentaid.gov and your school's financial aid office. Last reviewed October 12, 2026. This is an estimate, not a loan offer.