Here is a list of 14 free college cost calculator websites. If you are a college aspirant then you must be preparing for a lot of things like clearing the eligibility criteria, getting good grades, credits, finding courses of your interest, and a lot of other things. Other than these crucial things, there is one more thing which you should keep in mind while shortlisting and selecting the college. And, that crucial thing is the College Cost. You should be aware of the fact that how much you would be spending on your college studies if you will select a particular college.
To help you with this, I will talk about 15 free college cost calculator websites which will make it easier for you to do the same. Yeah, it is true that these calculators will provide you with an estimated college cost but it will be good enough for you to get an idea about how much money you will need to shell out. So, let’s get started.
1. Big Future:
Big Future is the first college cost calculator website in the list. To use this website, you have to provide details about Annual college costs, college cost inflation rate, Expected years of attendance, the percent of costs you plan to cover from savings, and years until college. Do remember that you have to enter all the monetary amounts in dollars with no commas. While entering the annual college costs, you can either choose to enter the amount or the average cost. The average cost can be entered as: 4 year private, 4 year public (in-state/out-of-state), 2 years public, and 2 years private.
After providing details, click on Get Results to see the estimated college cost via graph. The graph shows you the total cost and your savings goal. You can then opt for saving results or recalculating them.
2. Saving For College:
The next college cost calculator is from Saving For College. It claims to be the world’s simplest yet most accurate and flexible calculator in the world. It has 4 sections: Inputs, Results, Graphs, and Tables. Your first step is to enter the age of your child. On next step, the website will show you the results with projected college cost and the monthly amount you need to start contributing to meet that cost. The results shown to you are based on general trend, but you can personalize it if you want. For personalization, you have to provide details about your child as well as about you.
For the child, you have to enter the annual cost, number of years until college, the duration for which your child will attend college, and whether it will be on full-time or half-time basis. The second section is about you, where you have to enter the percent of projected college cost you want to save, currently saved amount (if any), time interval for making savings, etc.. Follow this by the step of clicking on Calculate button. Then you can choose to see the results in the graph as well as tables form.
3. CNN Money:
CNN Money website is the host of third college cost calculator in this list. To get started, you have to provide the name of the college for which you want to calculate cost. You can enter college name either by typing it or using the drop-down menu to select the state name followed by the college name. For the selected college, the website shows total estimated cost, Money’s estimated cost, tuition fee, etc.. For the Money’s estimated cost, you can also enter family income to get a more precise estimate.
4. FinAid:
The fourth college cost calculator is provided by FinAid and it is quite simple to use. To use this, you have to provide college type, current one-year costs, Tuition inflation rate, years until enrollment, and adjust tuition after matriculation. When you will click on Calculate button, the website will show you the corresponding results. The results will include all the estimated calculations along with the graphical representation.
5. American Funds:
The next college cost calculator for you in the line is American Funds. The whole process is divided into 2 steps. The first step is to enter the school information where you’ve to enter the state name, select whether in-state or out-of-state student, and the college name. Now the second step is where you have to enter the student’s name, current age, age when in college, years in college, how often can you invest, etc.. When you have provided all the data, click on the Calculate button to get results along with graph.
6. SallieMae:
SallieMae is one of the simplest online college calculators in this list. You only have to provide the annual cost of attendance, number of years until college, and expected number of years of college. When you have entered the details, click the Calculate button and the website will show you the estimated college costs.
7. Finra:
Finra is another online college calculator in this list. On the landing page, you will see the input fields for providing the data. You have to provide the information regarding Annual college costs, current savings, years until enrollment, annual return, and inflation rate. On the basis of data entered by you, the website will show you the graphical as well as tabular representation. The table shows you the information about Deposit amount, Annual college cost, and Balance.
8. Fidelity:
The next college cost calculator in the list is provided by Fidelity. This calculator asks you to provide student’s name, date of birth, age starting college, years left in attending college, and annual current cost of college. For entering current college cost, you can choose any of the following: National Average, Specific College, or Custom Amount. The next step is to mention if you have saved any amount till now and how much you think you’ll be able to deposit each year. After this, you’ve to follow a few more steps and then you will see the results.
9. Bank Rate:
Bank Rate is the next online college calculator in this list. Using this calculator, you can calculate the college cost for up to 4 children simultaneously. To do this, your first step is to provide the education cost inflation rate, current saving, monthly contributions, and rate of return. You can choose to enter values either by typing or using the slider. Below this, there are four different input fields for entering information about your 4 children. It’s not necessary to fill all 4 of them and you have the liberty to fill the ones you want to. For your child, you have to provide age, the age to start education, tuition, and room & board cost. After entering all the details, hit the Calculate button to see the results. Below the results, the website also explains the definition of each of the terms they have used.
10. AidCalc:
The college cost calculator provided by AidCalc is simple yet good enough. There are 4 fields which you need to fill for getting the estimated college cost. These fields are: Current Per-Year College Cost, Annual College Cost Inflation Rate, Number of Years Until Enrolling in College, Number of Years for Which College will be Attended. As for entering current per-year college cost, you have the option to enter it manually or search for the particular college.
On clicking the Calculate button, the website will show you total college cost as well as yearly cost breakdown.
11. The New York Times:
The eleventh online college calculator in this list comes from world’s renowned newspaper The New York Times. To use this calculator, choose the college type: 4-year or 2-year. Then enter the current college cost, number of years for starting college, and annual increase in percentage. After entering the college details, you will see the results in graphical form along with the total cost.
12. ISAC:
Illinois Student Assistant Commission (ISAC) is the next website in the list with college cost calculator. For calculating the college cost, you need to enter current annual college cost, years until student is in college, and expected number of years in college. The next step is to click the Calculate button to get the results instantly. If you want to enter the details again, then click on Reset button.
13. Practical Money Skills:
The next website to calculate your college cost is Practical Money Skills. There are 4 simple boxes which you have to fill: Student’s Current Age, College Type, Number of Years Attending, and Calculation Type. The type of colleges you can choose from are: In-state Community, In-state Public, Out-of-state Public, and Private. As you will hit the button Calculate, the website will show you the result.
14. Fast Web:
Fast Web is the last website in the list for estimating the college cost. The steps for inputting the data is same as the above mentioned college cost calculators. The feature which makes this calculator different from others is the way it displays the results. It shows you the data entered by you followed by the annual breakdown of the projected college cost. At the bottom, you will see the total cost and the graphical representation on the right side.
These are the free online college cost calculator websites for you to try out. Check them out to see which one matches your needs and fulfills them.
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