Know what college should actually cost you
before you say yes.
Most families find out their real number in April of senior year, from a financial aid letter they don't fully understand. Answer a few questions now and get a plain-English budget for what you can afford to borrow, save, and pay — school by school.
Takes about 8 minutes. No loan application, no credit check, no obligation.
The bill always arrives after the decision does.
Colleges are quick to send acceptance letters and slow to send honest numbers. Here's where most families lose the thread — and where a budget built early changes the outcome.
Sticker price isn't the price
The published cost of attendance rarely resembles what a specific family actually pays once aid and scholarships are factored in — but almost no one calculates the real number before applying.
Award letters are built to confuse
Every school formats financial aid offers differently, mixing grants, work-study, and loans into one lump "award" that looks generous until you separate what's free from what's owed.
Borrowing decisions get made under pressure
By the time the numbers are clear, deposit deadlines are days away — leaving families to decide on six figures of debt in an evening.
One page. Your real numbers. No jargon.
Your Budget Report turns your family's finances and target schools into a single, plain-language reference you can return to all through the admissions process.
What you can afford
A realistic annual and total four-year number based on income, savings, and family size — not a guess.
Aid you can expect
An estimate of grants, need-based aid, and merit scholarships likely available to your student.
The borrowing gap
The honest difference between total cost and what aid covers — the number families usually meet for the first time in a loan document.
Next-step checklist
The forms, deadlines, and questions to bring to each school's financial aid office.
Three steps, about eight minutes.
Answer a short questionnaire
Household income, savings, state of residence, and the schools your student is considering.
We run the numbers
The same formulas colleges use to estimate family contribution and aid eligibility, applied to your situation.
Get your report instantly
A clear, one-page budget you can reference through applications, admissions, and the final decision.
Built for the people making the decision.
After your report, common paths forward include:
Get your number before you get the offer letter.
Free, instant, and built to make the next four years easier to plan for.
Build My Free Budget Report