The tuition page shows one number. Rent, food, books, bills and the flight home are on top of it. Add them all here and see what a year at university really costs, and what it adds up to over your whole degree.
Enter your costs
Everything is worked out in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Your yearly cost
Your total shows up here once you add a cost, like tuition or rent.
What to enter
- Tuition and fees
- The yearly figure from your university’s fee page. If you pick a published figure at the top, the form fills this line in, and you can overwrite it.
- How often you pay
- Choose per week, per month, per term, per year or one-off. The page turns each one into a yearly total, so you can type costs the way you actually pay them.
- Months you pay living costs
- Twelve if your rent runs all year. Nine or ten if you only pay during term time. Monthly and weekly costs use this number.
- Years of study and yearly increase
- Optional. Set the length of your course to see the whole degree. Recurring costs rise by the percentage you enter from year 2, and one-off costs only count in year 1.
A worked example
Two made-up students pay the same $11,950 tuition, which is the published average for a US public four-year school for in-state students. They differ in where they live. The other numbers are made up for the example and are not typical.
Student A lives away. Rent $850 a month, food $320 a month, bills and phone $90 a month, books $300 a term, transport $60 a month, personal and social $120 a month, setting up (deposit, laptop) $900 once.
Student B lives at home. Food $200 a month, bills and phone $40 a month, books $300 a term, transport $140 a month, personal and social $120 a month, setting up (deposit, laptop) $900 once.
| Student A, away | Student B, at home | |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition and fees | $11,950 | $11,950 |
| Everything else | $18,780 | $7,500 |
| First year | $30,730 | $19,450 |
| A month, over 12 | $2,561 | $1,621 |
| Tuition as a share of the year | 39% | 61% |
Student A’s year costs $30,730, which is 2.6 times the tuition. Student B’s costs $19,450, or 1.6 times. Same school, same tuition, a gap of $11,280. A student who only looked at the tuition page would have missed most of it.
Over a four-year degree, Student A’s costs add up too. With a guessed 3% rise in recurring costs each year, and the $900 setup cost counted only in year 1, the total comes to $125,698. Year 1 is $30,730 and year 4 is $32,596. The 3% is a guess for the example. The page leaves it at 0 until you choose a number.
Published figures to check yourself against
These are the tuition numbers the form can fill in. All are averages, caps or maximums, not quotes. Your own school and course will differ.
| Figure | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| US public four-year, in-state: average published tuition | $11,950 | College Board |
| US public four-year, out-of-state: average published tuition | $31,880 | College Board |
| US private nonprofit four-year: average published tuition | $45,000 | College Board |
| US public two-year, in-district: average published tuition | $4,150 | College Board |
| England, home student: maximum tuition fee 2026/27 | £9,790 | GOV.UK |
| Canada, Canadian student: average undergraduate tuition 2026/27 | C$8,021 | Statistics Canada |
| Canada, international student: average undergraduate tuition 2026/27 | C$42,062 | Statistics Canada |
| Australia, Commonwealth supported: nursing, education, languages, agriculture (2027 maximum) | A$4,908 | Study Assist |
| Australia, Commonwealth supported: science, engineering, computing, health (2027 maximum) | A$9,880 | Study Assist |
| Australia, Commonwealth supported: medicine, dentistry, vet science (2027 maximum) | A$14,046 | Study Assist |
| Australia, Commonwealth supported: law, accounting, economics, commerce (2027 maximum) | A$18,025 | Study Assist |
How the cost is calculated
- Each cost is turned into a yearly amount. Monthly costs are multiplied by the months you pay living costs, weekly costs by those months of 52 weeks in 12, and per-term costs by the number of terms.
- One-off costs are added once, in year 1.
- Your first-year cost is the sum of every yearly amount and every one-off cost.
- Over several years, recurring costs go up by your yearly increase each year, and the one-off costs are counted only in the first.
First-year cost = yearly costs + one-off costs
Assumptions to keep in mind
- Reference figures are averages or caps, not a quote. Your own course and school will differ, and the published tuition figures are averages across many schools.
- Living costs depend on where you live, so the page does not fill them in for you. Use your own rent and food estimates.
- The page works in one currency. If your fees are in another currency, convert them first and use one symbol throughout.
- It does not include loans, grants or scholarships. The funding gap calculator does that part.
- Yearly increases are a guess you choose. Leave it at 0 if you would rather not guess.
Mistakes that make the cost look smaller
Treating the tuition figure as the cost
Tuition is often only about half of a first year. Rent, food, books, bills and travel are on top, and for a student living away they can match or beat tuition.
Forgetting costs that only happen once
A rental deposit, a laptop, bedding and the first flight can add up to a lot in the first month. They don’t repeat, so they belong in year 1 and nowhere else.
Using a monthly cost for the wrong number of months
If your rent only runs for the 9 or 10 months of term, setting the months to 12 overstates it. If you pay all year, setting it to 9 understates it.
Mixing currencies
Adding a pound fee to a dollar rent gives a number that means nothing. Convert everything to one currency before you add it up.
Leaving out the small stuff
A phone plan, a gym card and a coffee habit seem small each month. Over twelve months they are often the difference between a budget that works and one that does not.
Questions students ask
How much does university really cost for a year?
It depends on the country, the school and where you live. The tuition line is the easy part. Add rent, food, bills, books, transport and travel, then compare the total to a published average. The College Board’s average student budget for a US public four-year school is $30,990 for in-state students, against $11,950 in published tuition and fees.
Does this include loans or scholarships?
No. This page shows the cost before any money comes in. Once you have the total, the funding gap calculator shows how much your savings, aid and loans cover and what is left.
Do UK students pay Council Tax?
Households where everyone is a full-time student do not pay Council Tax. Full-time means a course of at least a year and at least 21 hours of study a week. If you share with someone who is not a student, that can change, so check with your local council.
Why does the page show a published average as a comparison?
A published average gives you a reality check on your own total. If your number is far above or below it, check whether you missed a cost or counted one twice. Averages hide a lot of range, so use it as a rough check.
Is a tuition average the same as my tuition?
No. The figures on this page are national averages or government caps. Your tuition depends on your school, your course and your status, so use the figure on your own university’s fee page when you have it.
