Calculate your ability to pay back student loans.

Estimate your monthly student loan payment and see how it compares to your anticipated income after graduation.

Assumptions

Anticipated annual income upon graduation ?

The gross annual salary you expect to earn the year you graduate from college.

Original loan amount ?

The outstanding balance of the student loan upon graduation.

Annual interest rate ?

The stated annual interest rate on the student loan.

Initial payment period (months) ?

The number of months that the student loan is amortized. Ten years equals 120 months.

Enter your values and select Calculate.

The monthly payment figure shows what it would take to retire this loan on schedule at the interest rate you entered — it does not include origination fees, loan servicer charges, or any change in rate over time if your loan is variable. The debt-to-income ratio and the affordability signal translate that payment into a sense of how much room it leaves in a typical month, based only on the income figure you provided.

Two inputs move this result more than any others: the loan amount and the interest rate. A larger balance or a higher rate raises the monthly payment directly, while stretching or shortening the term (the payment period) trades a lower monthly bill for more total interest, or the reverse. If you want to see how sensitive the result is, try adjusting the interest rate or the term first.

This calculation leaves out taxes, cost of living, other debts you may be carrying, and any change in income after your first year out of school. The anticipated income you entered is a projection, not a guarantee, so treat the debt ratio and traffic light as a starting read rather than a final verdict on affordability.

It is worth running this again once you have an actual job offer, a firmer sense of your loan's real interest rate, or if you are weighing a different repayment term. Having a concrete number now, even a rough one, puts you ahead of most people making this decision blind — small adjustments to the loan amount or term can meaningfully change the monthly picture.

This information may help you analyze your financial needs. It is based on information and assumptions provided by you regarding your goals, expectations and financial situation. The calculations do not infer that the company assumes any fiduciary duties. The calculations provided should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice. In addition, such information should not be relied upon as the only source of information. This information is supplied from sources we believe to be reliable but we cannot guarantee its accuracy. Hypothetical illustrations may provide historical or current performance information. Past performance does not guarantee nor indicate future results.