Paying for college, explained
4 min readUpdated October 2026
Sticker price vs. net price
Each college lists a cost of attendance: tuition, fees, housing, food, books, and travel for one year. This is the sticker price.
The net price is what is left after grants and scholarships, money you don’t pay back. For many families the net price is far lower than the sticker price, especially at colleges that give a lot of aid.
Every college that offers federal aid must have a net price calculator on its website. It asks about your family’s income and savings and gives a personal estimate. Try it for each college on your list before ruling any out because of price.
Back home vs. here
Back home, fees are often fixed and the same for everyone. In the US, two students at the same college can pay very different amounts, depending on family income and the aid each one receives.
Why in-state tuition is cheaper
Public universities are funded by their state, so they charge much less to students who are residents of that state. This is in-state tuition. Students from other states pay out-of-state tuition, which is often much higher.
The rules for who counts as a resident are set by each state and college. They usually depend on how long the family has lived in the state, and in some states on immigration status or visa type. Ask the college’s admissions or residency office how its rules apply to your family.
The financial aid forms
FAFSA
CSS Profile
The FAFSA calculates a Student Aid Index (SAI). Colleges use it to decide how much need-based aid to offer. Fill it in early, because some aid is first come, first served.
Kinds of aid
- Grants: free money based on need. For example, the federal Pell Grant.
- Scholarships: free money for achievement, talent, background, or need. Each has its own rules.
- Merit aid: scholarships from the college for strong grades or other achievements, whatever your income.
- Work-study: a part-time job, often on campus, for students with financial need.
- Loans: borrowed money that must be paid back with interest. Federal student loans usually have better terms than private loans.
How citizenship and residency affect aid
CollegePul never asks about immigration status. Use the general rules below to check for your own family, and confirm with the official sources and each college.
| Student’s status | Federal aid (FAFSA) | State and college aid |
|---|---|---|
| US citizen or US national | Eligible | Usually eligible |
| Green card holder (permanent resident) and certain other “eligible noncitizens” | Eligible | Usually eligible |
| Dependent visa holder (for example H-4) or student visa holder | Not eligible | Depends on the state and college. Some offer in-state tuition or their own aid |
| DACA recipient or undocumented student | Not eligible | Depends on the state and college. Some states offer in-state tuition and state aid |
A student who is a US citizen can apply for federal aid even if their parents are not citizens. Parents without a Social Security number can still complete their part of the FAFSA. The FAFSA site explains how.
Many private scholarships are open to students whatever their citizenship. On the Scholarships page, each one shows who can apply.
Reading an aid offer
When your child is admitted, each college sends a financial aid offer. To compare offers:
- Add up the grants and scholarships. That’s the free money.
- Subtract it from the cost of attendance. That’s your net price.
- Treat loans as money you will repay, not as a discount.
- Ask whether each scholarship renews every year, and what grades it requires.
If your situation changed, or another college offered more, you can contact the financial aid office and ask them to review your offer.
Terms on this page:
Cost of attendance
A college’s full yearly estimate for a student — tuition, fees, housing, food, books, travel, and personal costs. Also called the "sticker price." Most families pay less after aid.
See it in the glossary →Net price
What a family actually pays for a year of college — the cost of attendance minus grants and scholarships. It is often far below the sticker price.
See it in the glossary →Net price calculator
A free tool on each college’s website that estimates what your family would pay there. US colleges that offer federal aid are required to have one.
See it in the glossary →In-state tuition
The lower price that public colleges charge students who are residents of that state, as the state defines residency. Rules on who qualifies — and how long you must have lived there — differ by state.
See it in the glossary →FAFSA
Free Application for Federal Student Aid
The free US government form for federal grants, work-study, and student loans. Many states and colleges also use it for their own aid. It opens each fall for the next school year.
See it in the glossary →CSS Profile
A financial aid form run by the College Board. Some colleges, many of them private, use it alongside the FAFSA to give their own aid. It asks more detailed questions than the FAFSA and can include a fee.
See it in the glossary →Student Aid Index (SAI)
A number calculated from the FAFSA that colleges use to decide how much need-based aid a student can get. A lower number means more need.
See it in the glossary →Need-based aid
Aid given according to how much a family can afford to pay, based on forms like the FAFSA or CSS Profile.
See it in the glossary →Merit aid
Scholarships a college gives for academic or other achievements, whatever the family’s income.
See it in the glossary →Grant
Money for college that does not need to be paid back, usually based on financial need. It comes from the federal government, states, or colleges.
See it in the glossary →Pell Grant
A federal grant for undergraduate students with financial need. It does not need to be paid back. Eligibility comes from the FAFSA.
See it in the glossary →Scholarship
Money for college that does not need to be paid back, given for achievement, background, talent, or need. Each one has its own rules about who can apply.
See it in the glossary →Work-study
A federal program that gives students with financial need a part-time job, usually on campus, to help pay for college costs.
See it in the glossary →Student loan
Money borrowed for college that must be paid back with interest. Federal student loans usually have lower interest and more flexible repayment than private loans.
See it in the glossary →Financial aid offer
The letter a college sends showing the grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans it is offering. Compare offers by what your family would actually pay, not by the total amount of aid.
See it in the glossary →Sources
- Federal Student Aid: the FAFSA form
- Federal Student Aid: eligibility for non-U.S. citizens
- Federal Student Aid: how aid is calculated
- Federal Student Aid: what is a net price calculator?
- Federal Student Aid: Pell Grants
- Federal Student Aid: understanding your aid offer
- College Board: CSS Profile
- College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education)