College cost and earnings, from federal data
Is this degree worth what it costs?
Pick up to three school and major pairs. See the real net cost, typical debt, what graduates earn, and how long it takes to pay back.
- Pick a school and majorOver 5,000 colleges and 60,000 programs with reported earnings.
- Set your situationFamily income, in-state or out, and how much you'd borrow.
- See cost vs. payoffNet cost, debt, earnings and payback, side by side and charted.
Compare schools and majors
Showing an example. Pick your own schools and majors below.
🕹️ The Arcade
Learn college money in 60 seconds a game
Guess salaries, rank majors, crack the loan lingo. Real numbers, zero lectures.
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Cheapest colleges by stateWhat families earning under $48k actually pay at public 4-year colleges, after grants.See the guide →Best-paying majors by stateMedian earnings 4 years after graduating, state by state, for the major you pick.See the guide →Where the school matters mostFor some majors, which school you pick changes graduates' pay a lot. For others, barely.See the guide →
Read these numbers carefully
- Earnings only cover students who got federal aid. Scorecard can't see graduates who never borrowed or received a Pell Grant.
- Earnings show what graduates typically earned, not what caused it. Students who choose a school or major differ in many ways.
- Small programs are left out. When too few graduates are reported, we say so and show no number. We never fill gaps with guesses.
- Figures lag. Each number shows the years it comes from. How every number is worked out.