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Cost & financial aid brief

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# Centre College Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

Updated October 21, 2026

[Overview](/school/centre-college/)Cost & aid[Outcomes](/school/centre-college/outcomes/)[Admissions](/school/centre-college/admissions/)[Majors](/school/centre-college/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/centre-college/similar/)

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## How much does Centre College cost after financial aid?

The published cost of attendance at Centre College is $67,787, with tuition and fees of $52,820 and room and board of $14,640. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported on-campus food and housing of $15,740 and required fees of $750.

For aid recipients, the average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)—what students pay after grants and scholarships—is $20,781, which is $1,566 below the $22,347 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Azimuth ranks the university #1,025 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Centre College lists a published cost of attendance of $67,787. Grants and scholarships reduce the published cost to the average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)—what students actually pay after aid.

Azimuth ranks the affordability pillar in the 28th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The average net price comes to $20,781, which is $1,566 below the median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The lowest income band averages $11,364, and the highest averages $30,571. Among borrowers who complete, the median federal debt is $27,000, which is $2,000 above the peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The affordability picture is mixed: net price sits below the peer median, but debt sits above it.

About 22.6% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants, the population the lowest band applies to. For families earning under $30,000, the average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) after grants and scholarships is $11,364.

The next band, $30,001–$48,000, averages $10,388; the $48,001–$75,000 band averages $15,847; the $75,001–$110,000 band averages $18,920; and families earning over $110,000 average $30,571. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $19,207.

Average net price by family income

**$0–30K**
$11,364

**$30–48K**
$10,388

**$48–75K**
$15,847

**$75–110K**
$18,920

**$110K+**
$30,571

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Overall average annual net price: **$20,781**. After grants and scholarships, including living costs. [Source and coverage](#cost-data-notes).

Aid covers about 69% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, reducing the sticker price by $47,006 on average. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported figures for the the 2025-26 academic year.

First-year students determined to have need received an average need-based grant of $53,223. Their average total aid package was $56,424.

The average share of need met was 99%. The average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) is lower for lower family incomes and higher for higher family incomes.

The published cost of attendance at Centre College is $67,787. Azimuth ranks the university #1,025 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $11,364, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $15,847, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $30,571. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $19,207.

The average aid recipient sees $47,006 in savings against the published cost, bringing the average net price for aid recipients to $20,781. That is $1,566 below the $22,347 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Tuition and fees are $52,820. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $27,000 in federal student loans, $2,000 above the $25,000 peer median.

92.0% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $50,378 in [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) loans.

If repaid over ten years, the median student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month. It estimates what a family might pay based on income and assets, rather than quoting a single average.

## Student loans: what does repayment look like?

Borrowers who complete a degree at Centre College carry a median of $27,000 in federal loans. 92.0% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

That median is $2,000 above the $25,000 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $50,378.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 57% of graduates borrowed from any source, with average cumulative debt of $22,698 per borrower. Of the graduates who borrowed, 56% held federal loans averaging $21,294. A smaller share, 9%, took private loans averaging $37,606.

Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $64,933. That is $9,018 above the $55,915 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), placing the university at the 65th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from $49,708 on the downside to $79,184 on the upside, with a typical figure of $64,933. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $27,000 in federal loans, which corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years. The peer median for debt is $25,000, $2,000 below the university's figure.

For the separate population of parent borrowers, median [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) borrowing is $50,378. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years.

[Repayment figures](#combined-borrowing) are in the Financial GPS card below. [Borrowing populations and model assumptions](#cost-data-notes).

## Parent loans: what can the family afford?

[How Parent PLUS borrowing affects families](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/)

**Median Parent PLUS debt**
$50,378

**Estimated parent payment**
$640/mo

Modeled Parent PLUS pressure by income

| Household income | Share of income above basic expenses | Risk level |
| --- | --- | --- |
| $35,000 | No room | High pressure |
| $50,000 | No room | High pressure |
| $75,000 | 37.7% | High pressure |
| $100,000 | 16.9% | High pressure |
| $150,000 | 8.1% | Caution |
| $200,000 | 5.3% | Safe |

The 10-year payment on the median Parent PLUS balance, as a share of household income above basic expenses ($54,640 a year: 200% of the 2026 federal poverty guideline for a household of three). No room is High pressure. [Open the parent tool for your own numbers](/financial-gps/?tool=parent&school=centre-college#parent-tool). [Read the assumptions and limits](#cost-data-notes).

## Student and parent loans: the monthly payments

Financial GPS

### What does repayment look like?

**Institution median student debt**
$27,000

**Institution Parent PLUS debt**
$50,378

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

**Estimated student payment · monthly**
$307/mo

**Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly**
$640/mo

**Modeled student + parent payments**
$947/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

#### Student payment as a share of available income

At median graduate earnings of $64,933, with a $23,940 annual allowance for basic expenses:

**9.0%** of income above the allowance · Good

1.  Excellent Under 8%
2.  Good 8–under 12% · selected scenario
3.  Concerning 12–20%
4.  High risk Over 20%

How this estimate works

These are modeled earnings scenarios, not observed earnings percentiles. Annual student payments ÷ (earnings − basic-expense allowance). The starting allowance, $23,940, uses the published framework’s 2026 baseline; it is not a current local living-cost estimate. Change it for your budget, including taxes and other obligations. This combines school-level figures for illustration, not a typical individual’s budget or an official school rating. Parent PLUS is separate.

[Read the framework and its limits](/analysis/financial-gps-framework/).

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

[Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS](/financial-gps/?tool=student&school=centre-college#student-tool)

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).

**Net price and borrowing.** The 2023–24 income-band averages include living costs and cover eligible first-time, full-time aid recipients; public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. They are not individual aid offers. Peer matching supplies overall net prices, not matched income-band averages. [College Scorecard data and documentation](https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/).

A personal student-risk assessment also needs your major and borrowing plan; these school-level illustrations do not assign you a personal risk zone.

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates. Private-loan figures from the Common Data Set are separate from these federal repayment illustrations.