Clemson University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

Aid covers about 36% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, but the size of that reduction differs across family incomes. Average net prices range from $13,607 in the lowest income band to $27,922 in the highest, a spread of $14,315 between the two ends.

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that for the 2024-25 academic year, 2,126 first-year students were determined to have financial need. Of those, 237 had that need fully met.

Among aided students with need, the average share of need met was 49%, with an average need-based grant of $13,154 and an average package of $14,186. The university also awarded merit aid to 1,090 first-year students, averaging $4,905.

The pattern across income bands shows lower average net prices at lower incomes, though the spread is moderate.

A published cost of attendance of $35,015 is the starting point before grants and scholarships. For aid recipients, average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $13,607 in the lowest family-income band, $14,109 in the lower-middle band, $18,851 in the middle band, $24,833 in the upper-middle band, and $27,922 in the highest family-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $14,315. Azimuth ranks Clemson University #805 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 36% of the published cost, or average savings of $12,762. The overall average net price is $22,253, which is $6,619 above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), of $15,634.

Published in-state tuition is $15,554, out-of-state tuition is $40,866, and room and board is $13,284. The higher overall price than comparable institutions sits alongside aid that offsets part of the published cost.

Among federal-loan borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $21,500, and 91.2% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That median is $1,424 above the $20,076 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years. Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $35,463.

Borrowing is widespread at Clemson University: federal loans are used by 91.2% of federal aid recipients. Among completers with federal loans, median federal student loan debt is $21,500.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median is $20,076, placing the university's median $1,424 above it. Separate parent borrowers have median Parent PLUS borrowing of $35,463.

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that 44% of graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $35,392 in cumulative borrowing. Its figures include 42% of graduates with federal loans, whose average cumulative borrowing was $19,847.

They also include 15% of graduates with private loans, whose average cumulative borrowing was $47,984.

At Clemson University, the investment picture is mixed: graduates out-earn their peers, but the earnings fall short of what the model expects for similar students. Federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $75,142 four years after completion, placing the university at the 84th percentile nationally.

That is $9,532 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). However, graduates earn about $8,474 less than the model expects for similar students, an outcome at the 23rd percentile.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from $52,284 in a downside case to $94,446 in an upside case, with $75,142 as the typical outcome. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $21,500 in federal student loans, $1,424 above the peer median.

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month.

For Parent PLUS parent borrowers, median borrowing is $35,463. Median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.

Sources and reporting periods: methodology.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, 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.