George Washington University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that, in the 2025-26 academic year, first-year aid recipients with need had an average 91% of need met. Their average need-based grant was $43,676, and their average need-based aid package was $64,025.

The university counted 1,264 first-year students determined to have need and 1,096 whose need was fully met. It also reported, in the 2025-26 academic year, 617 first-year students receiving merit aid averaging $25,357.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 56% of the published cost, leaving a sticker-to-net gap of $47,270. The income-band figures place the two lower-income bands at lower average net prices than the middle and upper bands.

This is a pattern of aid targeting by family income rather than an individual package guarantee.

The published cost of attendance at George Washington University is $83,856 (an average across living arrangements). Azimuth ranks the university #1,260 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $17,440, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $22,080, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $55,337. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $37,897.

The average aid recipient sees $47,270 in savings against the published cost, leaving an average net price of $36,586 across all income bands. That is $375 above the $36,211 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Tuition and fees alone are $67,710. Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $20,449 in federal student loans, which is $2,719 below the peer median of $23,168.

92.8% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $30,881.

If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 a month.

George Washington University’s median federal student loan debt is below the comparable-institution benchmark, though federal borrowing is common among undergraduates. 92.8% of federal aid recipients take federal loans, and borrowers who complete have median federal student loan debt of $20,449.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $23,168, placing the university $2,719 below it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $30,881.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 32% of graduates borrowed from any source, including 31% with federal loans. Average cumulative borrowing per borrower was $34,685, with average federal borrowing of $19,173.

Graduates earn about $11,856 more than the model expects for similar students. That measure, earnings beyond expectations—the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students—sits in the 86th percentile, according to Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions.

At George Washington University, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $95,967 four years after completion, in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The downside earnings scenario is $67,671, and the upside scenario is $111,369; the typical scenario matches the observed median.

These are scenarios based on the program mix, rather than earnings for separate observed groups. Median federal student loan debt at completion is $20,449.

The peer median is $23,168, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size). It is $2,719 below that benchmark.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 a month if repaid over ten years. Higher-than-expected earnings and debt below the peer median point in the same direction.

Among the separate population of Parent PLUS borrowers, median borrowing is $30,881. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $232 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.