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Cost & financial aid brief

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# Missouri State University-Springfield Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

Updated October 21, 2026

[Overview](/school/missouri-state-university-springfield/)Cost & aid[Outcomes](/school/missouri-state-university-springfield/outcomes/)[Admissions](/school/missouri-state-university-springfield/admissions/)[Majors](/school/missouri-state-university-springfield/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/missouri-state-university-springfield/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much does Missouri State University-Springfield cost after financial aid?

Missouri State University-Springfield publishes a cost of attendance of $25,048, with in-state tuition and fees at $9,502 and room and board at $11,006. Out-of-state students face a higher tuition of $18,770.

For the average aid recipient, the [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)—what families pay after grants and scholarships—drops to $17,613, a savings of $7,435 against the sticker total. That average net price sits above the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,979.

Azimuth ranks the university #461 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. The net price and the peer comparison together show a school where the sticker price is moderate but the average aid package leaves the typical recipient paying more than peers.

Missouri State University-Springfield keeps costs moderate for first-time full-time Title IV aid recipients, with an average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) of $17,613 — what students pay after grants and scholarships. That figure sits above the peer median of $15,634, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), by $1,979.

Azimuth places the affordability pillar in the 67th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Average net prices for aid recipients step from $13,718 for families earning under $30,000 to $20,576 for families earning over $110,000.

Median federal student debt among completers who borrowed is $21,992, which is above the peer median of $20,076 by $1,916. Both the net price and the debt figure run above the peer medians.

Average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)s by family-income band show a relatively flat structure. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $13,718; for $30,001–$48,000 it is $13,529; for $48,001–$75,000 it is $14,905; for $75,001–$110,000 it is $18,770; and for families earning over $110,000 it is $20,576.

Pell Grant recipients make up 22.0% of undergraduates, providing context for the lowest band. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $6,858, a narrow range that means aid does not vary dramatically with income.

Average net price by family income

**$0–30K**
$13,718

**$30–48K**
$13,529

**$48–75K**
$14,905

**$75–110K**
$18,770

**$110K+**
$20,576

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Overall average annual net price: **$17,613**. After grants and scholarships, including living costs. [Source and coverage](#cost-data-notes).

The average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/), what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $17,613, which runs above the peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,979. Aid covers about 30% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an offset of $7,435 against the sticker total.

Across income bands, the average net price starts at $13,718 for families earning under $30,000, moves to $13,529 for the $30,001–$48,000 band, $14,905 for $48,001–$75,000, $18,770 for $75,001–$110,000, and reaches $20,576 for families earning over $110,000. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $6,858, a narrow gap that shows aid is distributed broadly rather than concentrated among the lowest-income families.

The result is a financial-aid profile that keeps costs predictable across incomes, though the discount for those with the greatest need is not steep.

Missouri State University-Springfield publishes a cost of attendance of $25,048, with in-state tuition and fees of $9,502 and room and board at $11,006. For aid recipients, the average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)—what families pay after grants and scholarships—is $13,718 for those earning under $30,000, $14,905 for the $48,001–$75,000 band, and $20,576 for families earning over $110,000.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $6,858. Azimuth ranks the university #461 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 30% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, a savings of $7,435 off the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $17,613, which sits above the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,979.

Out-of-state students face a higher published tuition of $18,770. Among federal-loan borrowers who complete a degree, the median federal student debt is $21,992.

About 85.9% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That debt level is above the peer median of $20,076 by $1,916, and it corresponds to an estimated payment of $250 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parents who borrow through [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) carry a separate median of $15,092.

## Student loans: what does repayment look like?

Federal borrowing touches most students at Missouri State University-Springfield: 85.9% of federal aid recipients take federal loans, and completers who borrowed leave with a median federal debt of $21,992. That median is above the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,916.

For parents who borrow separately through [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/), the median loan is $15,092.

The investment picture at Missouri State University-Springfield is mixed: graduates earn less than the model expects, and they borrow more than peers at comparable institutions. Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $53,058.

That figure sits in the 26th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $1,124 less than the model expects for similar students, an outcome at the 51st percentile.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, range from $39,496 in a downside case to $77,609 in an upside case, with $53,058 as the typical outcome. On the borrowing side, completers who took federal loans carry a median of $21,992, which is $1,916 above the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $250 a month if repaid over ten years.

Median [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $15,092. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $250.

[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**
$15,092

**Estimated parent payment**
$192/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 | 11.3% | High pressure |
| $100,000 | 5.1% | Safe |
| $150,000 | 2.4% | Safe |
| $200,000 | 1.6% | 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=missouri-state-university-springfield#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**
$21,992

**Institution Parent PLUS debt**
$15,092

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

**Estimated student payment · monthly**
$250/mo

**Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly**
$192/mo

**Modeled student + parent payments**
$442/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 $53,058, with a $23,940 annual allowance for basic expenses:

**10.3%** 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=missouri-state-university-springfield#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.