Cost & financial aid brief
Skidmore College Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does Skidmore College cost after financial aid?
For average aid recipients, grants and scholarships leave a much lower price than the published charge, though the amount varies widely by family income. Aid covers about 62% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.
The sticker-to-net gap reflects grants and scholarships in an aid-recipient average, rather than a quoted price for any one household. Across the listed income bands, average net prices are lowest at the lower end and highest at the upper end.
That pattern shows aid is concentrated more heavily toward lower-income aid recipients, while higher-income recipients face a larger share of the published price. These figures describe averages, not a promise for a particular family.
Skidmore College lists a published cost of attendance of $85,270, with average net prices that vary widely across family-income bands. The average net price is $9,932 in the lowest band, $11,454 in the lower-middle band, $15,855 in the middle band, $22,438 in the upper-middle band, and $45,136 in the highest band.
The gap from the lowest to the highest band is $35,204, a difference of averages rather than what any family pays. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth ranks the college #1,250 for affordability.
For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 62% of the published cost, offsetting $52,973 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the average net price is $32,297.
Published tuition and fees are $67,290, and room and board are $17,940. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $27,371; the college’s average net price sits $4,926 above that figure.
Aid lowers the listed price, but the overall average remains above the peer median. Federal borrowing is common at the college, yet borrowers who complete leave with less debt than the peer median.
Median federal student loan debt at completion is $19,500, and 89.1% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. The peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) is $24,199, which puts the college’s figure $4,699 below it.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $60,000. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month if repaid over ten years.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
At Skidmore College, federal debt sits below the peer median, though federal borrowing is widespread. Among completers who borrowed federal loans, median debt at completion was $19,500.
At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median is $24,199, leaving Skidmore's figure $4,699 below it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $60,000.
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported average cumulative borrowing from any source of $27,000 per borrower. That report lists averages of $24,019 for federal borrowers and $39,200 for private borrowers.
Skidmore College pairs lower student borrowing with an investment picture shaped by mixed earnings measures. Four years after completion, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $61,281, which Azimuth places in the 55th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Graduates earn about $19,432 less than expects for similar students. Azimuth places that measure in the 4th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings scenarios range from $47,250 in a downside scenario to $85,884 in an upside scenario, with $61,281 as the typical scenario. Median federal student loan debt of $19,500 is $4,699 below the $24,199 peer median at comparable institutions of the same type and size.
That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month if repaid over ten years. Lower borrowing than peers sits alongside earnings that fall short of the model’s expectation.
For parent borrowers, a separate population from student borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing was $60,000. For student borrowers who completed, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month if repaid over ten years.
Repayment figures are in the Financial GPS card below. Borrowing populations and model assumptions.
Parent loans: what can the family afford?
How Parent PLUS borrowing affects families
- Median Parent PLUS debt
- $60,000
- Estimated parent payment
- $762/mo
| Household income | Share of income above basic expenses | Risk level |
|---|---|---|
| $35,000 | No room | High pressure |
| $50,000 | No room | High pressure |
| $75,000 | 44.9% | High pressure |
| $100,000 | 20.2% | High pressure |
| $150,000 | 9.6% | Caution |
| $200,000 | 6.3% | Caution |
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. Read the assumptions and limits.
Student and parent loans: the monthly payments
Financial GPS
What does repayment look like?
- Institution median student debt
- $19,500
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $60,000
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $222/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $762/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $984/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 $61,281, with a $23,940 annual allowance for basic expenses:
7.1% of income above the allowance · Excellent
- Excellent Under 8% · selected scenario
- Good 8–under 12%
- Concerning 12–20%
- 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.
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.
Data & methodology
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.
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.
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.