Cost & financial aid brief
University of California-Irvine Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does UC Irvine cost after financial aid?
Aid covers about 63% of the published cost for the average aid recipient at University of California-Irvine. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that first-year students with need received an average need-based grant of $26,853 in the 2025-26 academic year.
The average need-based package, which can include loans and work, was $30,774. Among the 2,902 first-year students determined to have need, the average share of need met was 86%, and 790 had their need fully met.
The pricing pattern across income bands shows lower average net prices at lower incomes. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $22,423, which points to aid that is targeted rather than spread evenly across all families.
The published cost of attendance at University of California-Irvine is $38,632, with in-state tuition at $15,722 and room and board at $18,991. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $8,123.
For those in the $48,001–$75,000 band, it is $11,642, and for families earning over $110,000, the average net price is $30,546. Azimuth ranks UC Irvine #173 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Financial aid reduces the sticker price by an average of $24,381, bringing the average net price across all aid recipients to $14,251. That figure sits below the peer median of $15,634 for comparable institutions (same type and size), a gap of $1,383.
In-state tuition is $15,722, while out-of-state students face a published tuition of $49,922. The median federal student debt at completion is $15,000.
That median is below the peer median of $20,076 for comparable institutions (same type and size), a difference of $5,076. About 69.3% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing stands at $22,665. If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment on the median federal debt is $170.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
Borrowers who complete at University of California-Irvine carry a median federal debt of $15,000. Federal loans reach 69.3% of federal aid recipients.
This median runs below the $20,076 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $5,076. Parent borrowers represent a separate population; their median Parent PLUS borrowing is $22,665.
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 33% of its 5,386 bachelor's graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $18,162 per borrower. Of those graduates, 31% held federal loans averaging $14,561, including 2% who also held private loans averaging $52,055.
Graduates of University of California-Irvine earn about $18,996 more than expects for similar students. That outcome places in the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Median earnings four years after completion are $74,438, a figure in the 83rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix land at $74,438 in a typical case, $52,759 in a downside case, and $111,987 in an upside case, reflecting the spread of outcomes across fields.
Among completers who used federal loans, the median debt at completion is $15,000, which is below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). The estimated monthly payment is $170.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $22,665. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $170.
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
- $22,665
- Estimated parent payment
- $288/mo
| Income | Risk level |
|---|---|
| $35,000 | High pressure |
| $50,000 | High pressure |
| $75,000 | High pressure |
| $100,000 | Caution |
| $150,000 | Safe |
| $200,000 | Safe |
The model holds the parent balance fixed and varies parent income. Read the assumptions and limits.
Student and parent loans: the monthly payments
Financial GPS
What does repayment look like?
- Institution median student debt
- $15,000
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $22,665
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $170/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $288/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $458/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 $74,438, with a $22,590 annual allowance for basic expenses:
3.9% 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
The income spectrum compares the estimated student payment with the income left after the selected annual expense allowance. Changing the earnings scenario or allowance changes that comparison; parent payments are not included in this calculation.
The earnings choices are planning scenarios, not observed earnings percentiles or predictions of an individual graduate’s pay. The allowance is an adjustable model input, not a verified budget for your household.
Read the result as a comparison under those assumptions, not a guarantee that a payment is affordable.
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.
Federal student and Parent PLUS borrowing figures do not capture all private education loans. A federal balance therefore should not be described as a family’s complete borrowing total.
Annual loan awards in a Common Data Set, when available, answer a different question from accumulated borrower debt. Compare amounts only after identifying the loan type, reporting period and population; annual school-wide awards cannot be added to a median borrower balance.
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.