Cost & financial aid brief
University of Central Florida Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does UCF cost after financial aid?
The average net price moves from $5,816 for families earning under $30,000 to $17,681 for those earning over $110,000, a spread of $11,865 between the two ends. Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.
The middle bands sit at $7,174, $10,128, and $14,902, showing a pattern of lower average net prices at lower incomes.
The University of Central Florida publishes a cost of attendance of $23,133. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $5,816.
In the $48,001–$75,000 band, the average net price is $10,128, and for families earning over $110,000 it is $17,681. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $11,865.
Azimuth ranks the university #116 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an offset of roughly $12,722.
The average net price across all aid recipients is $10,411. Among comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $15,634, which places the university below by $5,223.
The median federal student debt at completion is $18,190, with about 69.8% of federal aid recipients borrowing. The peer median debt is $20,076, so the university's figure is below by $1,886.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing stands at $16,036. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $207 a month if repaid over ten years.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
That figure sits below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,886. Among federal aid recipients, 69.8% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.
Parent borrowers, a separate population, carry a median Parent PLUS loan of $16,036. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 30% of the 6,672 bachelor's graduates who started as first-time students borrowed from any source, averaging $21,003 per borrower.
Of those graduates, 30% held federal loans averaging $18,019, including 4% with private loans averaging $25,394.
Four years after completing a degree at the University of Central Florida, graduates earn a median of $61,355, a figure that sits in the 55th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That median is below the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Graduates earn about $7,712 less than expects for similar students, an outcome in the 26th percentile nationally. Earnings scenarios derived from the university's program mix point to a typical earnings level of $61,355, with a downside scenario of $48,746 and an upside scenario of $89,772.
Borrowers finish with a median federal student debt of $18,190, which is below the $20,076 median for comparable institutions. The estimated monthly payment if repaid over ten years is $207.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $16,036. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $207.
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
- $16,036
- Estimated parent payment
- $204/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 | 12.0% | High pressure |
| $100,000 | 5.4% | Safe |
| $150,000 | 2.6% | Safe |
| $200,000 | 1.7% | 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. Read the assumptions and limits.
Student and parent loans: the monthly payments
Financial GPS
What does repayment look like?
- Institution median student debt
- $18,190
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $16,036
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $207/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $204/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $411/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 $61,355, with a $23,940 annual allowance for basic expenses:
6.6% 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.