Cost & financial aid brief
University of Notre Dame Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does Notre Dame cost after financial aid?
The average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—is $26,780. Aid covers about 68% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, a reduction of $56,491 against the sticker price.
The pattern across income bands is steep. The lowest band averages $7,244, while the highest averages $45,321, a spread of $38,077 between the two ends.
The middle bands sit at $7,254, $11,432, and $18,670. Aid is concentrated among lower-income families, with the two lowest bands paying nearly the same amount after grants and scholarships.
The spread between the lowest and highest bands is wide, and the cost after aid is substantially higher in the upper half of the income scale.
The published cost of attendance at the University of Notre Dame is $83,271, with tuition and fees of $65,025 and room and board at $17,900. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—is $7,244, and for families in the $48,001–$75,000 band it is $11,432.
At the top of the income scale, families earning over $110,000 face an average net price of $45,321, a spread of $38,077 between the lowest and highest bands. Azimuth ranks the university #950 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Aid covers about 68% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an offset of $56,491 against the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $26,780, which sits below the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $591.
While the net price for lower-income families is modest relative to the sticker, the overall average lands slightly above the peer benchmark. Median federal student debt at completion is $19,000, with about 84.9% of federal aid recipients taking federal loans.
That figure is below the peer median of $24,199 by $5,199. For a graduate at the median four-year earnings of $100,684, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $216 a month if repaid over ten years.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing stands at $40,731.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
Federal-loan borrowers who complete at University of Notre Dame carry median federal student loan debt of $19,000 at completion. That figure is $5,199 below the $24,199 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $40,731. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 32% of graduates borrowed from any source, with average cumulative borrowing of $27,861 per borrower.
Those figures included 30% of graduates with federal loans averaging $17,617. Private loans were held by 17% of graduates and averaged $21,473 per private borrower.
Graduates of the University of Notre Dame earn a median of $100,684 four years after completion, a figure in the 97th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That median is above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $32,434.
However, graduates earn about $10,882 less than expects for similar students, an outcome that falls in the 17th percentile nationally. Earnings scenarios derived from the university's program mix suggest a downside of $62,760 and an upside of $141,263.
For borrowers, the median federal student debt at completion is $19,000, which is below the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $216 a month if repaid over ten years.
High absolute earnings and below-average debt point to a strong return, but the modeled gap between actual and expected earnings pulls the other way. The earnings are high in absolute terms, yet they fall short of what the model predicts for students with similar characteristics.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $40,731. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $216.
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
- $40,731
- Estimated parent payment
- $518/mo
| Income | Risk level |
|---|---|
| $35,000 | High pressure |
| $50,000 | High pressure |
| $75,000 | High pressure |
| $100,000 | High pressure |
| $150,000 | Caution |
| $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
- $19,000
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $40,731
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $216/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $518/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $734/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 $100,684, with a $22,590 annual allowance for basic expenses:
3.3% 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, $22,590, uses the published framework’s 2024 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.