Cost & financial aid brief
Wake Forest University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does Wake Forest University cost after financial aid?
Aid covers about 67% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. The lower-income bands see the deepest discounts, with average net prices up to $7,647 for families earning up to $75,000, before rising sharply for the highest band.
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that for the 2025-26 academic year, first-year students with need received an average need-based grant of $71,567. Their average total package was $79,381.
The average share of need met for those students was 100%. Of the 320 first-year students determined to have need, 303 had their need fully met.
The university also reported awarding merit aid to 54 students, at an average of $23,168.
The published cost of attendance at Wake Forest University is $87,499. Azimuth ranks the university #1,052 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.
For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $6,525; for those earning $48,001 to $75,000, it is $7,647; and for those earning over $110,000, it is $58,081. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $51,556.
Aid covers about 67% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, bringing the across all bands to $28,719. That figure is $1,348 above the $27,371 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $21,500 in federal student loans, which is $2,699 below the $24,199 peer median. 90.7% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.
Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $30,000. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
Among undergraduates at Wake Forest University, 90.7% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. For borrowers who complete a degree, the median federal student debt is $21,500.
That median is $2,699 below the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $30,000.
Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates of Wake Forest University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $92,943. That figure is in the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, and it runs $24,693 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Graduates earn about $8,836 more than expects for similar students, a result at the 81st percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from a downside of $57,872 to an upside of $131,137.
On the borrowing side, the median federal debt at completion is $21,500, which is $2,699 below the median for comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 a month if repaid over ten years.
Earnings run above both the peer median and the model's expectation, while debt stays below the peer median.
For the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $30,000. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $244 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
- $30,000
- Estimated parent payment
- $381/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 | 22.5% | High pressure |
| $100,000 | 10.1% | High pressure |
| $150,000 | 4.8% | Safe |
| $200,000 | 3.1% | 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
- $21,500
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $30,000
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $244/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $381/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $625/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 $92,943, with a $23,940 annual allowance for basic expenses:
4.2% 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.