by our College Data Analytics TeamThis guide covers the real cost of attending Claremont McKenna College, from the published cost of attendance and projected degree cost through to net price, median student debt at graduation, default outcomes, and how aid varies by family income.
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The cost of attendance at Claremont McKenna College amounts to about $82,127.00 per year.
The three scenarios below move from the full sticker price, to the net price after average aid, to the net price low-income students typically pay.
| Tuition and fees | $67,980.00 |
| + Room, board & other expenses | $14,147.00 |
| Total cost | $82,127.00 |
| That is 150% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $82,127.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$57,651.00 |
| Net price | $24,476.00 |
| That is 25% below the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $82,127.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$71,192.00 |
| Net price | $10,935.00 |
| That is 67% below the national average net price. | |
| Go deeper on the components with the tuition & fees page and living costs. |
Cost of attendance here has been rising at a recent average of 5.4% a year, so a full degree will cost more than a single year — the tables below carry that forward. The tables below project the cost forward across a full degree, side by side for a low-income student with aid, a typical student with average aid, and a student paying full sticker price with no aid. The repayment figures use a ten-year loan at 6.8%.
| Projected 4-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.4% |
| Freshman year | $11,522.00 | $25,790.00 | $86,537.00 |
| Senior year | $13,480.00 | $30,172.00 | $101,239.00 |
| Total 4-year net price | $49,936.00 | $111,772.00 | $375,040.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $19,024.00 | $42,581.00 | $142,877.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $575.00 | $1,286.00 | $4,316.00 |
| Total amount paid | $68,959.00 | $154,353.00 | $517,917.00 |
| Projected 2-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.4% |
| Freshman year | $11,522.00 | $25,790.00 | $86,537.00 |
| Senior year | $12,141.00 | $27,175.00 | $91,184.00 |
| Total 2-year net price | $23,663.00 | $52,965.00 | $177,721.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $9,015.00 | $20,178.00 | $67,705.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $272.00 | $610.00 | $2,045.00 |
| Total amount paid | $32,678.00 | $73,143.00 | $245,426.00 |
Read more in the net price section below.
The net price is the real out-of-pocket cost — what families pay after grant and scholarship aid is applied. For most families it is a more realistic figure than the published cost.
| Average net price (on-campus) | $28,849.00 |
| Average net price (off-campus) | $27,384.00 |
Net price is not the same for every family — it falls as financial need rises and grant aid increases. The breakdown below splits average net price across income brackets:
| Family income | Average net price |
|---|---|
| Under $30,000 | $13,267.00 |
| $30,000 to $48,000 | $13,756.00 |
| $48,001 to $75,000 | $14,929.00 |
| $75,001 to $110,000 | $22,145.00 |
| Over $110,000 | $49,293.00 |
Run your own numbers with the Claremont McKenna College Net Price Calculator, or visit the financial aid office.
For the grant-and-scholarship detail behind these figures, see the financial aid page.
The median graduating debt at Claremont McKenna College stands at $11,948.00, which the Department of Education classifies as a Low ($10-20k) burden tier.
The full distribution of debt at graduation looks like this:
| Percentile | Debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| 10th | $3,750.00 |
| 25th | $5,500.00 |
| Median (50th) | $11,948.00 |
| 75th | $19,827.00 |
| 90th | $26,198.00 |
The gap between 10th and 90th percentile borrowers gives a sense of how uneven debt outcomes are.
Explore borrowing, repayment, and default in detail on the student loan debt detail.
Student debt at graduation is not evenly distributed across income levels. The table below divides borrowers into three income tiers:
| Family income | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,500.00 |
| Middle income | $11,500.00 |
| High income | $11,948.00 |
Low-income borrowers graduate with $1,552.00 more than graduates from high-income families.
First-gen students typically face different financial-aid contexts than students whose parents attended college.
| Student group | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $10,987.00 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000.00 |
Pell Grant eligibility is a useful proxy for low-income status among undergraduates. Contrasting Pell and non-Pell borrowers shows how need shapes debt.
The Pell vs non-Pell debt gap at Claremont McKenna College stands at $-1,719.00.
The default-rate classification at Claremont McKenna College is Low (<5%).
| Window | Cohort default rate |
|---|---|
| 2-year | 2.3% |
For scale, federal Stafford loan disbursements at Claremont McKenna College add up to $10,464,677.00 over 1,018 disbursements.
Veterans and current servicemembers may be eligible for major federal education benefits including the GI Bill and Tuition Assistance from the Department of Defense.
| GI Bill recipients | 3 |
| Avg GI Bill amount | $27,120.00 |
Read more about military and veteran aid on the college veterans page.
The data above is a foundation; round it out by asking yourself about Claremont McKenna College, consider the following:
Use the pages below to go deeper on a specific part of the cost story:
Data sources. Figures on this page draw from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), and MediaFactual editorial review. Net-price calculator and financial-aid office links are taken from the institution’s own published data.