by our College Data Analytics TeamHere is what you can expect to pay at Ohio State University-Main Campus, covering the cost range, projected degree costs, net price, debt at graduation, default rates, and aid distribution patterns.
Use the section links below to navigate this overview:
The full cost of attending Ohio State University-Main Campus came in between $29,320.00 and $56,098.00 depending on whether you qualify for in-state rates.
Residency made the difference: in-state students paid the lower rate and out-of-state students the higher rate: about $29,320.00 for in-state students versus $56,098.00 out-of-state.
The blocks below show what you would pay with no aid, with average aid, and as a low-income student.
| Tuition and fees | $13,244.00 |
| + Room, board & other expenses | $16,076.00 |
| Total cost | $29,320.00 |
| That is 52% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $29,320.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$12,966.00 |
| Net price | $16,354.00 |
| That is 15% below the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $29,320.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$25,420.00 |
| Net price | $3,900.00 |
| That is 80% below the national average net price. |
| Tuition and fees | $40,022.00 |
| + Room, board & other expenses | $16,076.00 |
| Total cost | $56,098.00 |
| That is 191% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $56,098.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$12,966.00 |
| Net price | $43,132.00 |
| That is 124% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $56,098.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$25,420.00 |
| Net price | $30,678.00 |
| That is 59% above the national average net price. | |
| Explore each piece on the tuition & fees page and room and board. |
Published costs have climbed year over year at a recent average of 4.6% per year; the projections below compound that across a degree. 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. Loan figures amortise the projected total over ten years at 6.8%.
| Projected 4-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 4.6% | 4.6% | 4.6% |
| Freshman year | $4,078.00 | $17,098.00 | $30,655.00 |
| Senior year | $4,660.00 | $19,541.00 | $35,034.00 |
| Total 4-year net price | $17,458.00 | $73,207.00 | $131,248.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $6,651.00 | $27,889.00 | $50,001.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $201.00 | $842.00 | $1,510.00 |
| Total amount paid | $24,109.00 | $101,096.00 | $181,249.00 |
| Projected 2-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 4.6% | 4.6% | 4.6% |
| Freshman year | $4,078.00 | $17,098.00 | $30,655.00 |
| Senior year | $4,263.00 | $17,877.00 | $32,050.00 |
| Total 2-year net price | $8,341.00 | $34,975.00 | $62,705.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $3,177.00 | $13,324.00 | $23,888.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $96.00 | $402.00 | $722.00 |
| Total amount paid | $11,518.00 | $48,300.00 | $86,593.00 |
| Projected 4-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 4.6% | 4.6% | 4.6% |
| Freshman year | $32,074.00 | $45,095.00 | $58,652.00 |
| Senior year | $36,657.00 | $51,538.00 | $67,031.00 |
| Total 4-year net price | $137,327.00 | $193,076.00 | $251,117.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $52,317.00 | $73,555.00 | $95,667.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $1,580.00 | $2,222.00 | $2,890.00 |
| Total amount paid | $189,644.00 | $266,632.00 | $346,784.00 |
| Projected 2-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 4.6% | 4.6% | 4.6% |
| Freshman year | $32,074.00 | $45,095.00 | $58,652.00 |
| Senior year | $33,535.00 | $47,148.00 | $61,322.00 |
| Total 2-year net price | $65,609.00 | $92,244.00 | $119,973.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $24,995.00 | $35,141.00 | $45,705.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $755.00 | $1,062.00 | $1,381.00 |
| Total amount paid | $90,604.00 | $127,385.00 | $165,679.00 |
Read more in the net-price section.
Net price strips out grant and scholarship aid to show what families really pay. It is usually a better planning number than the sticker cost above.
| Average net price (on-campus) | $17,339.00 |
| Average net price (off-campus) | $18,292.00 |
The real cost varies by income because need-based aid scales with financial need. The breakdown below splits average net price across income brackets:
| Family income | Average net price |
|---|---|
| Under $30,000 | $6,259.00 |
| $30,000 to $48,000 | $7,104.00 |
| $48,001 to $75,000 | $12,683.00 |
| $75,001 to $110,000 | $22,870.00 |
| Over $110,000 | $27,144.00 |
Run your own numbers with the Ohio State University-Main Campus Net Price Calculator, or reach out to the financial aid office.
Curious how grants and scholarships are distributed? Explore the grants & scholarships detail.
Median graduate debt at Ohio State University-Main Campus works out to $14,500.00, categorized as a Low ($10-20k) burden category.
The percentile breakdown reveals the full debt landscape:
| Percentile | Debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| 10th | $3,500.00 |
| 25th | $6,500.00 |
| Median (50th) | $14,500.00 |
| 75th | $26,350.00 |
| 90th | $31,700.00 |
The gap between 10th and 90th percentile borrowers gives a sense of how uneven debt outcomes are.
Read the complete debt breakdown on the student loan debt page.
Debt at graduation is far from uniform across income levels. The figures below split graduating borrowers into three income brackets:
| Family income | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| Low income | $12,643.00 |
| Middle income | $13,000.00 |
| High income | $15,984.00 |
Whether your parents attended college is associated with differences in median debt at graduation.
| Student group | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $14,000.00 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,250.00 |
The default-rate classification at Ohio State University-Main Campus is Low (<5%).
| Window | Cohort default rate |
|---|---|
| 2-year | 4.9% |
For a sense of scale, Stafford disbursements at Ohio State University-Main Campus add up to $4,039,733,772.00 spread across 157,401 student borrowers.
Veteran and active-military students often access dedicated federal aid programs such as the Post-9/11 GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance.
| GI Bill recipients | 874 |
| Avg GI Bill amount | $12,892.00 |
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 51 |
| Avg DoD Tuition Assistance | $3,390.00 |
Explore GI Bill and military aid in detail on the college veterans page.
Use the figures above as a launch point, then think through Ohio State University-Main Campus, consider the following:
Dig further into the cost picture with the related pages below:
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.