by our College Data Analytics TeamHere is what you can expect to pay at Yale University, 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.
Use the section links below to navigate this overview:
The cost of attendance at Yale University is about $85,120.00 a year.
Below, the published cost is shown three ways — the full sticker price with no aid, the net price after the average grant package, and the net price for low-income students who typically receive the most aid.
| Tuition and fees | $67,250.00 |
| + Room, board & other expenses | $17,870.00 |
| Total cost | $85,120.00 |
| That is 160% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $85,120.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$64,523.00 |
| Net price | $20,597.00 |
| That is 37% below the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $85,120.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$70,667.00 |
| Net price | $14,453.00 |
| That is 56% below the national average net price. | |
| For the full breakdown, see the tuition & fees page and living costs. |
The reported cost series has been increasing by around 3.9% per year, so the four-year total runs well above today’s cost. The projections below run a full degree for a low-income aided student, an average-aid student, and the full sticker price. Loan math assumes ten-year repayment at 6.8% interest.
| Projected 4-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 3.9% | 3.9% | 3.9% |
| Freshman year | $15,017.00 | $21,401.00 | $88,444.00 |
| Senior year | $16,846.00 | $24,007.00 | $99,213.00 |
| Total 4-year net price | $63,680.00 | $90,750.00 | $375,038.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $24,260.00 | $34,573.00 | $142,876.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $733.00 | $1,044.00 | $4,316.00 |
| Total amount paid | $87,940.00 | $125,323.00 | $517,915.00 |
| Projected 2-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 3.9% | 3.9% | 3.9% |
| Freshman year | $15,017.00 | $21,401.00 | $88,444.00 |
| Senior year | $15,604.00 | $22,237.00 | $91,897.00 |
| Total 2-year net price | $30,621.00 | $43,638.00 | $180,340.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $11,665.00 | $16,625.00 | $68,703.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $352.00 | $502.00 | $2,075.00 |
| Total amount paid | $42,286.00 | $60,263.00 | $249,044.00 |
For the complete net-price picture, see 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) | $23,777.00 |
| Average net price (off-campus) | $27,818.00 |
Net price varies sharply by family income, dropping as need-based aid grows. The breakdown below splits average net price across income brackets:
| Family income | Average net price |
|---|---|
| Under $30,000 | $28,132.00 |
| $30,000 to $48,000 | $19,744.00 |
| $48,001 to $75,000 | $20,900.00 |
| $75,001 to $110,000 | $17,004.00 |
| Over $110,000 | $49,347.00 |
Use Yale University 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 Yale University works out to $11,648.00, 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 | $3,984.00 |
| 25th | $6,500.00 |
| Median (50th) | $11,648.00 |
| 75th | $19,500.00 |
| 90th | $26,959.00 |
The distance from the 10th to the 90th percentile shows how widely debt outcomes vary.
Dig deeper into debt on the student loan debt page.
Family income tracks closely with debt at graduation. The breakdown below segments borrowers by family income at entry:
| Family income | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| Low income | $8,294.00 |
| Middle income | $7,500.00 |
| High income | $12,000.00 |
First-generation college students often carry different debt loads than their continuing-generation peers.
| Student group | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,790.00 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,000.00 |
Pell Grants are the largest source of federal need-based aid for undergrads. The Pell vs non-Pell debt gap reveals how borrowing differs by need.
The Pell vs non-Pell debt gap at Yale University works out to $-3,947.00.
The Department of Education default-rate tier for Yale University is Low (<5%).
| Window | Cohort default rate |
|---|---|
| 2-year | 1.0% |
For scale, federal Stafford loan disbursements at Yale University come to $512,862,445.00 across 16,039 student borrowers.
Veterans and active-duty students can access dedicated federal education aid including the GI Bill and Department of Defense tuition support.
| GI Bill recipients | 109 |
| Avg GI Bill amount | $37,174.00 |
Dig into veteran education benefits on the college veterans page.
Beyond the data above, it helps to ask a few questions when weighing Yale University, think through the questions below:
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.