College Payment Plan Calculator

See whether enrolling in your school's payment plan beats writing one lump-sum check, given the interest your money would earn sitting in savings.

① Financial Details

Total amount on payment plan ($) Tuition you'll split across payments

Savings account APY (%) Interest rate on your savings

Bill due date (if you DON'T use a plan) When you'd write the lump-sum check

Payment plan fee ($) One-time fee per semester to enroll

② Plans Your School Offers

Enter the first payment date for each plan your school offers. Use the Clear button to remove any plan that isn't available.

5-Payment Plan Date of the first draft

4-Payment Plan Date of the first draft

3-Payment Plan Date of the first draft

★ Recommendation

③ Comparison Window

Window start
Window end
Total days compared

Window runs from the earlier of (first plan payment, bill due date) through the last payment date. All scenarios are measured over this same span.

④ Monthly Savings Balance

Interval	Days	5-Pay	4-Pay	3-Pay

Each row shows what's still in your savings during that month after any payment drafted at the start. A "Lead-in" row appears if your lump-sum bill is due before plan payments start.

⑤ Results

	Lump Sum	5-Pay	4-Pay	3-Pay
Interest earned
Payment plan fee
Net after fee
Advantage vs. lump sum	—