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Parent PLUS Loan Calculator: How Much of the College Gap Can It Cover in 2026-27?

How much can parents borrow with a Parent PLUS loan in 2026-27?

From 1 July 2026, parents can borrow up to $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total per dependent student, counting all parents together and earlier PLUS loans, and never more than the cost of attendance minus other aid. The 2026-27 rate is 9.07% fixed, with a 4.228% fee taken from each payout.

Before July 2026 Parent PLUS could cover the whole cost of attendance minus aid. Now a family facing a $40,000 net price with a $5,500 student loan can be left with a gap even after borrowing the full $20,000, and the fee means the school receives only $19,154.40 of it.

Type one college's aid offer to see the net price, what the student's loan covers, how much Parent PLUS can add, what is still uncovered and the monthly payment.

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Built by Muhammad Shahzeb Anwar, MSc Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Federal rules for loans first disbursed from 1 July 2026; checked against the statute, the regulations and the Department of Education's announcements.

The calculator

Work out the gap

Runs in your browser. Nothing you type is stored or sent anywhere.

The student

If a parent is denied PLUS, the student can borrow the higher independent amounts.
Counts toward the $65,000 limit, including loans before 1 July 2026.
Sets the repayment term together with the new loan.

The aid offer (one year)

The full yearly budget on the offer: tuition, fees, housing, food, books, transport.
Money you don't pay back.

The Parent PLUS limits from 1 July 2026

Public Law 119-21 (section 81001) added two new limits to Parent PLUS. The total that all parents can borrow for one dependent student is $20,000 per academic year, and $65,000 in total, "without regard to any amounts repaid, forgiven, canceled, or otherwise discharged". The final rule (Federal Register, 1 May 2026) counts PLUS borrowed before 1 July 2026 toward the $65,000. The older limit still applies on top: no federal loan can exceed the cost of attendance minus the student's other financial aid (34 CFR 685.203(j)).

There is an interim exception. A student who on 30 June 2026 was enrolled in a program and had already received a federal loan for it keeps the old limits for that program for up to three academic years, or the rest of the program if shorter. Only the school's aid office can confirm whether it applies. Graduate PLUS ended for new graduate borrowers on the same date.

Worked example: a $68,000 private college

Cost of attendance $68,000, grants and scholarships $28,000, work-study $2,500, family money $8,000, first-year dependent student.

  • Net price: $68,000 - $28,000 = $40,000.
  • Student's Direct Loan: $5,500 (the first-year dependent limit). The 1.057% fee is $58.13, so the school receives $5,441.87.
  • Gap before Parent PLUS: $40,000 - $5,441.87 - $2,500 - $8,000 = $24,058.13.
  • To cover that after the 4.228% fee the parent would need $25,121, but the yearly limit is $20,000. The fee on $20,000 is $845.60, so the school receives $19,154.40.
  • Still uncovered: $24,058.13 - $19,154.40 = $4,903.73 this year.
  • Repayment: $20,000 owed is under $25,000, so the term is 10 years: about $254.11 a month at 9.07%, if nothing else is owed and repayment starts at once.

How repayment works for new Parent PLUS loans

Loans made from 1 July 2026 are repaid on the Tiered Standard plan (HEA section 455(d)(7)), a fixed monthly payment over a term set by the total the borrower owes in federal student loans when repayment starts: under $25,000, 10 years; $25,000 to under $50,000, 15 years; $50,000 to under $100,000, 20 years; $100,000 or more, 25 years. New Parent PLUS loans cannot use the new income-based plan (RAP), which is for student borrowers. Repayment starts once each loan is fully paid out, but the parent can ask to defer while the student is enrolled at least half time and for six months after; interest builds during that time (34 CFR 685.204).

Mistakes that make the gap look smaller than it is

  • Counting loans as aid. The "net price" on many offers subtracts loans. Net price is cost minus grants and scholarships only.
  • Forgetting the fee. A $20,000 Parent PLUS puts $19,154.40 on the bill. The student's $5,500 loan puts $5,441.87.
  • Planning one year. Costs usually rise each year and the $65,000 total runs out in year four if the family borrows $20,000 a year.
  • Ignoring earlier borrowing. PLUS taken before July 2026 for the same student counts toward the $65,000, and every federal loan the parent owes lengthens the repayment term.
Before you rely on this

What this will not tell you

This is an estimate for one college and one year at the 2026-27 rates. It does not decide eligibility (credit check, enrollment, the interim exception), cover private loans, state aid or the FAFSA formula, model RAP or forgiveness, or add the interest that builds during deferment. Part-time students get prorated Direct Loans from 1 July 2026, which this lite version does not apply. Your school's aid office has the final numbers. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

Questions

Questions people actually ask

What is the Parent PLUS loan limit for 2026-27?

For loans from 1 July 2026: $20,000 per academic year and $65,000 in total per dependent student, for all parents combined, and no more than the cost of attendance minus other aid.

Is the $65,000 Parent PLUS limit per parent or per student?

Per dependent student. The law caps what all parents together can borrow on behalf of that student, and earlier PLUS borrowing for the student counts toward it.

What is the Parent PLUS interest rate for 2026-27?

9.07% fixed for Parent PLUS loans first disbursed from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. The undergraduate Direct Loan rate is 6.52%.

How much is the Parent PLUS loan fee?

4.228% of the loan, taken out of each disbursement, for loans first disbursed before 1 October 2027. The Direct Loan fee for students is 1.057%.

Can Parent PLUS loans use income-driven repayment after July 2026?

New Parent PLUS loans made from 1 July 2026 must be repaid on the Tiered Standard plan. The Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) is not available for them.

What happens if a parent is denied a PLUS loan?

The dependent student can borrow the higher Direct Loan amounts that independent students get: $9,500 in the first year, $10,500 in the second and $12,500 after that.

How long do you have to repay a Parent PLUS loan?

On the Tiered Standard plan, 10 to 25 years depending on the total federal student loans the parent owes when repayment starts: 10 years under $25,000, up to 25 years at $100,000 or more.

Where every rule comes from

Sources

Checked against the statute, the federal regulations and the Department of Education's announcements on 2 November 2026. If a source below has moved on, the source wins over this page.

  1. Public Law 119-21, sections 81001 and 82001 (loan limits, Parent PLUS limits, Tiered Standard plan): https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-119publ21/html/PLAW-119publ21.htm
  2. Federal Register, 1 May 2026: final rule on loan limits: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-05-01/html/2026-08556.htm
  3. 34 CFR 685.203: loan limits: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/part-685/section-685.203
  4. 34 CFR 685.208: repayment plans: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/part-685/section-685.208
  5. 34 CFR 685.204: deferment: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-34/part-685/section-685.204
  6. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-26-33: 2026-27 interest rates: https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/electronic-announcements/2026-06-04/interest-rates-federal-direct-loans-first-disbursed-between-july-1-2026-and-june-30-2027
  7. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-26-28: loan fees: https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/electronic-announcements/2026-05-13/fy27-sequester-required-changes-title-iv-student-aid-programs
  8. Federal Student Aid: Direct PLUS Loans for parents: https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/loans/plus/parent
Citation

Cite this tool

Free to use and free to quote. If a figure here is useful in something you are writing, a link back is all that is asked.

Muhammad Shahzeb Anwar, MSc Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Parent PLUS Loan Calculator 2026-27. Shahzeb Speaks. https://www.shahzebspeaks.com/parent-plus-loan-calculator/

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Comparing more than one aid offer?

The College Net Price + Parent PLUS Gap Planner does this for up to 4 colleges and 4 years: rising costs, the $65,000 running total, yearly loan limits by year in school, part-time proration, interest while payments are deferred and the student's own payment range. Excel workbook, offline browser tool and a PDF guide.

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