Student Loan Plans Repayment Comparison

Student Loan Plans is a self-serve comparison tool for federal student loan repayment strategies. You enter your own loan details and get a side-by-side breakdown of every repayment plan you actually qualify for, showing monthly payment ranges, total repayment time, and total amount paid. The tool was developed in partnership with The Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a nonprofit focused on student loan counseling. There's no advisory upsell, no refinancing pitch, and no affiliate links to loan products, just a calculator built to help you understand the federal options available to you.

The tool covers the federal loan types you'd likely encounter: Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans, Direct and FFEL Consolidation loans, FFEL and Direct PLUS loans (both graduate and parent versions), Federal Perkins loans, and private loans. You specify which type you have (or choose "I don't know" if you're uncertain), then enter your current balance, interest rate, and total payments you've already made. You can also add additional loans to the comparison, so if you're carrying multiple federal loans at different rates, you can run the numbers on your full portfolio at once.

The calculator shows you all eligible repayment plans for your situation. The Standard Fixed plan is the baseline: a fixed monthly payment of at least $50 that pays off the loan in 10 years. For a $20,000 loan at 6% interest, that works out to $222 per month with a total repayment of $26,600. The Graduated plan starts lower and increases every 2 years, making it useful if you expect your income to rise. That same $20k loan shows a range of $127 to $381 per month, still paid off in 10 years, with total repayment of $28,400.

The tool also displays Standard Tiered repayment (introduced July 1, 2026), which ties your repayment term to your total debt: less than $25,000 gets a 10-year term, $25,000 up to $50,000 gets 15 years, $50,000 up to $100,000 gets 20 years, and $100,000 or more gets 25 years. Monthly payments are fixed but increase over time, similar to Graduated, with payments capped at 3 times the smallest payment.

The Income-Driven plans form the heart of the tool's value. These calculate your payment as a percentage of your discretionary income (your adjusted gross income minus 150% of the Federal Poverty Guideline for your household size). Income Based Repayment (IBR) caps your payment at 15% of discretionary income for up to 25 years. On the $20k example, depending on your income, you might pay $76 to $154 per month for 25 years, totaling $33,200. New IBR (introduced after 2014) drops that to 10% of discretionary income for 20 years. Pay As You Earn (PAYE) works similarly at 10% of discretionary income for 20 years. Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) uses 20% of discretionary income or a 12-year standard payment, whichever is less, over up to 25 years. The newest option, Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), bases payments on adjusted gross income over 30 years and guarantees your principal drops by at least $50 monthly.

Each plan shows eligibility requirements. Parent PLUS loans, for example, cannot use most Income-Driven plans unless they're consolidated into a Direct Consolidation loan first. Loans from the FFEL program have different eligibility than Direct loans. Some plans are only available if you borrowed after a certain date or if you meet a "partial financial hardship" test. The tool is explicit about these gates, so you won't waste time on a plan you don't qualify for.

The calculator also prompts you about Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) and whether you borrowed or consolidated after July 1, 2026, which affects which plans are available. PSLF eligibility matters because some Income-Driven plans pair with forgiveness programs, if you work in public service and make qualifying payments for 10 years, your remaining balance may be forgiven. The tool doesn't calculate PSLF eligibility itself, but it flags whether PSLF is relevant to your situation.

There's no cost to use the tool. It runs in your browser with no sign-up, no ads, and no data capture. You can save your loan information locally if you want to run different scenarios, and the app promises secure storage so you don't re-enter everything each time. The interface shows the results clearly, with the most relevant plans surfaced based on your specific debt and income situation.

The major limitation is that the tool only compares federal plans. If you're carrying private student loans, the calculator won't help there, private lenders set their own repayment terms and don't offer income-driven options. The tool assumes you want to understand the federal system first, which is reasonable because federal plans offer more flexibility and forgiveness options than private loans do.

Another limitation: the calculator shows you what each plan costs and what the repayment timeline looks like, but it doesn't model loan forgiveness tax liability. When a loan balance is forgiven (as happens after 20 to 25 years on Income-Driven plans, or after 10 years of PSLF), the IRS treats the forgiven amount as taxable income. The tool doesn't calculate that tax bill at all, and it doesn't publish an estimate of what a forgiven balance would cost in taxes. That's a separate number you'll need a tax professional or a dedicated calculator to estimate.

This tool suits anyone with federal student loans trying to choose a repayment path. If you're just out of school and earning entry-level income, Income-Driven plans likely show lower payments than Standard repayment. If you're earning well and want to pay faster, Standard or Graduated plans will show the shortest timelines. If you're in public service or nonprofit work, PSLF changes everything, the tool flags that immediately. Teachers, healthcare workers, government employees, and nonprofit staff should absolutely run their numbers here before deciding to refinance out of federal loans.

The partnership with the Institute of Student Loan Advisors lends credibility. This isn't a loan company trying to steer you toward refinancing; it's a nonprofit tool designed to help you see the actual mechanics of your federal options. The interface is straightforward, the math is transparent, and the results are actionable.

What makes it valuable is that most people never run these numbers, they just pick a plan by default or on a lender's recommendation. Default plans don't account for income changes or life circumstances, and they're often far from optimal. Someone with a lower income relative to their balance might pay far less by switching to an Income-Driven plan, but they won't know unless they run the comparison themselves. This tool removes that blind spot. You can experiment with different income scenarios, consolidation strategies, and plan choices all in one place, seeing the real financial impact of each decision before committing to it.

The tool also makes it clear which plans you don't qualify for, which is as useful as showing you the ones you do. If you have FFEL loans and want to explore PAYE, you'll see that consolidation is required. If you're a parent borrowing Parent PLUS loans, you'll see that most Income-Driven plans are off limits. That clarity prevents wasted research into solutions that won't work for your situation. This tool puts that decision in your hands with complete information.