EFC (Expected Family Contribution) is the amount of money a family is expected to contribute for a year's worth of college education. It is based on information from the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). It factors in income, family size, and assets.
The gap between EFC and the cost of attending college is called financial need. Colleges cover financial need with financial aid -- loans, scholarships/grants and work-study.
This calculator determines EFC, then estimates what it will be when the student starts college. It then calculates the percentage of income that needs to be saved to come up with the EFC.
Start with your estimated EFC. You can then adjust income growth, college savings and college savings growth, and one-time contributions to see how this affects needed savings.
Based on your income, assets and future contributions, your student's future EFC will be fully funded by the time he or she starts college.
If there is any change in your financial circumstances, repeat the calculation to see if you will need to save some of your income.
Your current EFC is zero.
This means that at the present time colleges will attempt to cover the entirety of your cost of attendance with a combination of loans, grants/scholarships and work-study.
However, if your income and/or assets increase sufficiently, you may end up with enough income or assets by the time your student starts college that your EFC would be above zero, therefore requiring you to contribute to your student's college education.
Father's Income
Mother's Income
Total Untaxed Income and Benefits
Total Additional Financial Information
U.S. Income Tax Paid in 2019
State of Residence AL - AlabamaAK - AlaskaAS - American SamoaAZ - ArizonaAR - ArkansasCA - CaliforniaCO - ColoradoCT - ConnecticutDE - DelawareDC - District Of ColumbiaFM - Federated States of MicronesiaFL - FloridaGA - GeorgiaGU - GuamHI - HawaiiID - IdahoIL - IllinoisIN - IndianaIA - IowaKS - KansasKY - KentuckyLA - LouisianaME - MaineMH - Marshall IslandsMD - MarylandMA - MassachusettsMI - MichiganMN - MinnesotaMS - MississippiMO - MissouriMT - MontanaNE - NebraskaNV - NevadaNH - New HampshireNJ - New JerseyNM - New MexicoNY - New YorkNC - North CarolinaND - North DakotaMP - Northern Mariana IslandsOH - OhioOK - OklahomaOR - OregonPW - PalauPA - PennsylvaniaPR - Puerto RicoRI - Rhode IslandSC - South CarolinaSD - South DakotaTN - TennesseeTX - TexasUT - UtahVT - VermontVI - Virgin IslandsVA - VirginiaWA - WashingtonWV - West VirginiaWI - WisconsinWY - Wyoming
Number in Parents` Household (Including College Students)
Number of College Students in Parents` Household
Two Parent Family
Cash In Savings and Checking
Net Worth of Investments
Net Worth of Business and/or Investment Farm
Age of Oldest Parent
