Student Loan Repayment Calculator
Education & AcademicEstimate your student loan payment under the Standard 10-year plan, then compare it against real 2026 IBR and RAP income-driven repayment estimates based on your income and household size.
Monthly Payment
Your fixed monthly payment at the repayment term you entered above.
Total Interest Paid
$10,581
Total interest paid over the repayment term you entered above.
Federal Standard Plan (10-Year)
$380
The fixed federal Standard Repayment Plan payment, always calculated over 10 years regardless of the term entered above.
IBR (Income-Based Repayment) Estimate
$176
Estimated IBR payment: 10% (or 15% for pre-2014 borrowers) of income above 150% of the federal poverty guideline, capped at the Standard Plan payment.
RAP (Repayment Assistance Plan) Estimate
$150
Estimated RAP payment: a percentage of AGI based on income bracket, minus $50 per dependent, with a $10/month floor.
Lowest Estimated Monthly Payment
RAP ($150/mo)
Which of the three plans above gives the lowest estimated monthly payment for these numbers.
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Odeh AhwalBased on 5 sources
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Education & Academic calculators
Most student loan calculators only run a flat amortization schedule: enter your balance, rate, and term, get a fixed monthly payment. That works for a private loan, but it misses the real decision most federal borrowers actually face, since federal loans come with income-driven repayment plans that can lower a monthly payment substantially, sometimes to a small fraction of the Standard Plan amount. This calculator estimates all three at once: the Standard 10-year federal payment, an Income-Based Repayment (IBR) estimate using the real 2026 federal poverty guidelines, and an estimate under RAP, the new Repayment Assistance Plan that uses a direct percentage of income rather than the older discretionary-income formula. Enter your loan details plus your income, household size, and dependents, and see which of the three gives the lowest estimated payment for your real numbers.
Standard Plan vs. Income-Driven Repayment
The Standard Plan spreads your balance evenly over 10 years at a fixed payment, the same way a private loan or mortgage amortizes. It pays off the loan fastest and costs the least in total interest, but the monthly payment is fixed regardless of your income.
Income-driven repayment (IDR) plans instead calculate your payment as a percentage of your income, which can make the monthly amount far lower when income is low relative to the loan balance. The tradeoff is a longer repayment period, more total interest paid along the way, and in many cases a portion of the balance forgiven at the end of the term.
- Standard Plan: fixed payment, 10 years, lowest total interest
- IBR (Income-Based Repayment): a percentage of discretionary income, 20 or 25 years depending on when you first borrowed
- RAP (Repayment Assistance Plan): a direct percentage of your full income, the newest federal option, 30 years to forgiveness
How the IBR Estimate Works
IBR payments are 10% of your discretionary income if you first borrowed on or after July 1, 2014, or 15% if you borrowed before that date. Discretionary income is your Annual Gross Income (AGI) minus 150% of the federal poverty guideline for your household size, and the payment is capped so it never exceeds what you would pay on the Standard 10-year plan.
This calculator uses the official 2026 HHS federal poverty guidelines, published January 15, 2026: $15,960 for a household of one in the 48 contiguous states or DC (plus $5,680 per additional household member), $19,950 in Alaska (plus $7,100 per additional member), and $18,360 in Hawaii (plus $6,530 per additional member). Real IDR servicer calculations sometimes reference a guideline from an earlier publication cycle depending on processing timing, so treat this as a disclosed, currently-sourced estimate rather than a guaranteed match to what your loan servicer will calculate. If your loan-to-income ratio is what's driving your plan choice, it is worth checking directly.
How the RAP Estimate Works
RAP, the Repayment Assistance Plan introduced under the 2025 federal reconciliation law, calculates payment differently from older IDR plans: instead of a percentage of discretionary income, it uses a direct percentage of your full AGI, in bands that rise from 1% (AGI $10,001 to $20,000) up to 10% (AGI over $100,000), with a flat $10/month minimum for AGI at or below $10,000.
| Annual Gross Income (AGI) | Monthly Payment Rate |
|---|---|
| $10,000 or less | $10/month flat |
| $10,001 to $20,000 | 1% of AGI |
| $20,001 to $30,000 | 2% of AGI |
| $30,001 to $40,000 | 3% of AGI |
| $40,001 to $50,000 | 4% of AGI |
| $50,001 to $100,000 | 5% to 9% of AGI, rising 1% per $10,000 band |
| Over $100,000 | 10% of AGI |
RAP then subtracts $50 per month for each dependent claimed on your tax return, with a $10/month floor regardless of how many dependents you claim. Unlike IBR, RAP has no separate discretionary-income subtraction step, and forgiveness under RAP takes 360 qualifying monthly payments, 30 years, longer than either version of IBR. Whichever plan ends up lower, comparing that payment against your real take-home pay is the more useful budgeting number than the payment alone.
Plans Not Covered by This Estimate
PAYE, ICR, and the now-expired SAVE plan are real federal repayment plans, but as of the 2025 reconciliation law they are closed to new enrollment; only borrowers already on one of those plans can remain on it until required to transition. Because they are not options for a new enrollment decision, this calculator does not model them, focusing instead on the three plans an eligible borrower can actually choose between today: Standard, IBR, and RAP.
This is also a payment estimate only, not a forgiveness or total-cost projection across the full IDR term, since real IDR forgiveness timing and total balance depend on year-by-year income changes, tax filing status changes, and periodic recertification, none of which can be captured in a single point-in-time formula. If a lower rate rather than a different payment structure is the real goal, a student loan refinance estimate answers a different question than this calculator does.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between IBR and RAP?
IBR calculates your payment as a percentage of discretionary income, AGI minus 150% of the federal poverty guideline for your household. RAP instead uses a direct percentage of your full AGI in income bands, with no discretionary-income subtraction, and reduces the payment by $50 per month for each dependent instead.
Which plan has the lowest payment?
It depends entirely on your income, household size, and loan balance. This calculator's Lowest Estimated Monthly Payment output compares all three directly for your real numbers rather than requiring you to compare three separate tools.
Why does my IBR rate depend on when I first borrowed?
Borrowers who took their first federal loan on or after July 1, 2014 qualify for the newer 10% IBR rate. Borrowers from before that date are on the older 15% rate, a real distinction the federal rules still apply based on origination date, not current loan status.
Is my estimated payment guaranteed to match what my loan servicer calculates?
No. This is a disclosed estimate using the current, officially published 2026 federal poverty guidelines. A real IDR application also depends on documentation, filing status, exact recertification timing, and your specific servicer's processing, any of which can shift the real number slightly.
Why isn't PAYE or ICR included as an option?
Both are real plans, but the 2025 federal reconciliation law closed them to new enrollment, only existing borrowers already on one of those plans can stay on it until a required transition. Since a new borrower cannot actually choose them, this calculator focuses on the three real current options: Standard, IBR, and RAP.
Does household size affect RAP the same way it affects IBR?
No. IBR's discretionary-income formula subtracts 150% of the poverty guideline for your household size before applying its percentage rate, so household size changes the whole calculation. RAP instead uses your full AGI directly and only accounts for household through the flat $50-per-dependent monthly reduction.
What happens after my income-driven repayment term ends?
Under IBR, any remaining balance is forgiven after 20 years (for post-2014 borrowers) or 25 years (for pre-2014 borrowers) of qualifying payments. Under RAP, forgiveness happens after 360 qualifying monthly payments, 30 years. Forgiven amounts may carry separate tax implications depending on current law at the time of forgiveness.
Sources
- Income-Driven Repayment Plans, Federal Student Aid (U.S. Dept. of Education)
- Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan Request, Federal Student Aid (U.S. Dept. of Education)
- Compare Student Loan Repayment Plans With Our Student Loan Calculator, Federal Student Aid (U.S. Dept. of Education)
- Options for repaying your federal student loan, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
- Tips for student loan borrowers, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
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