Income-Driven Repayment Calculator
Your payment is based on what you earn, not what you owe. The part nobody warns you about: on a low income the payment can be less than the interest, so your balance grows. for years - before anything is forgiven. This shows that plainly.
Lowest monthly payment
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- On which plan
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- Highest plan charges
- $0
- Your discretionary income
- $0
- Standard 10-year payment
- $0
- Poverty line for your household
- $0
Where the money goes
Each block is sized by its share, so you can see whether on which plan or highest plan charges is the bigger part without reading a single number.
Move it and watch
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at {v} for what you owe
And what you can change
Why your own figure may differ
Every plan, side by side
The same loans and the same income, under each plan. Watch what happens to the total paid and the amount forgiven.
| Plan | Payment now | Runs for | Total paid | Forgiven |
|---|
Income-driven repayment: real examples
Three situations these plans handle very differently. Click any card to load it.
- The growing balance
$90,000 owed on a $35,000 income
A household of four. The income is below the line, so the payment is $0.
A $0 payment still counts towards forgiveness - but interest keeps building. The balance climbs to $487,561 before the rest is written off. Nobody warns you it gets worse first.
Load this scenario in the calculator → - Plans differ a lot
$60,000 owed on a $50,000 income
A household of one, comparing every plan.
The gentlest and harshest plans are hundreds apart each month, because one uses 100% of the poverty line instead of 150%.
Load this scenario in the calculator → - Earning well
$20,000 owed on a $150,000 income
A small balance and a good salary.
The payment is capped at the standard plan, the loan clears early, and nothing is forgiven. These plans are not for everyone.
Load this scenario in the calculator →
Common questions about income-driven repayment
What is income-driven repayment?
A way of paying federal student loans based on what you earn rather than what you owe. Your payment is a share of your "discretionary income". the part of your income above a poverty line for your household size. If a balance is left after the plan runs its course, it is forgiven.
Why is my balance going UP even though I pay every month?
Because on a low income the payment can be less than the interest. The shortfall gets added to what you owe, so the balance grows. This is not a mistake - it is how the plans work, since the balance is forgiven at the end. But almost nobody is told, and finding out years later is a nasty shock. This tool shows it plainly.
What is discretionary income?
Your income above a set multiple of the poverty guideline for your household. Most plans use 150% of it; one uses 100%, which makes discretionary income larger and the payment higher. For a household of one in the main 48 states, the 2026 guideline is $15,960, so 150% of it is about $23,940.
Which plan gives the smallest payment?
It depends on your income, household size and when you first borrowed. This tool works out all of them at once so you can see rather than guess. As a rule the plans using 150% of the poverty line and 10% of discretionary income are gentler than the one using 100% and 20%.
Is forgiven debt taxed?
That has changed more than once and depends on the year and the programme. Forgiveness under Public Service Loan Forgiveness has been treated differently from forgiveness at the end of an income-driven plan. Because this genuinely changes, we do not state a rule here - check the current position at studentaid.gov before counting on it.
Are these rules stable?
No, and that is worth saying plainly. Federal repayment plans have changed repeatedly in recent years, with plans added, paused and challenged in court. Everything here is taken from official pages on the date shown at the bottom. Check studentaid.gov before acting.