Law School Loan Gap Calculator

Grad PLUS loans ended for new borrowers on July 1, 2026. Federal loans for law school now stop at $50,000 a year and $200,000 in total, and 189 of 196 ABA schools cost more than that per year. See what you would need to cover.

Assumptions

Federal rate 8.07% with a 1.057% origination fee (2026-27 Direct Unsubsidized, graduate/professional). Interest accrues during school and the six-month grace period. Federal payments follow the Tiered Standard plan for new loans (10 to 25 years by balance); private payments assume 10 years.

Gap after federal loans (3 years)

$118,948

Total cost of attendance$267,363
Scholarships and family help−$0
Federal loans (max $50,000/yr)−$150,000

Estimated monthly payments

Federal loans (25 yr)$1,306/mo
Private loans for the gap (10 yr)$1,611/mo

Year 1

$37,029

Year 2

$39,624

Year 3

$42,296

Shrink the gap: estimate scholarships

Loan gap at every ABA law school

Three-year gap at sticker price (nonresident tuition, fees and living budget, no scholarship) after the maximum federal loans.

SchoolCost / yr3-year gap
Stanford Law School$128,556$248,939
University of California, Berkeley School of Law$125,857$240,597
NYU School of Law (New York University)$123,308$232,718
Harvard Law School$121,042$225,714
The University of Chicago Law School$120,324$223,495
Columbia Law School$119,944$222,320
Cornell Law School$118,364$217,437
University of Southern California Gould School of Law$118,246$217,072
Georgetown Law$117,481$214,708
Fordham University School of Law$116,602$211,991
University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School$116,132$210,538
Touro University Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center$114,752$206,272
LMU Loyola Law School$114,416$205,234
UCLA School of Law (University of California-Los Angeles)$114,153$204,421
Vanderbilt University Law School$113,733$203,123
Brooklyn Law School$113,474$202,322
University of Miami School of Law$113,142$201,296
New England Law | Boston$111,653$196,694
Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University$110,869$194,270
University of California, Irvine School of Law$110,826$194,138
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University$110,572$193,352
University of Virginia School of Law$109,670$190,565
St. John's University School of Law$109,470$189,946
Emory University School of Law$109,462$189,922
Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law$108,803$187,885
Duke Law School$107,945$185,233
Rick J. Caruso School of Law (Pepperdine University)$107,250$183,085
Yale Law School$107,163$182,816
University of San Diego, School of Law$106,948$182,151
University of Michigan Law School$106,566$180,970
University of California, Davis School of Law$105,163$176,634
Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law$104,979$176,065
Santa Clara University Law School$103,418$171,240
American University Washington College of Law$103,004$169,961
Washington University School of Law (WashU Law)$102,287$167,744
South Texas College of Law Houston$101,918$166,604
Southwestern Law School$101,193$164,363
The George Washington University Law School$100,660$162,715
Seton Hall University School of Law$100,098$160,978
Notre Dame Law School$99,940$160,490
Tulane University School of Law$99,248$158,351
California Western School of Law$99,212$158,240
Suffolk University Law School$98,752$156,818
Boston College Law School$98,481$155,980
McGeorge School of Law (University of the Pacific)$98,399$155,727
Case Western Reserve University School of Law$97,560$153,134
UC Law San Francisco$97,481$152,890
New York Law School$97,283$152,278
William & Mary Law School$96,023$148,383
Seattle University School of Law$95,991$148,284
Columbus School of Law (The Catholic University of America)$95,654$147,242
University of San Francisco School of Law$94,090$142,408
Boston University School of Law$92,914$138,773
Loyola University Chicago School of Law$92,324$136,950
Syracuse University College of Law$91,412$134,131
Pace University-Elisabeth Haub School of Law$91,178$133,408
Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad College of Law$91,123$133,238
University of Denver Sturm College of Law$91,072$133,080
University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law$90,865$132,440
Alexander Blewett III School of Law at the University of Montana$90,455$131,173
St. Thomas University College of Law$90,126$130,156
Lewis & Clark Law School$89,854$129,315
Wake Forest University School of Law$89,783$129,096
Belmont University College of Law$89,731$128,935
Widener University Commonwealth Law School$89,112$127,022
Atlanta's John Marshall Law School$89,012$126,713
Northeastern University School of Law$88,750$125,903
Penn State Dickinson Law$88,573$125,356
University of Connecticut School of Law$88,502$125,136
Campbell University School of Law$88,051$123,742
University of Washington School of Law$88,038$123,702
Western State College of Law at Westcliff University$87,788$122,929
Quinnipiac University School of Law$87,034$120,599
Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law$86,872$120,098
Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University$86,632$119,356
SMU Dedman School of Law (Southern Methodist University)$86,520$119,010
Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law$86,242$118,151
Loyola University New Orleans College of Law$86,099$117,709
Albany Law School$86,078$117,644
Indiana University Maurer School of Law$85,344$115,375
Ave Maria School of Law$85,115$114,667
Rutgers Law School$85,083$114,569
DePaul University College of Law$84,738$113,502
University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law$84,568$112,977
Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University$84,436$112,569
Stetson University College of Law$84,431$112,553
Widener University Delaware Law School$84,220$111,901
University of Richmond School of Law$84,210$111,870
University of Minnesota Law School$84,123$111,601
University of Oregon School of Law$82,887$107,781
Chicago-Kent College of Law$82,864$107,710
Appalachian School of Law$82,800$107,512
Saint Louis University School of Law$82,302$105,973
George Mason University, Antonin Scalia Law School$82,288$105,929
University of Texas School of Law$82,220$105,719
Washington and Lee University School of Law$81,830$104,514
University of North Carolina School of Law$80,478$100,335
University of Wisconsin Law School$80,356$99,958
University of Houston Law Center$80,033$98,959
University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law$79,877$98,477
Howard University School of Law$79,663$97,816
Willamette University School of Law$79,508$97,337
Vermont Law and Graduate School$79,334$96,799
University of St. Thomas School of Law (Minnesota)$79,040$95,890
University of Nevada Las Vegas William S. Boyd School of Law$78,913$95,498
The University of Iowa College of Law$78,656$94,703
Samford University Cumberland School of Law$78,560$94,407
Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law$78,357$93,779
Texas A&M University School of Law$78,218$93,350
University of Baltimore School of Law$78,196$93,282
University of Massachusetts School of Law-Dartmouth$77,881$92,308
University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law$77,442$90,951
Charleston School of Law$77,436$90,932
Thomas M. Cooley Law School$77,372$90,735
Elon University School of Law$76,333$87,523
Moritz College of Law (The Ohio State University)$76,207$87,134
Gonzaga University School of Law$75,892$86,160
Michigan State University College of Law$75,762$85,758
University of Pittsburgh School of Law$75,477$84,877
Barry University School of Law$75,158$83,891
William S. Richardson School of Law (University of Hawaii)$74,822$82,853
Roger Williams University School of Law$74,706$82,494
Regent University School of Law$74,268$81,140
Marquette University Law School$74,116$80,671
Western New England University School of Law$73,751$79,542
West Virginia University College of Law$73,536$78,878
Baylor Law School$73,203$77,849
Robert H. McKinney School of Law (Indiana University-Indianapolis)$73,162$77,722
Mitchell Hamline School of Law$73,148$77,679
Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law$73,025$77,298
Faulkner University, Thomas Goode Jones School of Law$73,000$77,221
University of Colorado Law School$72,961$77,101
University of Detroit Mercy School of Law$72,463$75,561
Drake University Law School$72,313$75,098
Florida A&M University College of Law$71,970$74,038
Liberty School of Law$71,880$73,759
University of Illinois Chicago School of Law$71,776$73,438
The University of Alabama School of Law$71,619$72,953
Wayne State University Law School$71,497$72,576
University of Illinois College of Law at Urbana-Champaign$70,524$69,568
St. Mary's University School of Law$70,188$68,530
North Carolina Central University School of Law$70,154$68,424
Creighton School of Law$69,660$66,898
Florida International University College of Law$69,056$65,031
University of Maine School of Law$68,434$63,108
Mercer University School of Law$68,371$62,913
University of New Mexico School of Law$67,852$61,309
University of Oklahoma College of Law$67,379$59,847
University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law$67,192$59,269
University of Idaho College of Law$66,888$58,330
Southern University Law Center$66,594$57,421
Capital University Law School$66,568$57,341
University of Georgia School of Law$66,380$56,759
Levin College of Law (University of Florida)$66,308$56,537
LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center (Louisiana State University)$66,139$56,015
Georgia State University College of Law$66,013$55,625
Florida State University College of Law$65,840$55,090
Mississippi College School of Law$65,742$54,787
University of Tennessee Winston College of Law$65,538$54,157
The University of Tulsa College of Law$61,788$42,566
Oklahoma City University School of Law$61,515$41,722
University of Arkansas School of Law$61,314$41,101
Jacksonville University College of Law$60,911$39,855
University of Dayton School of Law$60,795$39,497
Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law$60,390$38,245
Louis D. Brandeis School of Law (University of Louisville)$60,362$38,158
University at Buffalo School of Law$60,234$37,763
University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law$59,909$36,758
University of Nebraska College of Law$58,962$33,831
Texas Tech University School of Law$58,889$33,606
Washburn University School of Law$58,808$33,355
University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law$57,082$28,020
City University of New York School of Law$57,008$27,792
University of North Dakota School of Law$56,046$24,818
Thurgood Marshall School of Law (Texas Southern University)$55,951$24,524
Ohio Northern University, Pettit College of Law$55,922$24,435
College of Law-University of Cincinnati$55,766$23,953
Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law (University of Memphis)$55,677$23,678
UALR William H. Bowen School of Law (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)$55,639$23,560
University of South Dakota$55,255$22,373
The University of Toledo College of Law$54,845$21,106
University of Wyoming College of Law$54,470$19,947
J. Reuben Clark Law School (Brigham Young University)$54,420$19,792
University of Mississippi School of Law$54,149$18,955
University of North Texas Dallas College of Law$53,948$18,333
Cleveland State University College of Law$53,536$17,060
University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law$53,504$16,961
University of Kansas School of Law$53,058$15,582
University of Missouri School of Law$52,842$14,915
Wilmington University School of Law$49,762$5,395
Northern Illinois University College of Law$46,809$188
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Law School$43,046$0
Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico$42,844$0
Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School$35,018$0
The University of Akron School of Law$32,249$0
University of Puerto Rico$32,651$0

Frequently asked questions

How much can law students borrow in federal loans now?

J.D. students count as professional students, so new borrowers can take up to $50,000 a year and $200,000 in total in federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, minus any federal loans already borrowed as a graduate student. All federal loans together are capped at $257,500 for life, including undergraduate loans. Schools can set lower limits, and amounts are reduced for less than full-time enrollment.

What happened to Grad PLUS loans?

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21) and the Department of Education's final rule ended Grad PLUS loans for new graduate and professional borrowers starting July 1, 2026. Before that, law students could borrow Grad PLUS up to the full cost of attendance.

I started law school before July 2026. Does the cap apply to me?

Only if you were enrolled in your law program on June 30, 2026 and already had a federal Direct Loan for it. Then you keep the old limits, including Grad PLUS, for the shorter of three academic years or the rest of your program, and lose them if you leave the program. Anyone starting law school in fall 2027 or later is under the new caps.

How do I cover the gap?

Scholarships are the biggest lever, so apply where your LSAT and GPA are above the medians and negotiate offers. After that the usual options are savings, family help, a lower-cost school, or private student loans, which depend on credit and usually have fewer protections than federal loans.

Are the costs in this calculator accurate?

Tuition, fees and living expense budgets come from each school's official ABA 509 disclosure. Living budgets are set by schools and your real costs may differ. Tuition usually rises each year, which is why the calculator lets you set an annual increase.