Get the full experience! Upgrade Today
Skip to content
First comparison report free

Compare College Offers

Enter your offer or acceptance letter, whether it shows need-based aid, merit scholarships, or no money details yet. Get a clear picture of your true cost and how it stacks up. Plain English, no jargon.

Type at least 3 characters to search.

Have the letter in hand? Upload or snap a photo instead

Sample report

View full sample report

Your net cost at Penn State

$25,868

per year · in-state

Below typical for similar families
College Net cost Aid vs. typical
Penn State $25,868 Below typical
UMD $31,400 About typical

As Featured In

The New York Times
Money
USA Today
MarketWatch
NPR
CNBC
CBS News

How it works

Three steps, no wizard and no waiting. Your report opens on the same page the moment you finish.

  1. 1. Add your offers

    Upload a PDF, snap a photo of a paper letter, or type the amounts in yourself. Cost of attendance fills in automatically for the college and year you pick.

  2. 2. See your true net cost

    We subtract only the money you don't pay back and show each college side by side, plus how your package compares to what similar families received.

  3. 3. Know your next step

    Find out whether an appeal is worth writing — and see what it would really take to cover whatever's left.

What you get in your comparison report

Award letters are written in the college's language, not yours. Two letters can look similar and be $20,000 a year apart. This tool exists to make that difference obvious.

True net cost analysis

We start from full cost of attendance — tuition, housing, food, books, travel — and subtract grants and scholarships only. Loans and work-study are shown separately, because they're ways to pay, not discounts.

Side-by-side comparison

Every offer lined up on the same measures, so an in-state public and a private college with a big scholarship can finally be compared honestly.

Crowdsourced offer data

Thousands of real offers shared by other families show what students like yours typically received at the same college — the context no award letter gives you.

Appeal guidance

When your aid looks light compared to similar students, we say so plainly and show you how families successfully ask a college to take another look.

Frequently asked questions

The questions families ask us most about comparing financial aid offers.

It's free to start — your first offer analysis is on us. It turns your financial aid award letters into a plain-English picture of what each college will actually cost your family. You enter (or scan) each offer, and we show your true net cost per year, how your aid stacks up against what similar families received, and whether the offer looks worth appealing.

No. You can enter an offer and see your Offer Comparison Report right away — no profile setup, no payment for your first report. We ask for an email so we can send you a copy of your report, and you can create an account later if you want to save and compare more schools.

Never compare sticker prices or scholarship amounts alone. Start with each college's total cost of attendance, subtract only the money you don't pay back — need-based aid, merit scholarships, Pell and state grants — and compare the net cost that's left. Loans and work-study are not discounts; they're ways to pay the remaining balance. Our tool does this math for every offer so you're comparing the same thing across schools.

Need-based aid is awarded because of your family's financial situation, usually based on the FAFSA and your Student Aid Index. Merit aid is awarded for academics, talent, or other achievements, regardless of income. Two offers with the same headline number can be very different: a merit scholarship is often locked in for four years, while need-based aid can change if your finances change.

Public universities charge residents of their state far less than students from elsewhere — often a $20,000–$35,000 per-year difference. When you pick your home state in the tool, we automatically use the right cost of attendance for each public college. Private colleges charge the same price regardless of where you live. If your actual cost differs, you can always adjust the number yourself.

Cost of attendance (COA) is the college's official estimate of a full year: tuition and fees plus housing, food, books, transportation, and personal expenses. Comparing tuition alone hides thousands of dollars. Our tool auto-fills COA for the college and academic year you select, and you can edit it if your family's real costs are different.

Often, yes. Colleges routinely reconsider awards when a family shares a changed financial circumstance or a stronger competing offer from a comparable school. Your report flags when your aid looks below what similar students received at that college — the clearest signal that an appeal is worth writing — and points you to the next step.

Thousands of families have shared the real offers they received. We use that anonymized data to show what students with profiles like yours typically got at the same college, so you can see whether your package is generous, average, or light. It's real reported outcomes, not a marketing brochure.

Start with the one you have. You can come back and add each new letter as it arrives, and your report will compare them side by side. Families usually add offers over several weeks between March and the May 1 decision deadline.

Knowing the number is only half the decision — the other half is how to cover it. Your report links to the College Funding Blueprint, which walks through what borrowing the remaining gap actually costs and how to do it without overcommitting your family.

Ready to see your real cost?

One offer is enough to start. Your first report is free — no account, and it opens right away.

Add your first offer