Stanford University · California
Stanford scholarships and merit aid
Stanford does not offer merit-based scholarships — all university scholarship funds are awarded on the basis of financial need. Families with income below $100,000 (typical assets) pay zero for tuition, room, and board. Families below $150,000 pay no tuition. Stanford meets 100% of demonstrated need with no loans.
The short answer
Is Stanford worth a closer look?
We did not find a simple published award list to show for Stanford. Read our full reasoning before spending more time here.
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What families often miss
Stanford's financial aid page explicitly states: 'Stanford does not offer merit-based scholarships based on academic or athletic achievement. All university scholarship funds are awarded on the basis of financial need.'
Families earning up to $100,000 pay zero for tuition, room, and board. Families up to $150,000 pay no tuition. Not filing the FAFSA and CSS Profile guarantees you pay the full ~$97,545 (for 2026-2027).
See costs and school data
Who this school may work for
Families who need to understand that Stanford is not a merit-optimization target. No academic, athletic, or artistic merit award exists. If your household income is under $150,000, Stanford is likely more affordable than most state flagships. If you do not qualify for need-based aid, you will pay full price (~$97,545/year for 2026-2027). California families should also note that Stanford is not currently participating in California Student Aid Programs.
- Tuition & fees
- Housing & food
- Books
- Personal
Standard undergrad budget; variable travel and one-time new-student fees excluded; Cardinal Care waivable for domestic students.
Cost and graduation facts
Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at Stanford, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.
| Family income | Average net price paid |
|---|---|
| $0–$30,000 | $0 — grants exceeded costs by $2,536 |
| $30,001–$48,000 | $0 — grants exceeded costs by $193 |
| $48,001–$75,000 | $3,212 |
| $75,001–$110,000 | $11,092 |
| $110,001+ | $53,882 |
| All income levels (average) | $13,807 |
A net price shown as "$0 — grants exceeded costs" means average grant aid for students in that income bracket was greater than the full cost of attendance that year — a genuine reported outcome, not a data error.
Sticker price vs. what students actually pay
- Published tuition & fees, AY 2022-23
- $65,910
- Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
- $13,807
That works out to roughly a 84% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $87,833 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).
Outcomes for students who enrolled here
- Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
- 92%
- First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
- 98%
- Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
- $12,000 (~$127/mo on a 10-yr plan)
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
- $124,080
- Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
- 18%
- Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
- 6%
See other scholarships and cost examples
If your student brings another scholarship
Outside awards first replace the Student Responsibility (work earnings expectation). Excess reduces the Stanford scholarship dollar-for-dollar. Outside awards cannot replace the expected parent contribution.
Outside scholarships first replace the Student Responsibility (expected work earnings) dollar-for-dollar. If outside awards exceed the Student Responsibility, the Stanford scholarship is reduced dollar-for-dollar by the excess. Outside awards cannot replace the expected parent contribution if you are receiving need-based aid. If outside scholarships exceed your Student Responsibility AND the scholarship organization permits computer expenses, you may submit a Computer Expense Request web form for a one-time computer purchase.
More school data
From the Stanford Common Data Set 2024-2025:
Stanford merit aid FAQ
Does Stanford offer merit scholarships?
No. Stanford explicitly states all scholarship funds are awarded based on financial need, not merit. The near-zero percentage of freshmen showing non-need institutional aid in the CDS (0.1%) likely represents ROTC stipends or similar pass-through programs.
What does Stanford actually cost for families earning under $150,000?
Families with income below $100,000 (typical assets) pay nothing for tuition, room, or board. Families earning up to $150,000 pay no tuition. Between $100,000-$150,000, the expected parent contribution ranges from $0 to about $25,000. Most Stanford financial aid recipients graduate debt-free.
How does Stanford handle outside scholarships?
Outside scholarships first replace the Student Responsibility (work earnings expectation). Any excess reduces the Stanford scholarship dollar-for-dollar. A portion may be used for a one-time computer purchase or health insurance before the Stanford Scholarship is reduced.
See sources and other schools
How Stanford compares
- 145 of 749 verified schools in our dataset use loan-first displacement.
Stanford is in a recognizable cluster (145 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.
Sources used on this page
Every claim is checked against Stanford’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
- Policy pageStanford stacking policy
- Common Data SetStanford Common Data Set
- Cost of attendanceStanford cost-of-attendance worksheet
Compare with similar schools
- Occidental College merit aid. California private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
- Redlands merit aid. California private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
- Pacific merit aid. California private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
- Vanguard University merit aid. California private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
Keep exploring Stanford merit aid
- Stanford scholarship stacking. Whether outside awards land as upside or quietly displace institutional aid.
- Does Stanford displace outside scholarships?. The dollar math on a $5,000 outside award, plus peer schools that handle it differently.