529 College Savings Calculator
Will your 529 plan cover college? This projects your plan's balance at matriculation against the inflated cost of a degree — and shows the monthly contribution to close any gap.
How this 529 calculator works
Saving for college means winning a race between two compounding curves: your investment growth and the rising cost of tuition. This calculator models both. It grows your current 529 balance and your monthly contributions to the year your child starts school, then compares that projected balance to what a degree will actually cost by then.
Your current savings compound at your expected annual return, and each monthly contribution is treated as an ordinary annuity that grows until matriculation. On the cost side, today's annual price is inflated separately for each future college year — so a four-year degree starting fifteen years from now reflects fifteen-plus years of education inflation, not one.
The savings goal, explained
You don't need the entire four-year cost saved on day one of college. The balance keeps earning during the college years while it's drawn down. So the calculator computes a goal at matriculation: the lump sum that, left invested at your expected return, exactly covers each year's bill as it comes due. The first year is paid immediately; later years are discounted back because that money keeps growing a little longer. This is why the goal is lower than the raw projected total cost.
Surplus, shortfall, and coverage
Comparing your projected balance to the goal gives three useful numbers. Coverage is the percentage of the goal your current plan is on track to meet. The surplus or shortfall is the dollar gap. And the monthly to fully fund figure solves the problem in reverse: holding your current balance fixed, what monthly contribution would land you exactly on the goal? If you're behind, that number is your target; if you're ahead, you have room to ease off or aim higher.
Why college cost inflation matters so much
General prices have grown around 2–3% a year, but published college costs have historically climbed closer to 5%. Over the long horizon of a young child's college fund, that gap dominates the result. A small change to the inflation assumption moves the goal substantially, which is why it's a separate input here rather than a hidden constant. If your child will attend an in-state public school, lower both the cost and possibly the inflation rate; for private colleges, raise them.
Putting it in context
A 529 is one piece of a household financial plan. Make sure college savings aren't crowding out retirement — you can borrow for college but not for retirement, so check your retirement calculator first. If grandparents or relatives plan to help, factor in gift-tax basics with the capital gains and investment guide. And if you'll still need loans to fill a gap, our student loan calculator shows what those payments would look like after graduation.