Use this easy loan calculator to discover when you might finish repaying your student loan, how much you'll pay in total, and whether overpaying could benefit you.
This calculator is designed to tell you how long it could take to repay your student loan, how much you could repay in total, and if overpaying – paying more than the minimum required – could benefit you.
In the UK, student loans are provided by the government (via the Student Loans Company) to help pay for tuition fees and living costs at university.
You will only repay the loan once you leave university and your income goes above a certain threshold. Repayments are taken automatically from your salary through the tax system.
Graduates typically repay 9% of income above the threshold each month.
Unlike normal debt, repayments depend on how much you earn, not how much you borrowed, and any remaining balance is eventually written off after a set number of years.
The repayment period depends on the plan:
Plan 1: Any remaining debt is written off after 25 years from the April you start repaying, or when you turn 65, whichever comes first.
Plan 2: The loan is written off after 30 years from the April after you leave university or become eligible to repay.
Plan 4: The balance is usually written off 30 years after you become eligible to repay.
Plan 5: The balance is written off after 40 years.
Postgraduate loans: These are written off 30 years after repayment begins.
The UK has several loan ‘plans’ that determine repayment thresholds, interest rates, and how long before the debt is written off.
Which plan you have depends mostly on when and where you studied.
Plans include:
Plan 1 – For students who started university before September 2012 in England or Wales.
Plan 2 – For most students who started between 2012 and 2023 in England.
Plan 4 – For Scottish students.
Plan 5 – For students in England starting from 2023 onwards.
Postgraduate Loan (Plan 3) – For Master’s or PhD loans.
Each plan has different repayment thresholds, interest rules, and write-off periods, so knowing which plan you’re on is important.
You start repaying when your income passes a repayment threshold. Right now, the thresholds are roughly (approximate current figures):
Plan 1: about £26,000 a year
Plan 2: about £28,000+ a year
Plan 5: about £25,000 a year
Once you earn above the threshold, you start repaying 9% of anything you’ve earned above that threshold.
Graduates in England typically leave university with £40,000–£60,000 or more in student loan debt if they’ve borrowed for both tuition fees and living costs.
But the total will depend on how much you were awarded for the living expenses element of the loan, how many years your course is over, and what course you choose.
Interest is added to your student loan balance over time. It starts being added to the total as soon as the loan is paid out – which means it starts accruing even while you are still studying.
However, UK student loan interest works differently from normal loan interest because your monthly repayments are based on income, not on the loan balance or interest rate. That makes this type of loan unusual.
What is RPI?
Most UK student loan interest rates are based on RPI (Retail Price Index).
RPI is a measure of inflation, meaning it tracks how the cost of everyday goods and services changes over time.
If RPI is 3%, it means prices are on average 3% higher than the year before.
Governments use inflation measures like RPI to adjust things like wages, benefits, and loan interest.
For student loans, RPI is used so that the value of the loan keeps up with inflation instead of shrinking in real terms.
How interest works under different loan plans
The exact interest rate you pay depends on the loan plan.
While studying: RPI + 3%
After graduating: Low income: RPI; Middle income: between RPI and RPI + 3%; High income: RPI + 3%
This means higher earners are charged a higher interest rate.
Interest is RPI only (no extra percentage).
Interest is usually RPI or Bank of England base rate + 1% (whichever is lower).
Why you’re hearing stories of student loan balances growing to huge sums
Because interest is added each year, your loan balance may increase even if you are making repayments, especially early in your career when repayments are small.
For example:
I borrowed £50,000. My interest rate is 6%, which means £3,000 of interest is being added each year. But my repayments at present are £1,200 per year.
So my balance is growing by £1,800 over and above what I’m paying back.
This is why many graduates notice their debt increasing after graduation, even though they’re making repayments.
Why interest matters less than people often think
Although interest can make balances look large, it doesn’t change how much you repay each month, because repayments depend on income.
Interest mainly affects:
For many graduates, the loan will be written off before the full balance is repaid, meaning a lot of the interest added is never actually paid.
A simple way to think about it…
Interest makes the balance grow on paper.
But your repayments depend on income, not the balance.
After 30–40 years (depending on the plan), any remaining debt is wiped.
Critics argue that because interest rates — especially under Plan 2 — can be much higher than inflation, balances are growing out of control. Some borrowers see their debt increase despite making repayments, which makes the loan feel difficult to pay off.
A more fair system would see interest rates reduced or capped at inflation.
Currently, the UK system behaves more like a graduate tax than traditional debt, except it’s a tax that isn’t equally applied because graduates with parents who can afford to pay university fees upfront, and graduates who can afford to pay the debt off before it accrues too much interest, are not burdened with the tax.
No. A large proportion of plan 2 borrowers are expected not to repay the full balance before it is written off.
That will likely happen because even when making repayments, most graduates can’t ‘outpace’ the interest that’s being applied at its current rate.
This calculator is for illustrative purposes only and is intended to give you an estimate of any tax you might have to pay based on the information you provide.
Tax treatment is subject to individual circumstances. Any reference to taxes, reliefs or rates is based on the rules in place as at 06/04/2025 and is subject to change.
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