Calculate your annual maintenance loan, total borrowing, and Plan 5 repayment estimate
The maintenance loan is the primary source of living cost funding for most UK university students. Paid directly into your bank account in three instalments across the academic year, it covers accommodation, food, transport, course materials, and day-to-day living expenses. Understanding how much you will receive, how much you will borrow in total, and what your repayments will look like after graduation is crucial for financial planning. Our maintenance loan calculator goes beyond simply showing your annual entitlement. It calculates your total borrowing across your entire course, estimates your monthly repayment under Plan 5 terms based on your expected graduate salary, and identifies additional support you may be eligible for, including Disabled Students Allowance (DSA), Childcare Grant, and Parents Learning Allowance. For students starting courses from 2023-24 onwards, the Plan 5 repayment system applies. This has a repayment threshold of 25,000, meaning you only start repaying when you earn above this amount. You repay 9% of your income above the threshold, and any remaining balance is written off after 40 years. This is a significant change from the older Plan 2, which had a 30-year write-off period but a higher threshold. The means-testing works identically to the Student Finance Entitlement calculator, with maximum and minimum loan amounts depending on household income and living arrangements. Students from the lowest-income households receive the highest support, while all students regardless of income receive at least the minimum maintenance loan amount.
To calculate your maintenance loan and repayments: 1. Enter your household income. This determines your annual maintenance loan amount through means-testing. Incomes at or below 25,000 receive the maximum loan, while incomes at or above 62,370 receive the minimum. 2. Select your living arrangement, which determines the maximum and minimum loan rates. London rates are highest, followed by away from home outside London, then living at home with parents. 3. Set your course length in years. This is multiplied by your annual loan to show total borrowing across your degree. 4. Enter your expected graduate salary. This is used to estimate Plan 5 monthly repayments. The average UK graduate salary is around 30,000, but this varies significantly by subject and sector. Be realistic rather than optimistic for better planning. 5. If you have a disability, long-term health condition, or specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia, tick the disability option. You may be eligible for DSA of up to 26,291 per year, which does not need to be repaid. 6. If you have dependent children, tick the dependants option and enter the number of children. You may qualify for Childcare Grant and Parents Learning Allowance on top of your maintenance loan. 7. Review your results including annual loan, total borrowing, monthly repayment estimate, additional support, and estimated years to repay. The line chart shows a simplified loan balance projection over time.
The calculator combines three main calculations: Annual maintenance loan: Uses the same means-testing formula as the student finance entitlement calculator. Maximum and minimum rates by living arrangement are: at home (8,490 / 3,790), away outside London (10,544 / 4,767), away in London (13,762 / 6,485). Between income thresholds of 25,000 and 62,370, the loan decreases linearly. Total borrowing: Annual maintenance loan multiplied by course length in years. Plan 5 repayment estimate: Monthly repayment = max(0, (graduate salary minus 25,000) times 9% divided by 12). For a 30,000 salary, this gives (5,000 times 0.09) / 12 = 37.50 per month. Estimated years to repay = total borrowing divided by annual repayment, capped at 40 years (the write-off point). This is a simplified estimate that does not account for interest, salary growth, or inflation. Additional support calculations: DSA provides up to 26,291 per year if eligible. Childcare Grant provides up to 189.70 per week for one child or 325.26 per week for two or more children. Parents Learning Allowance provides up to 1,963 per year. These grants do not need to be repaid. For example, a student earning 25,000 household income, living away outside London for 3 years, expecting a 30,000 graduate salary, would receive 10,544 per year, borrow 31,632 total, and repay approximately 37.50 per month, taking around 70.3 years at that rate (but written off at 40 years).