FAFSA Calculator

The SAI replaced EFC starting with the 2024-25 FAFSA. It is an index used by schools to help determine need-based aid, not the amount a family is expected to pay and not an aid offer. SAI can be as low as -1,500, and the federal formula no longer divides a parent contribution by the number of children in college.

It applies selected published 2026-27 income protection allowances, asset rates, assessment steps, and SAI limits to a compact set of inputs. It still omits tax, payroll, filing, untaxed-income, offset, and special-rule fields, so it cannot reproduce an official SAI. Use Federal Student Aid's estimator and FAFSA Submission Summary for the official result.

Pell eligibility is not determined by one SAI cutoff. Federal rules also use family size, tax filing status, poverty guidelines, enrollment intensity, cost of attendance, and other conditions. The calculator only shows the 2026-27 SAI-calculated amount when that limited calculation applies. Submit the FAFSA for the official determination.

Not under the FAFSA Simplified formula introduced for award year 2024-25. The legacy EFC formula divided the parent contribution by the number of dependents enrolled at the same time, which meant a second sibling in college could roughly halve the EFC. Congress removed that divisor as part of the FAFSA simplification. This calculator records your number of dependents in college for context but does not divide the parent contribution by it. Some colleges have started using institutional methodology to restore a multi-student-in-college discount on their own aid (separate from federal aid); ask each school's financial aid office whether they do.

The calculator applies different heuristic rates to income and assets, but you should not use its simple marginal examples to predict an official SAI change. Federal methodology uses award-year tables, allowances, exclusions, and interactions across the full FAFSA. Use the official estimator for planning.