Repayment periods in traditional payment plans for federal loans range from 10-30 years, depending on your balance.
If you don’t think you can afford monthly payments even with extended repayment periods and you have federal loans, explore Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans as an alternative.
If you think it will take longer than 10 years to repay your debt and you have federal loans, explore forgiveness options. Forgiveness programs will generally require enrolling in an Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan.
If you have private student loans or are not pursuing forgiveness in the federal system and your strategy is to pay your debt in full, remember that the faster you pay, the less interest you will pay in total. Pay as much as you can afford monthly to reduce the total amount you will pay over the life of the loan!
Know that it’s best to have a strategy in mind before choosing a repayment plan. If you want help determining your debt tackling strategy, use our self-guided strategy tool.
