What type of student loan do I have?

There are several different types of student loan in the UK – these are known as 'plans'. Knowing which of these student loan plans you're on is crucial as it affects how much interest you're charged, how high your repayments are, and when your loan gets wiped. Which system you're on depends on when you started uni, as well as where you're originally from (not where you go to study). For more info, see Which student loan plan am I on?

Should I pay for uni upfront, or take the new Plan 5 student loan?

The new 'Plan 5' loans for English undergraduates starting uni in 2023 could see many repaying far more over their working lives. So, some with savings are, understandably, considering avoiding the loans if they can. With normal lending, usually the idea is to borrow as little as possible and repay as quickly as possible, but student loans aren’t normal loans. So this is a much more complex decision, and getting it wrong could cost you £10,000s. That's why Martin has dedicated a whole guide just to this question - see Martin Lewis: Should you pay for university upfront or take the new Plan 5 student loan?

I’m worried about the interest on my student loan, should I try to repay early?

Whether you should pay off your student loan if you’ve got spare cash is not a simple question to answer. It depends on whether you've other debts and when you studied, as that dictates your interest rate. If you're an English or Welsh student who started university between 2012 and 2022, read Martin's 'Should I panic or pay it off?' guide . For everyone else, we talk you through it in our Student loan repayment guide .

I'm doing a Master's degree, can I get a student loan?

Yes, you can. But how much you can borrow and the rules around when you repay it vary depending on where you're from in the UK. For more info, see our Postgraduate student loans guide.

Students

Guides and tools to help you save money while studying

English and started uni in 2023 or after?

You'll be on a new 'Plan 5' loan - the biggest change in student finance for a decade. On the surface it looks like a tweak, in practice it will increase the cost by more than 50% for many students. We take you through what you need to know.

Read Martin's guide

Not English? Your student loan works differently

It's about where you're from, NOT where you go to uni:

Northern Irish? You'll have a 'Plan 1' student loan.
Scottish? You'll have a 'Plan 4' student loan.
Welsh? You'll have a 'Plan 2' student loan.

Not a new starter? See Which plan am I on?

University Parental Contribution Calculator

Our calculator shows how much the government expects parents to contribute to their child’s student maintenance loan to cover their university living costs. In a nutshell...

The size of the maintenance loan is based on household income.
The system assumes parents will fill the gap, but this isn't made explicit.
The parental contribution varies depending on where you live.

Use our Parental Contribution Calculator

Best student bank accounts

Free 0% overdrafts, free railcards and free cash – banks love to reel in new students with goodies...

Our student bank accounts guide takes you through the 5 need-to-knows before giving you a run down of the top student bank accounts for 2023/24.

Find a bank account

Student budgeting tips

There's LOTS to think about when going to university, but thinking about how you're going to make your money stretch and budgeting properly should be a TOP priority.

We've got our Student budgeting planner and Student MoneySaving tips to help you get started, then read...

50+ tips on how to stretch your student loan

Student FAQs

What type of student loan do I have?

There are several different types of student loan in the UK – these are known as 'plans'. Knowing which of these student loan plans you're on is crucial as it affects how much interest you're charged, how high your repayments are, and when your loan gets wiped. Which system you're on depends on when you started uni, as well as where you're originally from (not where you go to study).

For more info, see Which student loan plan am I on?
Should I pay for uni upfront, or take the new Plan 5 student loan?

The new 'Plan 5' loans for English undergraduates starting uni in 2023 could see many repaying far more over their working lives. So, some with savings are, understandably, considering avoiding the loans if they can. With normal lending, usually the idea is to borrow as little as possible and repay as quickly as possible, but student loans aren’t normal loans.

So this is a much more complex decision, and getting it wrong could cost you £10,000s. That's why Martin has dedicated a whole guide just to this question - see Martin Lewis: Should you pay for university upfront or take the new Plan 5 student loan?
I’m worried about the interest on my student loan, should I try to repay early?

Whether you should pay off your student loan if you’ve got spare cash is not a simple question to answer. It depends on whether you've other debts and when you studied, as that dictates your interest rate.

If you're an English or Welsh student who started university between 2012 and 2022, read Martin's 'Should I panic or pay it off?' guide. For everyone else, we talk you through it in our Student loan repayment guide.
I'm doing a Master's degree, can I get a student loan?

Yes, you can. But how much you can borrow and the rules around when you repay it vary depending on where you're from in the UK. For more info, see our Postgraduate student loans guide.