What is the Student Aid Index?

When you fill out the FAFSA, you'll receive your Student Aid Index. This number plays a critical role in determining how much financial aid you'll receive from your college.

So, what is the Student Aid Index? How is it calculated? And what does it mean when assessing your financial need?

We're sharing everything you need to know about the SAI, so you and your family can feel confident as you navigate the college financial aid process.

What is the Student Aid Index?

The Student Aid Index is an index number used to determine a student's eligibility for need-based financial aid.

The Student Aid Index (SAI) replaced the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) — the previous metric for measuring financial need — as part of the federal FAFSA Simplification Act starting with the 2024-2025 school year.

Your personal SAI is calculated from the details you provide on your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. The SAI ranges from –1,500 to 999,999 — the lower the number the greater your financial need. Schools use your SAI to guide them in offering you a financial aid package.

How is your Student Aid Index calculated?

The Student Aid Index is calculated as the sum of three components:

• Parents' financial contribution
• Student's financial contribution from their income
• Student's financial contribution from their assets

One of three formulas is used to calculate your SAI. The formula chosen depends on whether you are considered a dependent or independent student and whether you have non-spouse dependents. You can see the specific data used in each SAI formula here.

Additionally, a negative SAI may be adjusted in some cases based on your state of residence, family size, marital status and income compared to recent poverty guidelines.

Much of the information used to calculate your SAI comes directly from your recent federal tax returns. With your approval, the online FAFSA automatically populates the relevant form fields with IRS data from your tax records.

How does the Student Aid Index impact your financial aid?

Your college's financial aid professionals compute your need-based aid based on your Student Aid Index and their school's cost of attendance (COA). In general, the COA represents a year's worth of student expenses over one school year. These expenses include a variety of costs, including tuition, fees, room and board, books, supplies and technology.

With the SAI produced by your FAFSA, your college financial aid office computes your eligibility for financial aid. They subtract your SAI from their COA to generate a dollar amount representing your financial need. That amount is the maximum need-based aid you'll be offered.

Your financial aid package may include one or more federal student aid programs, including federal Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Direct Subsidized Loans and Federal Work-Study.

Remember that it's up to the school what percentage of your financial need they'll actually meet with their aid package. In fact, the average financial need met for incoming first-year students is just 71%. If you're exploring college options, consider researching schools that meet a high percentage of students' financial need.

How to find your Student Aid Index

So, how can you find your Student Aid Index?

Within three days of completing the FAFSA, you'll receive a FAFSA Submission Summary, which you can also view by logging in to your Federal Student Aid account. You'll find your SAI listed at the top of the first page. You may also see your SAI on the financial aid offer you receive from your college.

Want to get a sense of your SAI before you fill out the FAFSA? The Federal Student Aid office provides an online calculator you can use right now. The Federal Student Aid Estimator uses your financial data to produce estimates for your SAI and eligibility for different types of federal student aid.

Student Aid Index vs. Expected Family Contribution

Prior to the 2024-2025 school year, the FAFSA produced the Expected Family Contribution (EFC), which the Student Aid Index has replaced. While each of these values has been used in determining financial need, there are some notable differences between the two:

• Simplified formula: With a streamlined formula, the SAI aims to be easier to compute, less confusing and more transparent than the more complex EFC.
• Negative values: While the minimum EFC was $0, the lowest SAI value is –1,500. So, students in extreme financial need can be better identified and offered additional aid.
• Elimination of the "sibling discount": The EFC's calculation included the number of dependents in your household enrolled in college. The SAI's formula does not take this into account.
• Increased Income Protection Allowance (IPA): The EFC formula permitted a certain percentage of assets to be "protected," or not considered, in determining your EFC. With the introduction of the SAI formula, your IPA will increase, potentially giving you access to more need-based aid.
• Changes to previously excluded assets: The EFC also permitted the exclusion of some small business and family farm assets, but the SAI counts those toward your household's total assets, except under specific circumstances.
• Increased Pell Grant eligibility: Under SAI guidelines, more students may be eligible for federal Pell Grants, and those who qualify may receive awards greater than those granted under EFC guidelines.

Does your Student Aid Index change each year of college?

Each year of schooling requires you to complete the FAFSA if you're seeking financial aid. Since your Student Aid Index depends on your family's assets and income from the tax year two years’ prior, your SAI will vary along with those figures.

While the U.S. Department of Education oversees the FAFSA and the calculation of your SAI, each college determines the financial aid packages offered to students. While schools rely heavily on the SAI, colleges accept appeals on aid decisions.

You may want to file an appeal with your college if — since submitting the FAFSA — your family has faced a change in financial circumstances, like:

• Loss of a job
• Decrease in income at a job
• Death of a parent
• Marriage of the student
• Changes in income due to divorce or separation
• Significant medical expenses
• Termination of child support or alimony payments
• Loss of property or assets in a natural disaster

Private student loans can help finance your education

If you're looking to bridge the gap between your financial aid award and the cost of college, Citizens is ready to help. Explore our private student loans and get started with our easy online application.