Durham, NC · Private · Every figure is for a student starting in fall 2027. We work each one out again whenever we update the site.
How to pay for Duke University
What a year costs here, what brings it down, and what a SmartTuition plan could save a family like yours.
Paying for four years here
Four years here, after grants
$88,108
A SmartTuition plan could save a family like this about $1,500.
A SmartTuition plan shows what to pay from where, each semester, using your own numbers.
Build your SmartTuition plan for Duke University, $99 →Best once your award letter arrives. No letter yet? Get the monthly email.
A family of four with good credit and $500 a month for college. How we worked these out ↓
A year at Duke University
| Full price | $103,296 |
| After grants, at your income | $23,384 |
43% of first-year students here got a grant or scholarship from the college in 2023-24, $62,691 on average.
At this income, 23 of North Carolina's other 30 colleges cost less after grants, and 7 cost more. See them all →
What can bring it down
Duke University's promise. Duke University says it covers 100% of what a family cannot pay. The conditions ↓
Pay less for college
A SmartTuition plan shows what to pay from where, each semester.
At Duke University, our scenarios for North Carolina households with good parent credit show a SmartTuition plan saving a median of about $3,400 over four years. How we worked this out ↓
Considering more than one college?
Put the schools you are considering on one list and we price each of them for your family. It is free. It asks what you earn and what you have saved, never your name.
Put your schools side by side →What Duke University commits to
Duke University says it covers 100% of what a family cannot pay.
“Duke meets 100% of demonstrated need for undergrads”
Duke University financial aid office — verified 2026-09.
Published guarantees you may qualify for
We do not assume you qualify for any of these, and our plans never bank on them. Check each against your own situation with the aid office.
Initiative for Students from the Carolinas: full tuition grants for North Carolina and South Carolina residents with a total family income of $150,000 or less
Household income up to $150,000. Covers tuition.
- It is for admitted undergraduates who are residents of North Carolina or South Carolina.
“Duke University is proud to provide full tuition grants for admitted undergraduate student residents of North Carolina and South Carolina whose families have a total income of $150,000 or less.”
Initiative for Students from the Carolinas: tuition, housing and meals for North Carolina and South Carolina residents with a total family income of $65,000 or less
Household income up to $65,000. Covers tuition, housing.
- It is for undergraduates from North Carolina and South Carolina. The help beyond tuition covers housing, meals and some course materials or other campus expenses.
“For Duke undergraduate students from North Carolina and South Carolina with total family incomes of $65,000 or less, the university will provide full tuition grants, plus financial assistance for housing, meals and some course materials or other campus expenses, without the need for student loans.”
How we worked these out
The family
A family of four with good parent credit and $500 a month to put toward college, and the savings you pick. In state, the grants are what Duke University reports families at that income got, on average. Your own will differ, and a family with no aid pays close to the full price.
What a SmartTuition plan saves
The difference, over four years, between a SmartTuition plan and the standard approach: savings first, then loans for the rest. It counts loan interest and the federal tax credit.
The $3,400 in the “Pay less for college” box near the top of this page is the median saving in Duke University's own scenarios. Each scenario is a household that lives in North Carolina, with an income from $45,000 to $200,000 and savings of none, $40,000 or $100,000 in a 529. We price Duke University at the aid it reports for that income.
Every scenario has parents with good credit and $500 a month toward college. The card above uses the same two. A scenario where the parents would borrow more than $65,000 is left out.
The prices by income
- They describe students who got aid.
- “Over $110,000” has no upper limit, so it averages families just over $110,000 with far wealthier ones. A family at $115,000 should expect to pay less than it shows.
- Each range is reported on its own, so the prices do not always rise with income.
Grants from the college
How many first-year students got a grant from Duke University, and the average, are the Department of Education's figures for full-time students who started in 2023-24. They cover every income. The prices after grants already count these grants, so don't take them off again. The Department of Education's page for Duke University →
Where the prices come from
Where the prices come from: Duke University's own 2026-27 tuition, fees, housing, food and books, from its website, carried forward to 2027 at 4.0% a year. The grants are the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard (2025-26 figures), carried forward the same way. Each price after grants is the cost less those grants. The average price after grants counts the students who get federal aid. Your own figure will be different.
SmartTuition.ai is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Duke University. Aid policies change; check current terms with the college's aid office.
Nearby at your income
- Campbell University$21,246 a year
- NC Wesleyan$22,098 a year
- Duke University$23,384 a year
- Mars Hill University$24,125 a year
- Meredith College$25,156 a year
What each college charges, less the average grant for your income. Every North Carolina college →