Every figure is for a student starting in fall 2027. We work each one out again whenever we update the site.
Paying for college in Iowa
What the state and its colleges give families, who gets it, and how to apply. See every Iowa college priced for your income
From the state
From the colleges
Pay less for college
A SmartTuition plan shows what to pay from where, each semester.
In our Iowa scenarios, with good parent credit, a SmartTuition plan saves a median of about $7,100 over four years. How we worked this out ↓
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From the state
Iowa's programs. Most come through the FAFSA or the state's own aid application; a few have their own.
Iowa Tuition Grant
A need-based grant for Iowa residents at private Iowa colleges and universities. It pays up to $7,500 a year, depending on the state’s funds. A student needs a Student Aid Index under $16,000 and a FAFSA filed by July 1.
Sources: Central College, Scholarships and Awards and Mount Mercy University, Scholarships
“Must reside in the state of Iowa, attend a private college or university and demonstrate financial need as specified by the state of Iowa.”
“$7,500* Iowa Tuition Grant”
“Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) due to processor by July 1.”
“Iowa high school or community college students with SAI’s under $16,000 are eligible for the Iowa Tuition Grant.”
Iowa's 529 tax deduction
Money you put into an ISave 529 account comes off your Iowa income, up to $6,100 for each child's account in 2026. Take money out for anything other than school costs and you add the deduction back to Iowa income.
Source: ISave 529, Tax benefits
“you can deduct up to $6,100 of your contributions per beneficiary account, including rollovers, from your Iowa income taxes in 2026”
“if it is not for a qualified education expense and you previously took a deduction, the amount of the deduction must be added back to Iowa taxable income”
All Iowa Opportunity Scholarship
A state scholarship of up to $5,646 a year in 2027-2028 for first-year Iowa students with a Student Aid Index of 11,292 or less. It lasts up to eight semesters at an Iowa college. Foster youth and the children of fallen public safety workers come first. File the FAFSA and the state application by April 1.
Source: Iowa Department of Education, Bureau of Iowa College Aid
“The All Iowa Opportunity Scholarship (AIOS) is a state-funded scholarship program for Iowa students who attend an eligible Iowa college/university.”
“The SAI range for scholarship eligibility for 2027-28 is (-1,500) - 11,292.”
“the 2027-2028 maximum award is $5,646. Students who are first-time recipients of AIOS in the 2027-2028 school year can receive the scholarship for up to eight full-time semesters”
“Students who age out of Iowa’s foster care system, age out of the State Training School, and students adopted from Iowa’s foster care system after age 16 Children of deceased public safety workers”
“April 1: Both the FAFSA and Iowa Financial Aid Application must be submitted by this date.”
Iowa National Guard Service Scholarship
For members of the Iowa Army or Air National Guard working on a first bachelor's degree at an Iowa college. It pays up to $9,572 in 2026-2027, less federal tuition assistance, or the tuition if less, for up to 120 credit hours.
Source: Iowa Department of Education, Bureau of Iowa College Aid
“The maximum award for the 2026-2027 academic year has been set at $9,572 minus federal tuition assistance or the tuition rate charged to the individual minus federal tuition assistance, whichever is less.”
“A qualified individual cannot receive an Iowa National Guard Service Scholarship for more than 120 semester credit hours or the equivalent of undergraduate study.”
“Iowa resident Member of an Iowa Army or Air National Guard unit for each term the member receives benefits”
Iowa also has scholarships for community college and workforce programs, adults returning to college and foster youth. See Iowa College Aid's list.
From the colleges
What each college gives for grades, what it promises on aid, and its full price.
| College | Merit scholarships | Promise on aid | Full price a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central College private |
| — | $37,775 |
| Drake University private | None published | — | $69,587 |
| Grand View University private | None published | — | $52,116 |
| Grinnell College private | None published | Says it covers 100% of what a family cannot pay | $96,913 |
| Iowa State University public | None published | — | $24,065 |
| Loras College private |
| — | $57,406 |
| Morningside University private | None published | — | $57,324 |
| Mount Mercy University private | None published | — | $60,609 |
| Saint Ambrose University private | None published | — | $58,099 |
| University of Dubuque private | None published | — | $62,204 |
| University of Iowa public | None published | — | $27,752 |
| University of Northern Iowa public | None published | — | $22,634 |
| Wartburg College private | None published | — | $44,376 |
* The finder and our college comparison show this scholarship when you enter your student's GPA.
Each college's page has a promise's conditions, in the college's own words. “Worth asking about” marks a program the college describes in words that stop short of a promise.
Full price: tuition and fees, housing and food, and books; in state at a public university. What your family would pay after grants depends on your income: the finder shows it.
10 more Iowa colleges have no page here. For 0 of them, the federal data has no cost or no price by income. The rest mainly teach graduate students or run online programs. Show them
- Buena Vista University
- Coe College
- Cornell College
- Dordt University
- Luther College
- Northwestern College
- Simpson College
- Upper Iowa University
- Waldorf University
- William Penn University
Paying the rest
Your SmartTuition plan uses your savings, your 529, your loans and your award letter.
Build your SmartTuition plan, $99 →Best once your award letter arrives. No letter yet? Get the monthly email.
How we worked these out
What a SmartTuition plan saves
The $7,100 in the “Pay less for college” box near the top of this page is the median saving over our Iowa scenarios. Each scenario is a household in Iowa at one of its colleges. Its income is one of 8 from $45,000 to $200,000, and its savings are none, $40,000 or $100,000 in a 529. We price each college at the aid it reports for the income.
Every scenario has parents with good credit and $500 a month toward college. A saving is the difference, over four years, between a SmartTuition plan and the standard approach: savings first, then loans for the rest. It counts loan interest, the federal tax credit and Iowa's tax deduction for money you put through its 529 plan. Credit matters: parents with fair credit borrow at a higher rate, which changes the saving.
A scenario where the parents would borrow more than $65,000 is left out, as is one at a college that reports no aid for the income. The figure is for a household that lives in Iowa.
Costs: each college's own published price where it has one, otherwise the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard, carried forward to fall 2027. Grants: each program’s own page. Scholarships: each college's own page, read by us and checked against it. SmartTuition.ai is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any institution named here.