# Will I pay off my student loan? Repayments by salary

> Students & young adults · Last updated 25 September 2026

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## Quick answer

Whether you clear it depends on your earnings over the whole loan term compared with your balance. You repay 9% of income above your plan's threshold (6% for postgraduate loans), and whatever is left is written off after 25 to 40 years. DfE forecasts 55% of full-time students starting in 2025/26 will repay in full.

## Who should skip this

Skip this if you want to know how deductions are taken, how to get a refund or what to do if you move abroad: our guide to [how student loan repayment works](/students/student-loan-repayment-explained/) covers the mechanics. This page is information, not advice on whether to overpay.

Student loan repayments are set by your income, so the question most graduates really want answered is whether they'll ever clear the balance before it's written off. This page shows what you'd repay at different salaries under each plan in 2026/27, works through why balances often grow in the early years, and sets out what the Department for Education (DfE) expects to happen to borrowers.

## Key facts

- 2026/27 thresholds: Plan 1 £26,900, Plan 2 £29,385, Plan 4 £33,795, Plan 5 £25,000, Postgraduate Loan £21,000
- You repay 9% of income above the threshold (6% on postgraduate loans), however much you owe
- Interest from 1 September 2026: 4.1% on Plans 1, 4 and 5; 4.1% to 6% on Plan 2 depending on income; 6% on postgraduate loans (Plan 2 and postgraduate interest is capped at 6% until 31 August 2027)
- Write-off: Plan 1 after 25 years (at 65 for loans first paid before September 2006), Plans 2 and 4 after 30 years, Plan 5 after 40 years
- DfE forecasts (July 2026) that 55% of full-time undergraduates starting in 2025/26 will repay in full, against 32% of the last Plan 2 cohort
- The Plan 1 threshold rises to £28,005 in April 2027; the Plan 2 threshold is frozen at £29,385 until April 2030

## Will you pay off your student loan?

Many borrowers won't, and the system is designed that way. Your repayment each year depends only on how much you earn above your plan's threshold. Whether you clear the balance depends on whether those repayments, added up over the whole term, cover what you borrowed plus interest. If they don't, the rest is written off and you owe nothing more.

Three things decide it: your earnings over the full term (including career breaks and part-time years), the size of your balance, and your plan's interest rate and write-off date. Because repayments rise with salary, high earners tend to clear their loans and pay the most in total, while lower and middle earners often repay until the end of the term and have the rest written off.

A loan is also cancelled if you die, and the Student Loans Company may cancel it if you can no longer work because of illness or disability and get certain disability benefits.

## How much will you repay at different salaries?

The table shows yearly repayments at 2026/27 thresholds (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), with the monthly equivalent. Each figure is 9% (6% for postgraduate loans) of salary above the yearly threshold. Payroll works it out each payday against the monthly or weekly threshold and rounds down to the pound, so your payslip may show slightly less.

Your plan depends on where you applied from and when you started. Plan 1 covers students from England and Wales who started before September 2012 and all Northern Ireland borrowers; Plan 2 covers English students who started between September 2012 and July 2023 and Welsh students since September 2012; Plan 4 is for Scottish students; and Plan 5 is for English students starting from August 2023.

A postgraduate loan's 6% is added on top of any undergraduate repayment. If you have two undergraduate plans, you pay a single 9% above the lower threshold, not 9% for each.

*Student loan repayments by salary, 2026/27 (yearly, with monthly equivalent)*

| Salary | Plan 1 (over £26,900) | Plan 2 (over £29,385) | Plan 4 (over £33,795) | Plan 5 (over £25,000) | Postgraduate (6% over £21,000) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| £25,000 | £0 | £0 | £0 | £0 | £240 (£20.00 a month) |
| £30,000 | £279 (£23.25 a month) | £55 (£4.61 a month) | £0 | £450 (£37.50 a month) | £540 (£45.00 a month) |
| £35,000 | £729 (£60.75 a month) | £505 (£42.11 a month) | £108 (£9.04 a month) | £900 (£75.00 a month) | £840 (£70.00 a month) |
| £40,000 | £1,179 (£98.25 a month) | £955 (£79.61 a month) | £558 (£46.54 a month) | £1,350 (£112.50 a month) | £1,140 (£95.00 a month) |
| £50,000 | £2,079 (£173.25 a month) | £1,855 (£154.61 a month) | £1,458 (£121.54 a month) | £2,250 (£187.50 a month) | £1,740 (£145.00 a month) |
| £60,000 | £2,979 (£248.25 a month) | £2,755 (£229.61 a month) | £2,358 (£196.54 a month) | £3,150 (£262.50 a month) | £2,340 (£195.00 a month) |

## Worked example: why the balance can grow while you repay

Your balance only falls if your yearly repayment is bigger than the interest added, and in the first years after graduating it often isn't. These examples use official average balances and 2026/27 rates, and ignore monthly compounding, so the figures are approximate.

Plan 5: DfE forecasts that full-time students who started in 2025/26 will owe £45,800 on average when they're first due to repay. Interest at 4.1% adds about £45,800 × 4.1% = £1,878 a year. On a £30,000 salary you repay 9% × (£30,000 − £25,000) = £450, so the balance rises by about £1,428. You'd need to earn about £45,900 for repayments to match the interest: £25,000 + (£1,878 ÷ 9%).

Plan 2: the Student Loans Company reported in June 2026 that higher education borrowers who became due to repay in April 2026 owed £47,730 on average. On £35,000 the Plan 2 interest rate is 4.82%, adding about £2,301, while you repay 9% × (£35,000 − £29,385) = £505. From about £44,300 the rate reaches the 6% cap that applies until 31 August 2027, so interest on that balance is at most about £2,864 a year. Covering that takes a salary of about £61,200: £29,385 + (£2,864 ÷ 9%).

A growing balance doesn't change what you pay each month. Plan 5 interest is set at RPI inflation, so a Plan 5 balance that grows in cash terms isn't growing in real terms. Plan 2's extra interest for higher earners means a Plan 2 balance can grow faster than prices.

*First-year repayments against interest on an average balance (2026/27 rates)*

| Plan and balance | Salary | Yearly repayment | Interest added (approx.) | Balance change (approx.) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Plan 5, £45,800 | £30,000 | £450 | £1,878 (4.1%) | Up £1,428 |
| Plan 5, £45,800 | £45,900 | £1,881 | £1,878 (4.1%) | About level |
| Plan 2, £47,730 | £35,000 | £505 | £2,301 (4.82%) | Up £1,796 |
| Plan 2, £47,730 | £61,200 | £2,863 | £2,864 (6% cap) | About level |

## How many borrowers are expected to repay in full?

DfE's student loan forecasts for England, published on 9 July 2026, expect 55% of full-time undergraduates starting in 2025/26, who are all on Plan 5, to repay in full within 40 years. For the last Plan 2 cohort, who started in 2022/23, DfE's 2023 forecast was 32%. The median borrower in the 2025/26 cohort is expected to finish repaying after 30 years.

Outcomes vary widely with lifetime earnings. The lowest-earning 10% of the 2025/26 cohort are forecast to repay £3,300 in 2025-26 prices, about 8% of what they borrowed, while the top 30% are expected to repay in full. DfE also expects the government to cover 33% of the full-time Plan 5 lending issued in 2025-26, and 39% of Plan 2 lending, in present-value terms.

These forecasts cover Student Finance England loans only. The series has no equivalent forecast for Scotland's Plan 4 or Northern Ireland's Plan 1 loans.

*DfE forecasts of full repayment (England, published 9 July 2026)*

| Group | Forecast |
| --- | --- |
| Full-time undergraduates starting 2025/26 (Plan 5) | 55% repay in full; the median borrower finishes after 30 years |
| Full-time undergraduates starting 2022/23 (Plan 2) | 32% repay in full (2023 forecast) |
| Lowest-earning 10% of the 2025/26 cohort | Repay £3,300 on average (2025-26 prices), about 8% of what they borrowed |
| Highest-earning 30% of the 2025/26 cohort | Expected to repay in full |
| Master's loan borrowers | About 31% not expected to repay in full within 30 years |

## When is the rest written off?

Each plan has a fixed write-off point, counted from the April you were first due to repay, which is normally the April after you leave your course. Full-time students from Wales may also be able to get £1,500 of their Maintenance Loan written off.

*Thresholds, interest and write-off by plan, 2026/27*

| Plan | Who's on it | Threshold | Rate | Interest from 1 September 2026 | Written off |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Plan 1 | England and Wales starters before September 2012; all Northern Ireland borrowers | £26,900 | 9% | 4.1% (the lower of RPI or Bank Rate plus 1%) | 25 years after first due to repay; at 65 if your first loan was paid before 1 September 2006 |
| Plan 2 | England starters September 2012 to July 2023; Wales starters from September 2012 | £29,385 | 9% | 4.1% to 6%, rising with income (capped at 6% until 31 August 2027) | 30 years after first due to repay |
| Plan 4 | Scottish students (SAAS) | £33,795 | 9% | 4.1% | 30 years after first due to repay; for first loans paid before 1 August 2007, at 65 if that's sooner |
| Plan 5 | England starters from August 2023 | £25,000 | 9% | 4.1% (RPI) | 40 years after first due to repay |
| Postgraduate Loan | Master's and Doctoral Loans from England and Wales | £21,000 | 6% | 6% (RPI plus 3% would be 7.1%, capped at 6% until 31 August 2027) | 30 years after first due to repay |

## What changes after April 2027?

The Plan 1 threshold rises to £28,005 from 6 April 2027, DfE announced on 10 August 2026. DfE's July 2026 forecasts say the Plan 2 threshold was frozen at £29,385 until April 2030 at the 2025 Autumn Budget, and that the Plan 5 threshold stays at £25,000 until April 2027 and then rises with RPI each year. No 2027/28 figure for Plan 4 or postgraduate loans had been published on GOV.UK when we checked.

Interest is reset every 1 September using the previous March's RPI. The 6% cap on Plan 2 and postgraduate interest, announced on 7 April 2026, covers 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027 only. A frozen threshold means more of each pay rise goes on repayments: if your salary rises with inflation and the threshold doesn't, your repayments rise faster than your pay.

## How can you estimate your own outcome?

Put your balance, plan and salary into our [student loan calculator](/tools/student-loan-calculator/). It assumes your salary and interest rate stay the same, so try several salaries rather than relying on one answer. Your balance is in your online repayment account.

If you're still choosing a course or early in your career, a realistic salary makes the biggest difference. CourseToJob publishes [official graduate earnings by degree subject](https://coursetojob.co.uk/graduate-salaries/) from DfE's Longitudinal Education Outcomes data, 1, 3, 5 and 10 years after graduating, and explains [how to read graduate salary figures](https://coursetojob.co.uk/guides/understanding-graduate-salaries/), including what they leave out.

GOV.UK warns that you might not benefit from extra repayments because your loan may be written off, and suggests speaking to a financial adviser if you're unsure. Paying extra only cuts what you pay in total if you'd otherwise clear the loan before write-off, and extra repayments can't be refunded. Student loans don't appear on your credit file, but lenders may take your monthly repayment into account in affordability checks.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do I have to repay my student loan if I never earn over the threshold?

No. You only repay in a pay period when your income is over your plan's threshold. Interest is still added, and whatever is left is written off at the end of the term, so the balance is never passed on to anyone else.

### Does the amount I owe change my monthly student loan repayment?

No. GOV.UK says the amount you owe has no effect on how much you repay each year: that depends only on your income. The balance affects how long you keep repaying and whether you clear the loan before it's written off.

### Is it worth paying off a student loan early?

It depends on whether you'd clear the loan anyway. Extra repayments only reduce your total cost if you'd otherwise repay in full before write-off; if you wouldn't, they usually just add to what you pay in total. There's no penalty for paying early, but extra repayments can't be refunded.

### Will the Plan 2 repayment threshold go up?

Not for a while. According to DfE, the Plan 2 threshold was frozen at £29,385 from April 2026 until April 2030 at the 2025 Autumn Budget, and is due to rise with RPI after that.

### What happens to a student loan when someone dies?

The Student Loans Company cancels it. Someone needs to tell SLC, with evidence such as the original death certificate and the person's customer reference number. The balance isn't recovered from their estate or family.

## Primary source

https://www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan, https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/student-loan-forecasts-for-england/2025-26, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/student-loans-interest-rates-and-repayment-threshold-announcement--7, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-interest-is-calculated-plan-2, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/interest-rate-cap-introduced-to-protect-plan-2-borrowers, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/student-loans-in-england-2025-to-2026, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-interest-is-calculated-plan-1, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-interest-is-calculated-plan-4, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-interest-is-calculated-plan-5, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-interest-is-calculated-postgraduate-loan

## Related

- [How student loan repayments are collected](https://moneyguide.org.uk/students/student-loan-repayment-explained/)
- [Plan 2 vs Plan 5 student loans](https://moneyguide.org.uk/students/plan-2-vs-plan-5-loans/)
- [Student loan repayment calculator](https://moneyguide.org.uk/tools/student-loan-calculator/)
- [Postgraduate Master's Loan explained](https://moneyguide.org.uk/students/postgraduate-masters-loan-uk/)
- [Is university worth it? The official data](https://coursetojob.co.uk/guides/is-university-worth-it/)

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Independent UK money guidance from [Money Guide](https://moneyguide.org.uk). Information only — not regulated financial advice.