The 529 Runway
Will the 529 last? Model college, medical school, or both — using real tuition from 110 colleges and 96 medical schools. Watch the account grow and drain year by year, and find out how much you need today — or each month — to finish near zero. Works whether they start next fall or in fifteen years.
01Your numbers
Everything stays in your browser — nothing is sent or saved.
Use 0 if they start this fall. If they’re already partway through, enter a negative-style plan by reducing the undergrad years below.
Sticker prices above are before aid. Most students pay less — the College Board estimates average net tuition and fees after grants at roughly $2,300 for in-state public undergrads. Run each school’s net price calculator for a real figure. Applied to every year of both college and medical school.
Gap years give the account more time to grow, but they also push medical school further out, where tuition has inflated more. When tuition inflation outruns your contributions, a longer gap can widen the shortfall — watch both numbers below.
Tuition and fees come from the school; housing, food, books, and insurance are added here. AAMC puts living costs at roughly $20k–$40k depending on the city.
Growth & inflation assumptions ▸
Tuition has historically outpaced general inflation. A 6% return with 4% tuition inflation is a common planning pair; lower the return as the beneficiary nears enrollment if the portfolio shifts conservative.
State 529 tax benefit ▸
02The verdict — does the money last?
The 529 grows until withdrawals start, then drains as tuition bills arrive. The goal is to finish with a small cushion, not a big surplus (unused funds face taxes and penalties on the earnings) and not a shortfall.
03Year by year — the runway
Green area is the 529 balance; the bars are that year’s bill. Where the line crosses zero is where the money runs out.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column →
04What it actually costs
Today’s sticker price versus what you’ll really pay once tuition inflation compounds over the years until graduation.
05Compare medical schools
Same 529, same undergrad plan — only the medical school changes. Zero sits in the middle: bars running right in green finish with money left over, bars running left in red show what the 529 couldn’t cover. Each school’s annual cost is shown beside its name, cheapest first.
06Compare undergraduate schools
Same 529 and the same plan after college — only the undergraduate school changes, using its own tuition and published first-year room-and-board rate. Zero sits in the middle: right in green is money left over, left in red is what the 529 couldn’t cover. Each school’s all-in annual cost is shown beside its name, cheapest first.
How this works. The account is modelled month by month. Contributions go in monthly and growth compounds monthly. During school years, tuition and living costs are paid at the start of each term. The calendar comes from the school itself: semester schools bill twice a year, quarter-system schools (the UC campuses, Stanford, Northwestern, Chicago, Dartmouth, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, and others) bill three times. The balance therefore drains gradually and the money not yet spent keeps earning until each bill is due. Medical school figures are 2026–27 tuition and fees (including health insurance where reported) from school financial-aid offices and the AAMC. Undergraduate figures are 2025–26 published tuition and fees from the College Board, US News, and institutional sites — sticker prices before any grant aid. Living costs are what you enter. You can price undergrad from the school list or enter your own all-in figure; either way it inflates at the same rate. Note that most students pay less than sticker price: the College Board estimates average net tuition and fees after grant aid at roughly $2,300 for in-state public students.
When the money runs out. A 529 cannot go below zero, so once the balance is exhausted the calculator stops drawing from it and reports the remaining bills as not covered — the amount that would have to come from loans, current income, scholarships, or aid. Contributions continue and still earn, but they are applied to the next bill rather than accruing interest on a negative balance.
Approximations. Returns are assumed steady rather than volatile — a real portfolio’s sequence of returns matters, especially once withdrawals start. Work income and loans are not modeled, and the scholarship figure is a flat percentage you supply rather than a real aid estimate — run each school’s net price calculator for that; neither are room-and-board contracts that differ from the figures you enter, nor tuition-free programs. State 529 benefits are only added to the plan if you tick the reinvest box, since a deduction or credit arrives as a tax refund rather than an automatic contribution. Figures shown are the headline deduction or credit and ignore income phase-outs, recapture rules, and account-owner requirements. Medical school tuition can change annually and varies by class year. This is an educational model, not financial advice — confirm with the schools and a financial or tax advisor before making decisions.