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Compare modelled assets and student-loan balances using 2026/27 thresholds and your stated assumptions.
Website updated 24 October 2026
Enter £0 to £1,000,000 per year.
Check the amount against your SLC account.
Amount per month.
Enter -99% to 100% per year.
Enter -50% to 100% per year.
Enter -10% to 20% per year.
Whole years, maximum 50.
Investing path -£26,848
Voluntary-overpayment path -£16,361
The displayed difference favours the modelled overpayment path. This is arithmetic, not a recommendation.
Share links include your salary and loan-balance assumptions in an unencrypted URL.
Same compulsory income-based repayment assumption in both paths; the second path also applies the entered voluntary amount.
| Year | Standard repayment | With voluntary overpayment |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | £46,256 | £45,024 |
| Year 2 | £47,585 | £45,041 |
| Year 3 | £48,950 | £45,007 |
| Year 4 | £50,359 | £44,919 |
| Year 5 | £51,818 | £44,770 |
| Year 6 | £53,335 | £44,555 |
| Year 7 | £54,860 | £44,218 |
| Year 8 | £56,343 | £43,707 |
| Year 9 | £57,778 | £43,006 |
| Year 10 | £59,156 | £42,096 |
| Year 11 | £60,468 | £40,959 |
| Year 12 | £61,704 | £39,571 |
| Year 13 | £62,855 | £37,912 |
| Year 14 | £63,908 | £35,956 |
| Year 15 | £64,853 | £33,677 |
| Year 16 | £65,674 | £31,047 |
| Year 17 | £66,359 | £28,035 |
| Year 18 | £66,891 | £24,607 |
| Year 19 | £67,253 | £20,729 |
| Year 20 | £67,428 | £16,361 |
The investing path invests the full monthly amount. The overpayment path invests any monthly amount left after loan clearance, then each later monthly amount instead of making further payments.
| Year | Invest monthly | Overpay path investments |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | £1,227 | £0 |
| Year 2 | £2,516 | £0 |
| Year 3 | £3,869 | £0 |
| Year 4 | £5,290 | £0 |
| Year 5 | £6,781 | £0 |
| Year 6 | £8,348 | £0 |
| Year 7 | £9,992 | £0 |
| Year 8 | £11,719 | £0 |
| Year 9 | £13,532 | £0 |
| Year 10 | £15,436 | £0 |
| Year 11 | £17,435 | £0 |
| Year 12 | £19,534 | £0 |
| Year 13 | £21,738 | £0 |
| Year 14 | £24,053 | £0 |
| Year 15 | £26,482 | £0 |
| Year 16 | £29,034 | £0 |
| Year 17 | £31,713 | £0 |
| Year 18 | £34,526 | £0 |
| Year 19 | £37,479 | £0 |
| Year 20 | £40,580 | £0 |
Assets less the remaining loan balance in each path. Red values are negative; results are shown before investment tax and fees. The model holds selected thresholds and write-off periods constant.
| Year | Invest monthly | Overpay path | Difference: invest minus overpay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | -£45,029 | -£45,024 | -£5 |
| Year 2 | -£45,069 | -£45,041 | -£28 |
| Year 3 | -£45,081 | -£45,007 | -£74 |
| Year 4 | -£45,069 | -£44,919 | -£150 |
| Year 5 | -£45,037 | -£44,770 | -£267 |
| Year 6 | -£44,987 | -£44,555 | -£432 |
| Year 7 | -£44,868 | -£44,218 | -£650 |
| Year 8 | -£44,624 | -£43,707 | -£917 |
| Year 9 | -£44,246 | -£43,006 | -£1,240 |
| Year 10 | -£43,720 | -£42,096 | -£1,624 |
| Year 11 | -£43,033 | -£40,959 | -£2,074 |
| Year 12 | -£42,170 | -£39,571 | -£2,599 |
| Year 13 | -£41,117 | -£37,912 | -£3,205 |
| Year 14 | -£39,855 | -£35,956 | -£3,899 |
| Year 15 | -£38,371 | -£33,677 | -£4,694 |
| Year 16 | -£36,640 | -£31,047 | -£5,593 |
| Year 17 | -£34,646 | -£28,035 | -£6,611 |
| Year 18 | -£32,365 | -£24,607 | -£7,758 |
| Year 19 | -£29,774 | -£20,729 | -£9,045 |
| Year 20 | -£26,848 | -£16,361 | -£10,487Final modelled difference: invest minus overpay |
Compare investing a fixed monthly amount with making voluntary student-loan overpayments, using the same compulsory repayment assumption in both paths.
The result compares modelled investment assets less the standard loan balance with modelled assets and remaining debt after voluntary overpayments. Both strategies treat contributions and repayments as end-of-month cash flows, after that month’s investment return and loan interest. In the overpayment path, any part of the monthly voluntary amount left after clearing the loan is invested at month-end; later monthly amounts are invested instead of making further payments. The displayed difference is arithmetic under the selected assumptions, not a recommendation or forecast.
Repayments are assumed to be due in the first projected tax year. Annualized thresholds and rates are applied monthly; the model does not reproduce SLC daily interest accrual or exact PAYE-period rounding. The 2026/27 first-year terms are separated from later RPI assumptions; entered salary growth, later-year RPI and investment return are held constant for their applicable forecast years. Thresholds and generic cancellation periods are held constant in the forecast, and plan-specific history or cancellation exceptions are not calculated.
For Plan 1 and Plan 4, later projection years apply your entered RPI assumption without forecasting the future Bank of England base-rate-plus-1% interest ceiling. If that ceiling is below RPI, the model can overstate future interest for those plans.
Plan eligibility depends on funding authority and course start: eligible Student Finance England courses can use Plan 5; Student Finance Wales borrowers who started undergraduate study from September 2012 are generally Plan 2; SAAS borrowers use Plan 4; Student Finance Northern Ireland borrowers use Plan 1. Older Plan 1 loans also exist elsewhere in the UK. Confirm your plan, balance, repayment record and cancellation terms with SLC.
Investment returns are hypothetical, nominal, pre-tax and fee-free. The model excludes tax, fees, inflation, volatility, risk preference, emergency savings, and individual account adjustments. Inputs are shared in the URL when you copy the link; this page does not save calculator inputs to an account.
These GOV.UK resources cover student-loan repayment, current academic-year interest and plan terms. The comparison remains a simplified estimate, not an SLC calculation or financial advice.