Know your education funding gap before tuition is due.
The federal limits changed. FundingGap Finder walks you through a two-minute check, estimates your shortfall, and shows private lenders that fit your profile, ranked, not sponsored to the top.
Free · No account required · Not a lender or financial advisor
2 min
Guided check
$257,500
Lifetime federal cap after July 2026
12
Private lenders compared
0
Sponsored ranking
Why this exists
Federal borrowing used to cover more. It doesn't now.
New federal limits create a clearer ceiling for graduate, professional, and parent borrowers. Grad PLUS is unavailable to new borrowers starting July 1, 2026. That leaves a real gap for many families, and no easy place to see it clearly. FundingGap Finder is that place.
We're not a lender. We don't push you into anything. We show you the math and the options, and tell you exactly what to ask your school.
The gap, plainly:
Gap = Cost of attendance
− Scholarships / grants
− Savings, 529, employer aid
− School-based aid & payment plan
− Federal aid available this yearThe federal number itself uses annual, aggregate, and lifetime caps. We show the pieces so you can question anything that looks off.
How we got here
A short timeline of the federal-limit changes.
- 1
Early 2025
New federal-limit framework proposed
Federal officials proposed a clearer ceiling on federal borrowing for graduate, professional, and parent borrowers, framed as a way to limit overborrowing and put pressure on tuition.
- 2
Late 2025
Rulemaking advances
The Education Department's negotiated rulemaking process advanced implementation details, including definitions of professional-degree programs and aggregate caps.
- 3
June 24-29, 2026
Interim professional-degree list
A federal court temporarily affected part of the professional-degree definition; the Federal Student Aid office published an interim professional list while litigation continues.
- 4
July 1, 2026
New limits take effect
Federal caps and program-level ceilings apply to loans first disbursed on or after this date. Grad PLUS is unavailable to new/non-exception graduate or professional borrowers.
How it works
Four calm steps from confusion to a plan.
Answer a few questions
Two minutes: your role, program, cost, aid, and prior federal borrowing. No account, no credit pull.
See your funding gap
We estimate what federal aid is available this year and what remains between cost and resources.
Compare lenders that fit
Ranked by tier and fit score, not by who paid the most. See why each is (or isn't) a match.
Get a next-step checklist
What to ask financial aid, what to confirm on StudentAid.gov, and how to sequence a decision.
Ready to see your gap?
A calm, two-minute check. Nothing is guaranteed, but you'll leave with a number and a plan.