There is no single official U.S. average student loan interest rate that applies across all borrowers. Federal Student Aid sets different fixed rates by loan type and first-disbursement period, while private lenders set rates under their own underwriting rules. For federal Direct Loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, the fixed rates are 6.52% for undergraduate Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, 8.07% for graduate and professional Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and 9.07% for Direct PLUS Loans.
6.52%
8.07%
9.07%
What an Average Student Loan Interest Rate Means
A national student loan interest rate and an individual borrower’s average rate are different measurements. Federal Student Aid publishes statutory rates for specific loan categories and disbursement periods rather than one borrower-weighted rate for the entire federal portfolio.
A borrower with several loans can calculate a balance-weighted average rate:
Weighted average rate = Σ(loan balance × interest rate) ÷ Σ(loan balances)
This gives larger loans more influence than smaller loans. Simply averaging the published 6.52%, 8.07%, and 9.07% federal rates would give equal weight to three loan categories regardless of how much money is outstanding in each category, so that result should not be described as the average U.S. student loan interest rate.
Rate versus average: 6.52%, 8.07%, and 9.07% are official rates for newly disbursed federal loans in 2026–27. They are not estimates of the average rate paid by all existing student loan borrowers.
Federal Student Loan Interest Rates for 2026–27
The 2026–27 Direct Loan rates use a 4.468% high yield from the May 12, 2026 auction of 10-year Treasury notes. Federal law adds a different percentage depending on the loan category. The resulting rate is fixed for the life of each loan.
Federal Direct Loan interest rates for 2026–27
Fixed rates for loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2026 and before July 1, 2027.
| Loan category | 10-year Treasury high yield | Statutory add-on | Fixed interest rate | Statutory maximum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct Subsidized and Direct Unsubsidized — undergraduate | 4.468% | 2.05% | 6.52% | 8.25% |
| Direct Unsubsidized — graduate and professional | 4.468% | 3.60% | 8.07% | 9.50% |
| Direct PLUS — parents and graduate/professional borrowers | 4.468% | 4.60% | 9.07% | 10.50% |
Federal Student Loan Rates Since the Current Formula Began
The current Treasury-indexed rate structure began with Direct Loans first disbursed in 2013–14. The three loan categories have moved together because each uses the same annual Treasury index with a different statutory add-on.
Federal Direct Loan interest rates, 2013–14 to 2026–27
Fixed rates by first-disbursement period under the Treasury-indexed formula introduced in 2013.
Federal student loan historical interest rates, with the 2021–22 PLUS rate verified against Federal Student Aid’s 2021–22 rate announcement.
Historical Direct Loan fixed interest rates
Rates apply according to the date a loan was first disbursed, not the borrower’s current repayment year.
| First-disbursement period | Undergraduate Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized | Graduate/professional Direct Unsubsidized | Direct PLUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | 3.86% | 5.41% | 6.41% |
| 2014–15 | 4.66% | 6.21% | 7.21% |
| 2015–16 | 4.29% | 5.84% | 6.84% |
| 2016–17 | 3.76% | 5.31% | 6.31% |
| 2017–18 | 4.45% | 6.00% | 7.00% |
| 2018–19 | 5.05% | 6.60% | 7.60% |
| 2019–20 | 4.53% | 6.08% | 7.08% |
| 2020–21 | 2.75% | 4.30% | 5.30% |
| 2021–22 | 3.73% | 5.28% | 6.28% |
| 2022–23 | 4.99% | 6.54% | 7.54% |
| 2023–24 | 5.50% | 7.05% | 8.05% |
| 2024–25 | 6.53% | 8.08% | 9.08% |
| 2025–26 | 6.39% | 7.94% | 8.94% |
| 2026–27 | 6.52% | 8.07% | 9.07% |
Where current rates sit in the series
- The 2026–27 rates are 0.13 percentage points above the corresponding 2025–26 rates in all three categories.
- Each 2026–27 rate remains 0.01 percentage points below its 2024–25 level: 6.52% versus 6.53% for undergraduates, 8.07% versus 8.08% for graduate/professional borrowers, and 9.07% versus 9.08% for PLUS loans.
- The lowest rates under the current formula occurred in 2020–21: 2.75%, 4.30%, and 5.30%. The corresponding 2026–27 rates are 3.77 percentage points higher based on the published rounded rates.
How Federal Student Loan Rates Are Set
For Direct Loans covered by the post-2013 formula, the Department of Education uses the high yield from the final 10-year Treasury note auction held before June 1 and adds a percentage specified in federal law. The add-on is 2.05 percentage points for undergraduate Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, 3.60 points for graduate and professional Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and 4.60 points for Direct PLUS Loans.
The calculation is performed for each new July 1 through June 30 disbursement period. Once a loan receives its rate, that rate remains fixed for the life of that loan. A later change in rates for newly issued loans does not replace the contractual rate on an older fixed-rate Direct Loan.
The annual federal rate is tied to the loan’s first-disbursement period. A borrower can therefore hold several federal loans with different fixed rates at the same time.
Private Student Loans Do Not Have One National Rate
Private student loan pricing works differently. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau states that private lenders determine rates using factors such as a borrower’s credit history, the school attended, and course of study. Private loans can carry either fixed or variable rates.
Because lenders offer different products to borrowers with different credit profiles and loan terms, an advertised private-loan rate range is not the same as an average rate actually paid across all private student loan borrowers. A current national private-loan average should not be inferred from the federal Direct Loan rates or from a simple midpoint of advertised lender ranges.
Temporary Federal Auto-Pay Interest Reduction
The U.S. Department of Education announced a temporary 1 percentage point interest rate reduction for eligible federal student loan borrowers enrolled in auto pay beginning July 1, 2026. The temporary benefit runs through June 30, 2028, and Department guidance directs borrowers to enroll by September 30, 2026.
This benefit reduces the interest charged while the borrower qualifies for it. It does not rewrite the statutory fixed rate assigned when the loan was first disbursed, so the 6.52%, 8.07%, and 9.07% figures remain the published 2026–27 Direct Loan rates.
Data Notes
- The historical table begins with 2013–14 because that is the first disbursement period under the current 10-year Treasury-indexed Direct Loan rate formula.
- Undergraduate Direct Subsidized and Direct Unsubsidized Loans have shared the same published rate under this formula.
- The historical Direct PLUS category covers parent borrowers and graduate or professional borrowers.
- The table reports statutory fixed rates by first-disbursement period. It is not a borrower-weighted average of outstanding federal balances.
- Private student loans are excluded from the historical chart because their rates are lender- and borrower-specific and are not part of this federal rate series.
Sources
- Interest Rates for Federal Direct Loans First Disbursed Between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027 — Federal Student Aid, June 4, 2026; current 2026–27 rates, Treasury auction yield, statutory add-ons, rate caps, and fixed-rate rules.
- Interest Rates for Federal Student Loans — Edfinancial Services, Federal Student Aid servicing site; historical Direct Loan interest-rate series.
- Interest Rates for Direct Loans First Disbursed Between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022 — Federal Student Aid; used to verify the 2021–22 Direct PLUS rate of 6.28%.
- What Are the Interest Rates on My Student Loans? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; federal fixed-rate and private-loan rate definitions.
- U.S. Department of Education Announces Student Loan Interest Rate Reduction — U.S. Department of Education, June 18, 2026; temporary auto-pay interest-rate reduction beginning July 1, 2026.
Cite This Page
DebtData.org. (2026). Average Student Loan Interest Rate. https://debtdata.org/average-student-loan-interest-rate/“Average Student Loan Interest Rate.” DebtData.org, August 30, 2026, https://debtdata.org/average-student-loan-interest-rate/.DebtData.org. “Average Student Loan Interest Rate.” Last modified August 30, 2026. https://debtdata.org/average-student-loan-interest-rate/.