How Much Does Medical School Cost in Tuition, Living Expenses and Debt?

How much does medical school cost? The median four-year cost of attendance for the class of 2026 is $297,745 at public medical schools and $408,150 at private medical schools, according to the financing guidance the AAMC publishes for applicants. Those figures cover tuition, fees, health insurance and budgeted living expenses. For in-state students in 2025-26, the median first-year cost of attendance is $75,654 at public schools and $106,787 at private schools.

Your likely price depends mostly on three things you can know before enrolling: whether a school is public or private, whether you qualify for its resident rate and how much grant or scholarship aid it offers. Although 70% of 2025 MD graduates had education debt, 30% finished without it, so the published price is a planning baseline rather than the amount you will necessarily owe. The cost of attending is also separate from the expense of applying, which is covered in IMA’s medical school application cost guide.

Medical School Costs at a Glance

• For the class of 2026, the median four-year cost of attendance is $297,745 at public MD schools and $408,150 at private MD schools.
• In 2025-26, median first-year tuition, fees and health insurance at public schools is $43,648 for residents and $70,730 for nonresidents.
• Among indebted 2025 MD graduates, median education debt is $215,000, including any premedical education debt.
• For new borrowers, loans made on or after July 1, 2026 are limited to $50,000 per year and $200,000 in aggregate in Direct Unsubsidized Loans for professional students.

Medical School Tuition at Public and Private Schools

Public medical schools usually present the clearest opportunity to reduce tuition if you qualify as an in-state student. In the AAMC’s Tuition and Student Fees Report for 2025-2026, median first-year tuition, fees and health insurance was $43,648 for residents at 94 public MD schools. The nonresident median at the same schools was $70,730. Students comparing lower-priced public options can use IMA’s guide to the cheapest medical schools in the US for the school-by-school research that sits beyond these national medians.

At 66 private MD schools, residency made much less difference. Median first-year tuition, fees and health insurance was $74,661 for residents and $76,605 for nonresidents in 2025-2026. Across all categories, the highest reported amount was $102,657 for a public school’s nonresident price, while the minimum was $0 because some schools charged no tuition. The resident medians rose from $42,668 at public schools and $72,689 at private schools in 2024-2025.

The table compares figures from the AAMC 2025-2026 Tuition and Student Fees Report for first-year MD students and the AACOM 2023-24 Cost of Attendance Report for osteopathic medical colleges.

The table above separates tuition-related charges from total cost of attendance where the source provides both. Tuition alone had a 2025-2026 median of $37,427 for public residents, $62,846 for public nonresidents and $68,176 for private residents. Adding required fees and health insurance raises the amount, but even that combined figure does not include the full living budget.

Cost of Attendance Beyond Tuition

Cost of attendance is the better figure for estimating how much medical school requires you to fund. Under Federal Student Aid rules, it is an estimate of educational expenses for an enrollment period. A school may build that estimate from average expenses for students in similar circumstances rather than from your personal spending.

The budget includes tuition and normally charged fees, including required health insurance. For context, median first-year student health insurance in 2025-2026 was $3,438 at public MD schools and $4,314 at private MD schools. The broader budget also includes allowances for food and housing, books and supplies, transportation and personal costs. Transportation can include required program travel and travel to residency interviews, while programs leading to a licensed profession must include an allowance for the first professional credential or licensing examination.

An IMA calculation from the medians on the AAMC fact card for 2025-26 shows why these allowances matter. The median first-year cost of attendance exceeded median tuition and fees by about $32,000 at both public and private schools. At public schools, the figures were $75,654 compared with $43,648. At private schools, they were $106,787 compared with $74,661.

That difference is not a separate fixed charge. It represents the school’s budget for living expenses, books, transportation and other covered costs. Your actual spending may come in below the allowance, particularly if your housing, insurance or transportation costs differ from the assumptions. Review each school’s published budget and compare it with a realistic plan for your own circumstances.

Residency Status and the Price You Pay

Residency status can substantially change the price of a public medical school. An IMA calculation from the AAMC’s 2025-2026 medians puts the public-school nonresident amount for first-year tuition, fees and health insurance $27,082 above the resident amount. This compares medians from two distributions, so it is not the resident-to-nonresident difference at every school.

Each state establishes its own qualifications for legal residency. The 2027 AMCAS Applicant Guide on legal residence says medical schools may request supporting documentation and applicants are responsible for researching the relevant state’s qualifications. Although you may potentially qualify as a legal resident of more than one state, AMCAS permits you to select only one on the application.

If a public-school offer depends on resident pricing, ask the financial aid or admissions office which rate applies to you and whether that classification can change during enrollment. Do not assume that living in the state while attending automatically changes your status. Private schools show a much smaller residency difference, as the table above makes clear.

Medical School Debt at Graduation

The AAMC’s Graduation Questionnaire data show that 70% of 2025 MD graduates had education debt and 30% had none. The share with debt was 72% at public schools and 67% at private schools. These are outcomes for groups of graduates, not a forecast of what any individual student will borrow.

Among graduates who had education debt, the AAMC reported a median of $215,000 overall. The median was $200,000 for public-school graduates and $250,000 for private-school graduates. Mean debt was $223,130 overall. You can enter a prospective balance in IMA’s student loan repayment calculator to see how principal, interest and repayment length interact.

The debt totals include premedical education debt as well as medical education debt. Among all 2025 graduates, 27% had premedical debt with a median of $28,000. Overall, 59% owed at least $200,000 in education debt and 28% owed at least $300,000.

Median debt sits well below the median four-year cost of attendance, and 30% of the class graduated with no education debt, so the published price alone cannot tell you what you will owe. Compare the aid attached to each offer before estimating your borrowing. Whether that borrowing pays off over a career is a separate question, which IMA takes up in its guide on whether medical school is worth it.

Tuition-Free and Reduced-Tuition MD Programs

Some MD programs waive tuition for every student or provide substantial aid based on family income. IMA’s guide to tuition-free medical schools covers the broader school list. The important distinction is that tuition-free does not always mean cost-free.

NYU Grossman School of Medicine gives every MD student a full-tuition scholarship regardless of merit or financial need. Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine offers all students a full tuition scholarship, including the continuation fee in the research thesis year, and covers selected fees.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine covers MD tuition plus educational and technology fees, but not living expenses or other attendance costs. Its published student budget still lists health insurance, books, national board fees and living expenses as costs to plan for.

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine offers full cost-of-attendance aid to eligible students from families earning less than $175,000 and tuition scholarships to those from families earning less than $300,000. Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine waived tuition for students enrolling through 2026, but lists $69,212 in tuition and a $113,232 estimated cost of attendance for 2027/2028. Programs and eligibility can change, so confirm the terms on the school’s own page when comparing offers.

Osteopathic Medical School Costs

AACOM’s most recent Cost of Attendance Report covers 2023-24, so its figures are two years older than the MD tuition figures above and the two sets are not a same-year comparison. AACOM received reports from 48 private and 11 public osteopathic medical colleges, meaning most reporting DO colleges were private.

In 2023-24, private osteopathic colleges had a median four-year cost of attendance of $365,710 and median four-year tuition and fees of $244,376. Public osteopathic colleges reported a median four-year cost of attendance of $309,121 and median tuition and fees of $204,930.

AACOM also reported average four-year costs of attendance of $371,403 at private colleges and $297,881 at public colleges. Where a college charged different in-state and out-of-state amounts, AACOM averaged those tuition and fee totals. For that reason, use an individual DO school’s resident classification, aid offer and published attendance budget when estimating your own cost.

Scholarships, School Aid and Federal Loans

Start with funding that does not need to be repaid, including scholarships, grants and school aid. IMA’s guide to paying for medical school without loans explains those possibilities in more depth. After subtracting that aid and any other available resources, the remaining cost is the amount you need to finance.

For students borrowing for medical school, IMA’s medical school loans guide covers loan types, private borrowing and repayment topics. The federal rule that matters most for this calculation comes from loan limit guidance from Federal Student Aid: for new borrowers, loans made on or after July 1, 2026 are limited to $50,000 a year and $200,000 in aggregate in Direct Unsubsidized Loans for professional students. Grad PLUS is eliminated for new borrowers. A $257,500 lifetime maximum applies across undergraduate and graduate or professional federal student loans, excluding Parent PLUS loans.

The AAMC says medical degrees remain classified as professional for the higher Direct Unsubsidized limits. Schools may choose to establish lower program-level caps. An IMA calculation using the federal limit and AAMC medians shows that $200,000 is $97,745 below the public median four-year cost of attendance and $208,150 below the private median, before grants, scholarships, savings or family support. That makes the net price after aid especially important for students starting now.

An interim exception applies to a student who was enrolled in the program as of June 30, 2026 and received a Direct Loan for that program before July 1, 2026. The earlier limits can continue for the lesser of three academic years or the time remaining in the program. Eligible students can retain the earlier $20,500 annual Unsubsidized Loan limit and Grad PLUS access up to cost of attendance minus other assistance, but withdrawing from the program ends the exception.

For loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, Federal Student Aid lists an 8.07% fixed rate for graduate and professional Direct Unsubsidized Loans and a 9.07% fixed rate for Direct PLUS Loans. The rate assigned to a loan remains fixed for that loan’s life.

Service Programs That Can Cover Costs or Reduce Debt

Service-based funding can pay costs during school or reduce qualifying debt after training, but it comes with specific professional commitments. IMA’s guide to programs that pay medical school costs or loans provides a broader comparison of NHSC, military and state options.

The National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program pays tuition and eligible fees, other reasonable educational costs and a monthly stipend for up to four school years for students training in primary care. Support requires two to four years of full-time service at an approved site in a Health Professional Shortage Area, depending on the number of supported years. After training, the NHSC Loan Repayment Program can offer primary care providers up to $75,000 for an initial two-year full-time service term.

The military Health Professions Scholarship Program is another commitment-based route. The HPSP description from Navy Medicine includes tuition and fees for up to four years, required books and equipment and a monthly stipend. In return, recipients serve at least two years on active duty or one year for each scholarship year, whichever is longer. The Army lists full tuition for up to four years, school-related funding and a monthly stipend of $2,999.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness operates after borrowing rather than paying school costs upfront. Under federal regulations, it forgives the remaining eligible Direct loan balance after the equivalent of 120 monthly payments while the borrower works full-time for a qualifying employer. IMA’s guide to loan forgiveness and PSLF for physicians addresses the program separately. Compare any service obligation with your career plans before counting its benefits in your funding strategy.

Comparing Medical School Offers on Price

Compare each school’s total cost of attendance after grants and scholarships, not tuition alone. Start with the amount the school expects you to fund for the full enrollment period, then subtract aid that does not need to be repaid. Keep grants and loans in separate columns so a large aid package does not look more generous simply because it contains more borrowing.

If you are comparing public schools, confirm whether each offer uses resident or nonresident pricing and whether your classification could change. For every scholarship, ask whether it renews for all four years and whether you must meet continuing eligibility conditions. Review the school’s living budget against your likely housing, transportation, insurance and personal costs rather than assuming you will spend the full allowance.

Next, compare the amount left after aid with the federal borrowing available to you. A lower tuition figure can still produce a higher net cost if another school offers more grant aid or provides a more workable living budget. Conversely, a large scholarship may not make an offer less expensive if it covers only one year.

The AAMC advises reviewing each medical school’s financial aid website and taking questions to its financial aid administrators. Ask for clear explanations of charges, renewable aid and borrowing limits before you commit. The goal is not to identify one universally best school, but to understand what each offer would require from you and your family.

Build Your Medical School Budget From the Net Price

Begin with each school’s full attendance budget, then replace the headline price with the amount left after renewable grants and scholarships. Confirm your residency classification, identify which costs are estimates and compare the remaining balance with the funding actually available to you.

This approach gives you a more useful answer than tuition alone. It also lets you bring focused questions to the financial aid office before accepting an offer. Once you understand the net cost, you can decide which combination of school aid, personal resources, federal borrowing and service commitments fits your circumstances.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Much Does Medical School Cost?

The median four-year cost of attendance for the class of 2026 is $297,745 at public MD schools and $408,150 at private MD schools. Those are AAMC medians. Cost of attendance, as Federal Student Aid defines it, covers tuition, fees, required health insurance and an allowance for living expenses, so it is broader than tuition alone.

How Much Is Medical School Per Year?

For in-state students in 2025-26, the AAMC reports a median first-year cost of attendance of $75,654 at public MD schools and $106,787 at private MD schools. Each school builds that budget under Federal Student Aid rules, and it includes living and educational expenses, not just the bill for tuition.

How Much Is Medical School for Out-of-State Students?

At public MD schools, median first-year tuition, fees and health insurance for nonresidents was $70,730 in 2025-2026, compared with $43,648 for residents. By IMA calculation that is a $27,082 difference between national medians, not the price gap at every school. Private-school medians were much closer at $76,605 for nonresidents and $74,661 for residents.

How Much Debt Do Medical Students Graduate With?

The AAMC reports a median of $215,000 in education debt for 2025 MD graduates who borrowed, with medians of $200,000 at public schools and $250,000 at private schools. The totals include debt from before medical school. Thirty percent of the class graduated with no education debt.

Is Medical School Free Anywhere?

Yes. NYU Grossman and Cleveland Clinic Lerner give every MD student a full-tuition scholarship, and Albert Einstein covers tuition plus educational and technology fees. Johns Hopkins covers tuition or the full cost of attendance based on family income. Tuition-free students may still need to fund living expenses, insurance or other charges. Programs can also change between enrollment years.

How Do People Pay for Medical School?

Students use combinations of scholarships, grants, school aid, personal or family resources, federal loans and service programs. For loans made on or after July 1, 2026, Federal Student Aid limits new professional student borrowers to $50,000 a year and $200,000 in total in Direct Unsubsidized Loans. Grad PLUS is closed to them, so the net price after aid matters more than it used to.

Is Medical School Worth the Cost?

That depends on the cost you would personally finance and the career you want. Among indebted 2025 MD graduates, median education debt was $215,000, while the preliminary median first post-MD year stipend was $66,986. IMA’s guide to whether medical school is worth it examines the broader debt, earnings and career tradeoffs.