Tuition fees for undergraduates in England will rise by £285 for the 2025/26 academic year. We’ve taken a look to see what this could mean for you and how you could still afford uni.
Updated: 31 Jan 2025
Update 4 December 2024: The Welsh Government has announced that it will also be rising tuition fees for the 2025/26 academic year in line with England, going from £9,250 to £9,535. We have updated the article below to reflect this.
For the first time since 2017, annual undergraduate university tuition fees are rising in England and Wales, going from £9,250 to £9,535 – an increase of £285. This will come into place for the 2025/26 academic year, so students starting uni in September 2025 will be the first ones to have these higher fees. Students who are already studying will also annually pay this new fee from September 2025.
At this point of your life, your tuition fees will probably be the thing you’ll spend the most money on, so any sort of increase sounds scary. However, it’s definitely not all doom and gloom.
This news is paired with a rise in maintenance loans by 3.1% for the 2025/26 academic year for English students, meaning you can borrow more money to use for your day-to-day costs. The amount you’ll be able to borrow will depend on where you’re living – here’s what they will be...
Living outside of London and living at home: £8,877 (+£267 compared to 2024/25)
Living outside of London and not at home: £10,544 (+£317 compared to 2024/25)
Living in London and not at home: £13,762 (+£414 compared to 2024/25)
It’s important to remember that for most students, your tuition fees will be covered by your tuition loan, and you won’t need to start paying it back until you’re earning over a certain threshold. When you do start to repay it, the amount you repay each year won’t be any different, as it’s based on what you earn, not how much you borrowed.
Still feeling a bit concerned about the fees? That’s completely fair and totally understandable. To help you with this, we’ve got loads of advice and information that you can use to save on your university expenses and get the best value for your money.
For example, you’ll note that we specifically mentioned the tuition fee rise is in England and Wales. Tuition fees in Scotland and Northern Ireland aren’t changing (for now, at least). Here’s what the tuition fees are in those countries...
Scotland: Free for most Scottish students, £9,250 for other UK students
Northern Ireland: £4,750 for Northern Irish students, £9,250 for other UK students
This might be your opportunity to look at unis in one of these countries – there are excellent institutions in all three of them!
Explore:
If you’re still planning to study in England or Wales but are worried about tuition fees, it would be a good idea to consider the cost of living across the country, as some towns and cities can be cheaper or more expensive than others. Handily, we’ve put together cost of living guides for places across the UK, so you can get an idea of where you could study and save some cash.
Explore: Affordable uni cities across the UK
Even without tuition fee increases, it’s always wise to think about ways you could save money while studying. We’ve made some guides to help you with cutting cash off your food shopping bill, where to find the best deals, and how you could find a scholarship to give your budget a much-needed boost.
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Don’t forget to check out what universities are doing to help students with the cost of living crisis! We’ve written an article all about what unis are doing to make studying affordable for more people, and many unis are trying hard keep further education as an attainable goal for most students.
Explore: What are unis doing about the cost of living crisis?
If there’s a uni you’re particularly interested in, we recommend reaching out to them and asking if they have any projects that are aimed at saving money.
You could also have a read through our collection of student reviews to check out what students think about a uni’s value for money or its cash-saving programs. Here are a couple examples of what students have said in their reviews...
A noteworthy aspect of being part of Westminster is the accessibility of joining societies, which is offered free of charge compared to other universities
Ashcroft is definitely the best value-for-money university hall!
Explore: Read real student reviews
When it comes to picking your uni, it’s also important to keep value for money in mind. You’re going to want an education that’s worth it – and even with the cost of tuition rising, this is definitely still possible.
To check out some of the best value universities in the UK, we recommend having a look at the winners of our Whatuni Student Choice Awards. These institutions have received hundreds of glowing reviews from current students, and we’ve also divided it up into important categories so you can search for the stuff that’s really important to you.
Explore: Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2024 winners
It’s also worth taking a look at the Complete University Guide’s League Tables to get an idea of which universities have been performing very well and would be worth your money. You’ll be able to see how each uni stacks up against each other, and our sister site even has league tables for lots of different subjects, so you can see who’s the best for the courses you’re interested in.