Cal Poly San Luis Obispo: Cost, Admission Odds And Payoff
- Cal Poly admitted 21,367 of 71,309 first-year applicants for fall 2025, and 26% of the students it admitted enrolled.
- California residents with financial need can have CSU tuition covered by a Cal Grant or the State University Grant. Those grants don't cover Cal Poly's campus fees, which run higher than tuition.
- 33% of the class of 2025 took out student loans. Those who borrowed left with an average of $21,588.
Is Cal Poly Worth It? The College Investor Rating
| Family | What They Pay | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | A | |
| Low-Income Families | Average $10,164 a year | A |
| Middle-Income Families | Average $15,279 a year | A |
| High-Income Families, In-State | $36,515 a year | A |
| High-Income Families, Out Of State | $58,481 a year | B |
How Hard Is It To Get Into Cal Poly?
Cal Poly accepted 30% of first-year applicants for fall 2025: 21,367 admits from 71,309 applications. 5,456 of those students enrolled, a yield of 26%.
- Median SAT Reading: 680
- Median SAT Math: 660
- Median ACT Composite: 31
What Cal Poly Weighs In Admissions
Cal Poly rates course rigor and academic GPA as very important. Demonstrated interest counts for nothing: campus visits won't change your odds. Legacy status doesn't count.
Very Important
Considered
Not Considered
What Will Cal Poly Actually Cost Your Family?
The average in-state Cal Poly student receiving financial aid paid $18,832 a year after grants.
That's against a sticker price of $36,515 a year for in-state students. Out-of-state tuition alone runs $37,005. California residents with financial need can have CSU tuition covered by a Cal Grant or the State University Grant. Those grants don't cover Cal Poly's campus fees, which run higher than tuition.
| Total Borrowed Over Four Years | $0 |
| Within Federal Student Loan Limits | $0 |
| Beyond Federal Student Loan Limits | $0 |
| Monthly Student Loan Payment, 10-Year Plan | $0 |
| Expected Pay In Your Major | $0 |
How Cal Poly Meets Financial Need
Cal Poly reports meeting 74% of demonstrated financial need on average. In 2025-2026, 8,322 of Cal Poly's 21,564 full-time undergraduates had financial need, and their average need-based grant was $21,140. Cal Poly determines financial need with the FAFSA, so how your assets are counted affects what you pay. 2,033 students without financial need received merit scholarships averaging $3,239.
Grants made up 87% of Cal Poly's need-based financial aid in 2025-2026. The rest came from student jobs, including Federal Work-Study, and $19,417,347 in student loans.
| Source | Need-Based | Not Need-Based |
|---|---|---|
| Cal Poly Grants | $66,003,299 | $7,342,546 |
| Federal Grants | $35,078,609 | $257,759 |
| State Grants | $62,320,955 | $6,424,294 |
| Outside Scholarships | $7,283,970 | $9,308,845 |
| Student Jobs And Work-Study | $5,100,241 | |
| Student Loans | $19,417,347 | $25,011,177 |
| Parent Loans, Including Parent PLUS | $4,730,713 | $22,591,872 |
| Athletic Scholarships | $7,276,195 |
Families Cover Part Of Their Financial Need
Cal Poly met an average of 74% of financial need in 2025-2026. The rest falls to families as savings, income, Parent PLUS loans or private student loans. Read your financial aid award letter carefully and appeal it if the numbers don't work.
| Measure | All Undergrads | First Year |
|---|---|---|
| Students With Financial Need | 8,322 | 1,886 |
| Share Of Financial Need Met | 74% | 79% |
| Average Need-Based Grant | $21,140 | $21,935 |
| Average Financial Aid Package | $23,262 | $23,968 |
| Average Student Loan | $4,367 | $3,568 |
| Students Without Financial Need Receiving Merit Scholarships | 2,033 | 624 |
Does A Cal Poly Degree Pay Off?
Generally, yes. That's why Cal Poly earns .
Cal Poly students earn a median of $96,304 ten years after starting college, and 91% out-earn a typical high school graduate. 24% take out federal student loans, and the typical borrower leaves owing $16,500, about 17% of one year's pay. Earnings still depend heavily on major: Computer Science graduates earned a median of $154,784 four years after graduating, compared with $54,805 for Animal Sciences graduates.
Who Borrowed In The Class Of 2025
1,241 of Cal Poly's 3,804 bachelor's graduates in 2025 left with student loan debt, averaging $21,588. The 119 graduates who used private student loans averaged $44,636.
| Student Loan Type | Borrowers | Share Of Class | Average Debt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any Student Loan | 1,241 | 33% | $21,588 |
| Federal Student Loans | 1,208 | 32% | $17,775 |
| Private Student Loans | 119 | 3% | $44,636 |
How We Graded Cal Poly
The overall grade weighs payoff, price, graduation and student debt. Price counts what low-income families pay (5 points), what middle-income families pay (10 points) and the sticker price high-income families pay (10 points). Each income grade swaps in that family's price alone.
Grade Checks
Financial Aid Check
Cal Poly met 74% of financial need on average, so families with need should expect to cover part of it with savings, income or student loans.
Financial Health Check
No federal heightened cash monitoring and no closure, merger or financial exigency announcements.
Earnings Floor
91% of students out-earn a typical high school graduate. Schools where most don't are capped at a D.
Cal Poly In The News
- Cal State Approves 3-Year Bachelor’s Degrees Across All 22 Campuses
- New Law Simplifies CSU Direct Admission For Students
More For Cal Poly Applicants
Compare Cal Poly With Similar Schools
Sources And Methodology
The College Investor Rating scores every four-year college from 0 to 100 on payoff (30%), price (25%), graduation (20%) and student debt (25%) using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data. An earnings floor and a financial health check can cap the grade at D, and a financial aid check flags concerns without changing it. Price is judged on its own, without earnings. The grade measures financial return for families, not teaching quality, campus life or a school's mission.
Notes On The Data
- Low-income families earn under $48,000. Middle-income families earn $48,000 to $110,000. Their prices are federal averages for first-time, full-time students who received financial aid.
- High-income families are those who get no grant aid, so they pay the sticker price (cost of attendance). Out-of-state families pay the in-state cost of attendance plus the difference in tuition.
- Paying full price is the share of undergraduates who received no grant aid from any source in 2022-23, from the Education Department's IPEDS survey. The chance of merit aid divides merit scholarship recipients by full-time undergraduates without financial need, from the Common Data Set.
- Earnings by major are medians four years after graduation. Majors with too few graduates for the government to report earnings are left out. Debt by major is median federal student loan debt among borrowers.
- Admissions, financial aid and class of 2025 student loan figures come from the Cal Poly Common Data Set 2025-2026. Student loan debt at graduation excludes Parent PLUS and other parent loans, and students who transferred in.
- The calculator uses federal net price averages for in-state students and adds the tuition difference for out-of-state students. Borrowing up to the $27,000 federal limit for dependent undergraduates uses the 2026-27 undergraduate rate of 6.52%, and anything above it uses the 9.07% Parent PLUS rate. Parent PLUS loans are capped at $20,000 a year and $65,000 per student. See all federal student loan interest rates. Cal Poly's own net price calculator gives a personal figure, and College Aid Pro can compare costs across schools.
Data years: Earnings follow students who started college in 2011-12 and 2012-13, measured 10 years later. Net price and borrowing rates are for 2024-25. Graduation rates follow students who started in fall 2019. Median debt covers borrowers who left school in fiscal 2024 and 2025. Full-price shares are for 2022-23.
Work at Cal Poly? If a figure looks wrong, send us the source and our editors will review it.
Sources: Cal Poly Common Data Set 2025-2026. U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, data updated November 2, 2026. News from The College Investor.