How To Fill Out The CSS Profile® For 2026-27

What Is The CSS Profile and Why Do You Need To Fill It Out?

The CSS Profile is a secondary financial aid application offered by the College Board. It stands for College Scholarship Service Profile. Over 200 colleges and universities ask for the CSS Profile to be completed in addition to the FAFSA. Yes... you must fill out both the FAFSA and the CSS Profile. You can see if your school requires the CSS profile on this page.

It's essential that families attending these colleges fill it out because these schools use it to determine how much institutional aid (their own grants and scholarships) a student qualifies for. Given that these are private colleges and universities, they are also typically more generous with their financial aid policies.

When some schools have tuition over $65,000 (remember, most CSS Profile colleges are also on the list of the most expensive colleges), need-based financial aid is even available to students from middle and upper-middle class income brackets. 

Once you fill out the CSS Profile, your application will be sent to the college's financial aid office, and they will assess your profile for a financial aid award. You'll only receive an actual aid award once you're accepted to the school.

Aside from qualifying for grants, scholarships, and other forms of financial aid, filling out the CSS Profile indicates that you are interested in that institution, making it more likely that the institution will try to entice you to attend by offering financial aid.

What is the CSS Profile used for?

When Do You Need To Fill Out The CSS Profile?

Timing is important - the earlier you fill out the CSS Profile, the more potential aid you can receive. Most colleges set a deadline for the CSS Profile to be completed. Check with your college.

Typically, the deadline is between January 1 and March 31 for Regular Decision applications. If you're applying Early Decision, the deadline could be as early as November 1 to November 15.

With that being said, parents and students of the class of 2026 fill out the CSS Profile starting October 1, 2025. 

Here's a quick guide:

• Starting College In Fall 2026: Fill out the CSS Profile starting October 1, 2025
• Starting College In Fall 2027: Fill out the CSS Profile starting October 1, 2026 

Before You Get Started With The CSS Profile

Completing the CSS Profile seems overwhelming until you've done it once. Then you realize it's just like most job applications you've ever filled out. Yes, it's a bit more time consuming than the FAFSA, simply because you cannot import your tax information. But it really doesn't take a lot of time or effort. Most organized families should easily complete the CSS Profile in under 45 minutes.

The CSS Profile is broken into 16 sections (and they can all be completed in one session, or it saves your progress as you go):

1. Getting Started
2. Parental Relationships
3. Residence
4. Current Education Information
5. Add or Remove Colleges
6. Parent Details
7. Parent Income
8. Parent Employment
9. Housing Information
10. Household Summary
11. Child Support
12. Parent Expenses
13. Parent Asset
14. Student Income
15. Student Assets
16. Special Circumstances/Additional Information

Unlike the FAFSA, you only use one login - the College Board ID. This is the same ID/login you likely made when you signed up for the PSAT or SAT. 

Depending on your school, you may have to upload documents as well. This will be done via IDOC and that process won't start until 1-2 days after you complete the base CSS Profile.

Create Your College Board ID

Create a College Board Login, which is just an email and password combination that allows you to sign your CSS Profile electronically. This same ID is was you likely already used to enroll in the PSAT or SAT. This should be created by the student.

• Student: Get your College Board ID from when you completed the PSAT or SAT. If you don't have one, you can create a new one here: College Board.
• Parent: For most situations, the CSS Profile Parent Information should be completed within the student's application/account. However, if you are a non-custodial parent, or if you don't want to share financial information on your student's account, you create a separate College Board student account. If you do this, it's important to ensure that the student's name, date of birth, and SSN match, so that your two applications can be properly linked when sent to schools.

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