How Much Should You Have In A 529 Plan

How much you should be saving for college for your child? It's one of the biggest questions we get asked almost everyday. How much should we have in a 529 plan? How much should we save for college? How much do we need to worry about this? And the answer is tough - it depends.

The idea of a 529 College Savings Plan is great: you can contribute money into an account and it will grow tax free to someday pay for your child's education. And you can contribute a lot of money too (up to $300,000 in most states). That's not where the trouble arises.

The real trouble comes from rising tuition costs and how much every "college savings calculator" says you need to save for your child's education. According to The College Board, the average cost of a public 4-year college in 2025-2026 was $11,950 for in-state tuition. The average cost for a private college was $45,000.

When you start plugging those numbers into the college savings calculator, suddenly you're supposed to start saving over $500 per month for your child. Then, add that into your own savings for retirement, and you're not going to have anything left for yourself each month!

So let's dive in and see how much you should have in a 529 plan.