If you’re saving for college, you might be familiar with 529 plans. A 529 college savings plan is a tax-advantaged account where you can save and invest money for future college tuition and qualified costs.
A 529 plan is usually the default strategy when saving money for college. But is it always your best choice? It’s important to evaluate your college savings options and explore alternatives to 529 plans before deciding which approach you’ll take to help pay for college when the time comes.
Specifically, let’s take a look at:
The pros and cons of using a 529 plan
Benefits of using a 529 plan
There are a lot of great benefits to using a 529 plan to save for college. If you want to save your money in an account designed to help families create a financial plan to cover college costs, this option may be for you.
- Funds in a 529 plan are exempt from federal taxes if the funds are used for qualified educational expenses.
- Thanks to the Secure Act of 2019, qualified education expenses aren’t exclusive to college — you could employ the funds for private elementary, secondary or religious schools as well as apprenticeships, home schooling and even student loan debt repayment.
- 529 plans allow you to invest your savings, giving you the opportunity to earn a much better return on your money than if you were simply putting that cash in a savings account.
- Friends and family members can make gift contributions to your account for birthdays, holidays or any other given time.
- Unlike the traditional 529 plan, a 529 prepaid tuition plan allows you to lock in today’s tuition rates by paying upfront.
Drawbacks of using a 529 plan
Though there are many benefits to 529 plans, these plans also come with a few major disadvantages that just might push you toward 529 alternatives (see below).
- You have to use them for qualifying educational expenses to be able to reap any tax benefits.
- If the intended recipient of the savings doesn’t end up using the account, and you don’t have another child you could transfer them to, you’ll need to pay taxes and a 10% penalty fee on any earnings you take out and don’t use for qualified college expenses.
- 529 funds count toward that child’s assets and Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculation for financial aid, potentially preventing a student from receiving need-based support in the form of grants, work-study programs and subsidized student loans.
- Investment options within the plans can be extremely limited and may come with high fees.
5 Alternatives to 529 plans
Given the downsides, it makes sense to consider alternatives to 529 plans as well. The good news is that these plans are not the only options for college savers. Some 529 alternatives include using a custodial account, Roth IRA or Coverdell Education Savings Account.
Here are five of the most common alternatives to 529 plans you can use for your own college savings plan:
1. Savings accounts
2. Roth IRAs
3. Brokerage accounts
4. Custodial accounts
5. Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
1. Savings accounts
Rather than turning to a 529 plan, you can always opt to save for your child’s college expenses through other, more flexible savings products such as a regular savings account or certificate of deposit (CD).
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2. Roth IRAs
Another 529 alternative to put away money for college and invest it for a potentially larger return is to utilize an account intended for retirement, such as a Roth IRA. Roth IRAs are individual retirement accounts that allow people to save and invest after-tax money.
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3. Brokerage accounts
Among alternatives to 529 plans, a brokerage account is a popular choice among more experienced investors. Brokerage accounts give you access to any investment that you’d like to buy or sell. These can range from stocks and mutual funds to bonds, currency and futures.
You can open a brokerage account through a broker. Options will vary depending on the company you choose to open an account with.
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4. Custodial accounts
If there’s a chance your child may not attend college, but you still want to plan for their future and support them financially, another 529 alternative is to utilize a custodial account. UGMA (Uniform Gift to Minors Act) and UTMA (Uniform Transfer to Minors Act) are two common options.
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5. Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (ESAs)
A Coverdell Education Savings Account, or ESA, is similar to a 529 plan in that it allows you to put away savings for your child’s education when they are under age 18. Like with 529 plans (again, as of 2019), qualified educational expenses aren’t limited to college expenses.
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Evaluate alternatives to 529 plans as you save for college
There are a lot of college savings options. But personal finance is personal, and using a certain account to save for college may make sense depending on your specific situation.
If you decide to turn to alternatives to 529 plans, consider consulting with a financial advisor who can explain the pros and cons of any option you consider. Ultimately, your best bet is to avoid regular savings accounts and CDs because the interest rates are typically very low. With other 529 alternatives, however, you can put your money to work and potentially earn a return by investing your savings instead.
If you’re saving for a child’s education and have a time frame of five to 18 years before those funds are needed for college, investing in a 529 plan, Roth IRA or brokerage account can help you maximize the cash you set aside for those future expenses.
Whichever method you choose, be sure you take the time to fully understand how your decision will affect your full financial future in the long term. Save successfully, and your family may be able to avoid federal and private student loan borrowing.
Andrew Pentis and Emilia Benton contributed to this report.
Interested in refinancing student loans?
Here are the top 9 lenders of 2022!Lender | Variable APR | Eligible Degrees | |
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![]() | 1.74% – 8.70%1 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.74% – 7.99%2 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.74% – 7.99%3 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.89% – 5.90%4 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.74% – 7.99%5 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 2.05% – 5.25%6 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.86% – 6.01% | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | N/A7 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
![]() | 1.99% – 8.38%8 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
Check out the testimonials and our in-depth reviews! 1 Important Disclosures for Splash Financial. Splash Financial DisclosuresTerms and Conditions apply. Splash reserves the right to modify or discontinue products and benefits at any time without notice. Rates and terms are also subject to change at any time without notice. Offers are subject to credit approval. To qualify, a borrower must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident in an eligible state and meet applicable underwriting requirements. Not all borrowers receive the lowest rate. Lowest rates are reserved for the highest qualified borrowers. If approved, your actual rate will be within a range of rates and will depend on a variety of factors, including term of loan, a responsible financial history, income and other factors. Refinancing or consolidating private and federal student loans may not be the right decision for everyone. 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Earnest DisclosuresStudent Loan Refinance Interest Rate Disclosure Actual rate and available repayment terms will vary based on your income. Fixed rates range from 2.99% APR to 8.24% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Variable rates range from 1.99% APR to 8.24% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Earnest variable interest rate student loan refinance loans are based on a publicly available index, the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The variable rate is based on the rate published on the 25th day, or the next business day, of the preceding calendar month, rounded to the nearest hundredth of a percent. The rate will not increase more than once per month. The maximum rate for your loan is 8.95% if your loan term is 10 years or less. For loan terms of more than 10 years to 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 9.95%. For loan terms over 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 11.95%. 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Laurel Road DisclosuresAll credit products are subject to credit approval. Laurel Road began originating student loans in 2013 and has since helped thousands of professionals with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees consolidate and refinance more than $4 billion in federal and private school loans. Laurel Road also offers a suite of online graduate school loan products and personal loans that help simplify lending through customized technology and personalized service. In April 2019, Laurel Road was acquired by KeyBank, one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies. Laurel Road is a brand of KeyBank National Association offering online lending products in all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. All loans are provided by KeyBank National Association, a nationally chartered bank. Member FDIC. For more information, visit www.laurelroad.com. 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Information and rates are subject to change without notice. 5 Important Disclosures for Navient. 6 Important Disclosures for LendKey. LendKey DisclosuresRefinancing via LendKey.com is only available for applicants with qualified private education loans from an eligible institution. Loans that were used for exam preparation classes, including, but not limited to, loans for LSAT, MCAT, GMAT, and GRE preparation, are not eligible for refinancing with a lender via LendKey.com. If you currently have any of these exam preparation loans, you should not include them in an application to refinance your student loans on this website. Applicants must be either U.S. citizens or Permanent Residents in an eligible state to qualify for a loan. Certain membership requirements (including the opening of a share account and any applicable association fees in connection with membership) may apply in the event that an applicant wishes to accept a loan offer from a credit union lender. 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As of 5/17/2022 student loan refinancing rates range from 2.05% APR – 5.25% Variable APR with AutoPay and 2.49% APR – 7.93% Fixed APR with AutoPay. 7 Important Disclosures for PenFed. PenFed DisclosuresFixed Rate Loan Terms: 5 years/60 monthly payments, 8 years/96 monthly payments, 12 years/144 monthly payments or 15 years/180 monthly payments. Annual Percentage Rate is the cost of credit calculating the interest rate, loan amount, repayment term and the timing of payments. Fixed rates range from 3.29% to 5.43% APR. Rates are subject to change without notice. Fixed APR: Fixed rates will not change during the term. This rate is expressed as an APR. Since there are no fees associated with this loan offer, the APR is the same percentage as the actual interest rate of the loan. These rates are subject to additional terms and conditions, and rates are subject to change at any time without notice. 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Lowest Rate Disclosure: Lowest rates are only available for the most creditworthy applicants, require a 5-year repayment term, immediate repayment, a graduate or medical degree (where applicable), and include our Loyalty and Automatic Payment discounts of 0.25 percentage points each, as outlined in the Loyalty Discount and Automatic Payment Discount disclosures. Rates are subject to additional terms and conditions, and are subject to change at any time without notice. Such changes will only apply to applications taken after the effective date of change. Federal Loan vs. Private Loan Benefits: Some federal student loans include unique benefits that the borrower may not receive with a private student loan, some of which we do not offer. Borrowers should carefully review federal benefits, especially if they work in public service, are in the military, are considering possible loan forgiveness options, are currently on or considering income based repayment options or are concerned about a steady source of future income and would want to lower their payments at some time in the future. When the borrower refinances, they waive any current and potential future benefits of their federal loans. For more information about federal student loan benefits and federal loan consolidation, visit http://studentaid.ed.gov/. We also have several resources available to help the borrower make a decision on our website including Should I Refinance My Student Loans? and our FAQs. Should I Refinance My Student Loans? includes a comparison of federal and private student loan benefits that we encourage the borrower to review. |