529 Education Planner
Project future education costs and see whether your 529 savings are on track, including how much you need to save monthly to close any gap.
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Enter your information to see projected education costs and whether your savings will cover them.
College cost projections assume 5% annual tuition inflation. Investment returns are not guaranteed. 529 funds must be used for qualified education expenses to maintain tax advantages. This is for educational purposes only.
Where a 529 fits against the alternatives
For education specifically, a 529 is still the strongest account available. Growth is tax-free when used for qualified education expenses, the investment menu is broad, and contribution room is large. Colorado residents get a further advantage that national comparisons usually omit: a state income tax deduction for contributions to a CollegeInvest 529, which none of the alternatives match.
The three accounts people weigh against it solve different problems. A custodial Roth IRA has the best tax treatment of any of them, but requires the child to have actual earned income, which rules it out for most children under about fifteen. A custodial brokerage account (UTMA or UGMA) is flexible and unrestricted, but it becomes the child's outright property at the age of majority and it counts heavily against financial aid. A Trump Account comes with a free $1,000 federal contribution for children born 2025 through 2028, but withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income, which is worse than a 529 for education and worse than a brokerage account for general savings.
The usual order: claim the federal $1,000 if your child qualifies, capture any employer contribution, then fund the 529 for education money. Our guide to accounts for children works through the full decision, including what happens to unused 529 money. Beyond that, the right answer depends on whether the goal is really college or something more open-ended.