Does Student Finance Cover Accommodation? (2026 Reality Check)

Quick links:

• How student loans work
• How much Maintenance Loan will I get? (2026/27 Figures)
• Does the loan actually cover the full rent?
• Rent vs. bills: The hidden costs of student accommodation
• What to do if your loan doesn’t cover accommodation?
• Frequently Asked Questions

The answer is yes, but not completely in most cases.

Student finance is designed to help with living costs, including accommodation, but for most students in 2026, it won’t cover the full cost of rent and bills on its own. This depends on the amount of financial support you receive, your rent costs, and your overall living expenses.

How student loans work ✍️

Student finance is made up of two main parts.

Tuition Fee Loan

This covers your course fees (up to £9,250 per year in England). The money is paid directly to your university, not to you.

Maintenance Loan

This is money to help with living costs, including accommodation, food, travel, and bills. It’s paid directly to you, usually in three instalments across the academic year. The amount you get depends on your household income, where you live while studying, and where you study.

Your Maintenance Loan is means-tested, so you’ll get a different amount based on your circumstances. More info on how this is calculated later in this guide 👇

With student rent prices continuing to rise, the gap between what you get from student finance and how much student accommodation actually costs is bigger than ever.

The more you understand your outgoings, the easier it’ll be to budget and avoid money stress during term time.

Let’s cover how student finance works and make sure you can afford your student house without being too stress, cold or hungry.

How much Maintenance Loan will I get? (2026/27 Figures) 🧮

Your Maintenance Loan is calculated based on your circumstances. Here are the two main factors used to work out your loan:

1. Your household income 🏠

This is the main factor used to calculate your Maintenance Loan. Essentially, if your household income is higher, you’ll receive a lower Maintenance Loan. This means two students paying the same rent can receive very different amounts of funding.

2. Where you live while studying 📍

Maintenance Loan amounts are split into three main tiers, depending on your living situation:

Living at home

You’ll receive the lowest level of Maintenance Loan, because you’re expected to have lower housing costs, i.e. rent and bills will cost less than if you lived independently.

Living away from home (outside London)

This is the most common category. This loan is higher than the “living at home” rate to reflect rent and bills, but it that doesn’t mean it’ll 100% match real-world costs.

Living away from home (inside London)

This is the highest tier, designed to account for London’s higher rents, but again this falls short in practice.

Making up the shortfall ⚖️

If you receive less than the maximum Maintenance Loan, the government assumes support from parents or guardians will make up the difference. This is why the loan is assessed using household income.

In reality, many families can’t/don’t top up student living costs, which can leave you short on rent or stressed about how to make ends meet.

That’s why understanding your actual Maintenance Loan entitlement and how it compares to your rent is so important before signing a tenancy. Ideally you’ll have a realistic idea of your uni budget before you start trying to find a student house.

Next, we’ll look at maximum Maintenance Loan amounts for 2026/27 and what they realistically cover once rent and bills are taken into account.

Maximum Maintenance Loan (2026/27)

Here’s a 2026/27 projected Maintenance Loan table you can use based on the latest government figures for England for new, full-time students.

These are maximum loan amounts. You’ll receive less if your household income is higher. Your exact figure will depend on your individual income assessment.

Estimated Maintenance Loan based on household income (2026/27)

What about additional grants & allowances?

You might be eligible for extra support that doesn’t always need to be repaid, such as:

• Maintenance Grant (Only in Wales)
• Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA)
• Childcare Grant
• Parents’ Learning Allowance
• Adult Dependants’ Grant

Does the loan actually cover the full rent? 📊

For many students, the honest answer is no, it doesn’t cover rent and living expenses.

The Maintenance Loan is meant to help cover rent as well as day-to-day living costs, including paying your student bills. But rising student rents often mean that accommodation accounts for most, if not all, of the loan.

The affordability gap

According to Save the Student’s National Student Money Survey 2025, Maintenance Loans fall short of overall living costs by an average of £504 per month. Most students rely on part-time work, savings, or help from family just to cover the basics.

Regional differences 🏢

How far your Maintenance Loan stretches often depends on where you study.

If you’re a student in cheaper cities like Newcastle or Glasgow, you could find that your loan covers rent and still leaves something for food and bills, particularly if you’re sharing a house and saving money where you can.

By contrast, if you’re in London, Bristol, Birmingham, and other popular student cities, the odds are your Maintenance Loan doesn’t come close to covering rent. In these areas, accommodation costs alone can exceed the amount of funding.

Two students may receive the same Maintenance Loan but face different financial pressures depending on their location.

The summer gap ☀️

Another major issue for students is the summer gap.

Maintenance Loans are paid to cover the academic year, usually in three instalments. However, most private student tenancy agreements last 12 months, typically from July to June.

This means you still owe rent over the summer while receiving little or no student finance during those months. Students cover this by working in the summer or support from family if possible.

Student halls versus private housing? 🏘️

The type of accommodation you choose also affects how far your loan goes.

University halls and purpose-built student apartments look more expensive on paper, but typically include utilities such as electricity, gas, water, and internet. This makes costs easier to predict.

Renting a private student house often looks cheaper, but bills are usually paid separately. Once energy, broadband, and other costs are accounted for, your monthly outgoings might be higher than you expect.

Read our ultimate guide to your student house to learn more about different types of accommodation and the pros and cons of each.

Rent vs. bills: The hidden costs of student accommodation 💸

Student accommodation is just one thing you’ll have to budget for. You’ll also need to be able to afford bills and food, while keeping up with your social life.

This is why so many students underestimate the true housing costs.

Student bills you need to loan to cover:

If you’re in a student house without bills included, your Maintenance Loan may also need to stretch to cover:

• 💡Energy bills

You’ll pay for gas and electricity for heating, hot water, cooking, lighting, and charging devices. You’ll use more in the winter, but your energy bills are usually averaged over the year, so your direct debit stays the same unless your usage dramatically changes.

• 💧Water bills

This is charged separately by the local water provider. Even with shared houses, this is an ongoing cost that needs to be factored into your budget (unless you’re in Scotland, where students are exempt).

• 🛜 Broadband

A reliable internet connection is essential for studying, streaming, and staying connected. Student houses usually need to arrange and pay for your own internet contract.

• 📺 TV Licence

Required if you watch or stream TV as it's broadcast, or use BBC iPlayer. This is often overlooked, but it is a legal requirement in many student homes.

These costs are not optional extras, and you’ll need to make sure you can pay for them. You’ll do this with your Maintenance Loan, alongside help from parents and/or a part-time job.

How much do student bills actually cost? Read this guide to find out the average student bills, so you can start budgeting.

Predictable costs with Unlimited Energy ⚡

The best way to save money is to know exactly what you’ll be paying and when.

Energy bills can feel like the most unpredictable things you’ll pay for, ‘cause they depend on your energy usage, energy tariff, as well as how energy-efficient your house is.

Energy use is much higher in winter, especially in shared student houses with poor insulation. On a fixed income like the Maintenance Loan, many students find themselves worried about using the heating in winter, worried about a big seasonal spike in costs.

In theory, winter energy costs are spread across the year through monthly direct debits. But you might not realise how much you’ve used until you get a big catch-up bill, or when your payments are increased unexpectedly.

It’s no wonder that more than half of students worry about turning on the heating according to Save the Student research.

That is also why capped energy deals, or variable tariffs can be problematic for students. If prices rise or usage increases during colder months, your costs can jump without warning. Get more detail in our Unlimited Energy vs capped guide.

Unlimited Energy works differently. Instead of reacting to usage changes, you pay a fixed amount, and use as much energy as you want.

What to do if your loan doesn’t cover accommodation? 💭

If your Maintenance Loan doesn’t cover your rent, you’re not alone. Here are some tips for making ends meet:

1. Check for grants and extra support

Before you look at working more hours or borrowing money, check whether you qualify for extra support.

Most universities offer a Hardship Fund or a similar bursary for students struggling with living costs. These are provided specifically for situations in which student finance does not extend far enough, so it’s always worth asking.

If you have a disability, long-term health condition, mental health condition, or learning difficulty, you may also be eligible for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA). This can help cover study-related costs, which can free up more of your Maintenance Loan for rent and bills.

2. Get a part-time job

A part-time job might help you to make up the gap between your loan and your rent.

Evening or weekend work fits around lectures for most people, and zero-hour contracts are common in retail, hospitality, and on-campus roles. UCAs recommends working no more than 15 hours per week.

Here’s how much you can expect to earn working 10 hours per week on minimum wage:

The key is finding a balance that works alongside your studies.

3. Use a student overdraft sensibly

Most student bank accounts come with a 0% overdraft, which can help if your rent and loan instalments do not line up perfectly. But this isn’t free money, it’s more of a short-term buffer. You shouldn’t rely on it day-to-day.

4. Be mindful of credit and repayments

Some students use credit cards or buy-now-pay-later services to get through the year. This can work, but only if repayments are made on time.

Your credit score reflects how you manage borrowed money. Missed payments can make things harder later on, such as renting privately, getting a phone contract, or applying for credit after you graduate.

If you decide to use credit, keep it simple and only borrow what you know you can pay back comfortably.

5. Talk to your parents/family early if you need to

If your Maintenance Loan is lower because of household income, it is a good idea to talk to your parents.

Showing them the numbers and explaining the shortfall before you sign a tenancy can make conversations much easier. It also avoids surprises later in the year when rent payments are already due.

6. Make your loan stretch further

Finally, small changes to day-to-day spending can make a big difference over the academic year.

Take a look at our guide to saving money at uni for some practical ways to cut costs on food, bills, travel, and socialising, without missing out on the student experience.

So, in answer to the question: Does student finance cover accommodation? The answer is yes, but probably not all of your living costs, too. It’s all about being smart with your money, budgeting carefully, so you can live your best student life without the stress.