Tufts University acceptance rate, SAT range and net price

The Tuition Pact moves the line to $150,000

Tufts is one of the universities that raised its free-tuition threshold most sharply. Under the Tuition Pact, students entering in fall 2026 or later whose families earn less than $150,000 with typical assets pay no tuition, and Tufts continues to meet the full demonstrated need of every admitted student, whatever the citizenship. The 2023-24 federal figures on this page describe the years before the pact, when the band from $75,001 to $110,000 paid an average of $23,311; for a family in that band applying now, the price should fall to housing, food and personal costs at most, depending on assets.

The budget itself is high: $99,998 for 2026-27, including tuition of $74,862 and $20,594 for housing and food, plus a travel allowance that depends on where the student lives.

Tufts: net price for your family income

Family income per year

$

Average net price, 2023-24

$14,923

Income band	$48,001-$75,000
Share of the 2023-24 cost	17%

Federal figure for first-year students on federal aid.

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Applying to one school inside Tufts

Tufts asks applicants to choose a single school: Arts and Sciences, Engineering, the SMFA art school or the five-year combined degree, and each application is read only for that school. Arts and Sciences is by far the largest, enrolling most of the first-year class; Engineering takes a few hundred. A student unsure between the two should weigh where the profile is strongest, since a switch after admission is possible but not guaranteed.

Early Decision and the score choice

Tufts has two binding Early Decision rounds, in early November and early January, and no Early Action. For fall 2025 it admitted 1,071 of 3,344 Early Decision applicants, a far higher share than in the regular round. The score policy is unusually explicit: send an SAT of 1300 or more or an ACT of 28 or more, and the decision to include scores cannot be changed once the application is submitted. With a published range of 1,460 to 1,520, a 1300 sits below the 25th percentile of enrolled students who sent scores, which says how much the range is lifted by test-optional selection.

Tufts: where your SAT score lands

Your SAT total

Enrolled students scoring below you (approx.)

50%

Middle 50%	1,460 to 1,520
Your score is	inside the middle 50%

Fall 2025 entering class (Class of 2029), CDS 2025-2026, C9 (749 SAT submitters, 279 ACT submitters). Normal curve fitted to the two published percentiles.

Odds and net price at other universities →

Close comparisons

Students who look at Tufts often apply to Boston College, Northeastern and Brown. Their aid thresholds differ, and Boston College and Northeastern publish different early round rules; the comparison tool lines them up at your income.