Tuition and Aid
Tuition and financial aid, in plain numbers
Check the 2026-27 tuition, then see how the Clarity aid application and the February 15 deadline work.
Checked against Thacher's published admissions pages on November 5, 2026.
Tuition and aid
Tuition and financial aid.
- Boarding tuition
- $84,000 for 2026-27 (boarding)
- Day tuition
- $68,050 for 2026-27 (day)
- Fees
- Thacher says it does not charge fees beyond tuition.
- Extra costs
- Families should expect about $1,500 in additional costs for camping and riding gear, books and other academic supplies.
- Olympus Fund
- The Olympus Fund helps families receiving significant aid (typically 90% of tuition or more) with books, travel, camping and riding gear and health insurance, and provides a monthly student allowance.
- Payment plans
- Thacher offers three payment plans: ten monthly installments from July 1 to April 1, two installments (two-thirds by August 1 and the balance by December 15), or one payment on August 1.
- How to apply for aid
- Families apply through the Clarity Application, and the school runs it alongside admission with a different deadline. A $65 submission fee is due at the end, and Clarity automatically determines fee waiver eligibility from income and assets.
- Documents
- The aid application includes federal income tax returns and supplemental documents. Some prior-year tax documents are collected automatically from the IRS, and applicants who do not file U.S. taxes upload the appropriate documents to Clarity.
- Aid deadline
- February 15, 2027 for new applicants
- How need is measured
- Thacher uses the Clarity methodology, which looks at the income, assets and expenses of students and parents, divided among all children attending tuition-charging schools.
- How need is weighed in admission
- Thacher is not need blind, but says it aims to accept students on their own qualifications without regard to their family's financial resources.
- Separated parents
- The Financial Aid Committee considers the resources of both parents and any stepparents. A non-custodial parent who is not involved may need a waiver petition.
- International families
- International students are welcome to apply for need-based aid. Aid is need-based only, with no merit scholarships, and does not cover living expenses. The $65 fee has no automatic waivers for international families.
- Renewal
- Aid awards are made annually and families reapply each year. Families who enroll paying full tuition are expected to continue doing so unless their finances change significantly.
- Aid at Thacher
- For 2025-26 the school lists that 28% of students received aid, with an average award of $64,659.
- 01
Recheck the figures on the school website before you budget, since tuition changes each year.
- 02
Gather tax documents early so the aid application takes an evening, not a week.