FAFSA 2026-27 SAI Explained: 4 Worked Examples (Formula, Tables, Pell Cutoffs)

The Student Aid Index is an arithmetic formula, published in full by Federal Student Aid every year, yet most families only ever see its output. This guide does the arithmetic in the open. Each step below uses the 2026-27 tables exactly as the Department publishes them, so you can follow a family whose finances look like yours and see where the number comes from and which inputs move it.

Step 1: The Pell Grant income tests

Before any formula runs, the 2026-27 FAFSA checks the family's adjusted gross income against the 2024 HHS poverty guidelines (the FAFSA always uses the guidelines from two years before the award year). A dependent student whose parents did not file a tax return gets an SAI of −1,500 outright. Otherwise, a non-single parent at or below 175% of the guideline for the family size, or a single parent at or below 225%, qualifies for the maximum Pell Grant and an SAI of zero, or lower if the formula produces a negative number. Families up to 275% (non-single) or 325% (single parent) are guaranteed at least the $740 minimum Pell Grant as long as the calculated SAI is under $14,790.

2024 HHS guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and D.C.; Alaska and Hawaii use higher figures. Thresholds are the guideline multiplied by the percentage. Independent students use the same 175%/225% maximum tests and 275%/350%/400% minimum tests depending on parent status.

Step 2: The Formula A tables

Formula A applies to dependent students. Parent income is total income (AGI plus untaxed additions such as deductible IRA contributions and tax-exempt interest, minus offsets like taxable college grants) less four allowances: federal income tax paid, the payroll tax allowance (1.45% Medicare on earned income, 2.35% above $200,000 single or $250,000 joint, plus 6.2% Social Security on earned income up to $168,600 per earner), the income protection allowance below, and the employment expense allowance of 35% of earned income up to $5,000. There is no longer an allowance for state taxes.

Assets come next. Parents report cash, savings, checking, investments, real estate other than the family home, and business or farm net worth adjusted by Table A3 (40% of the first $175,000, then $70,000 plus 50% of the amount from $175,001 to $520,000, and higher steps above that). The asset protection allowance in Table A4 is $0 at every parent age for 2026-27, so the full net worth is multiplied by 12%. Adding that to available income gives adjusted available income, which goes through Table A5. The student then contributes 50% of income above an $11,770 protection allowance (after their own taxes) and 20% of assets with no allowance. The sum is the SAI, floored at −1,500.

Example 1: Family of four, one earner, $45,000

Married parents, two children, one parent works and earns the entire $45,000 AGI, $3,000 in a savings account, the student has no income or assets. Federal tax paid is assumed at $1,300 for the walkthrough; the FAFSA pulls the actual figure from the IRS.

This family clears the maximum Pell test before the formula runs, and the formula agrees: allowances exceed income by more than $9,000, the bracket table returns its floor of −$1,870, and the SAI settles at the −1,500 minimum. A negative SAI does not pay the family anything, but it signals to colleges that need exceeds the Pell Grant and can increase institutional and state aid.

Example 2: Single parent of three, $70,000, $15,000 saved

One parent, two children, AGI $70,000 all earned, $15,000 in savings, student with no income. Federal tax assumed at $5,200.

The single-parent status matters twice: it raises the maximum-Pell line to 225% of the guideline (not enough here) and the minimum-Pell line to 325%, which this family clears comfortably. The formula lands at $4,381, so Pell is set by the schedule rather than the guarantee. Every additional $1,000 of savings adds $120 × 22% = about $26 to the SAI, which is why moving money around in the base year rarely changes much at this income level.

Example 3: Two earners, $120,000, $60,000 invested, working student

Married parents earning $70,000 and $50,000, family of four, $60,000 in a taxable brokerage account, student earned $6,000 at a summer job. Federal tax assumed at $9,500.

Two things stand out. The 47% marginal bracket bites early: of the $14,740 of adjusted available income above $43,900, nearly half becomes contribution. And the student's $6,000 of earnings costs nothing, because the $11,770 student income protection allowance absorbs it entirely. A student can earn up to that allowance plus their own payroll and income taxes without raising the SAI. This family is $4,008 over the Pell cutoff; the FAFSA still determines the student's Direct Loan eligibility and most colleges' own need-based grants, so the form is worth filing. Our Pell Grant eligibility guide shows the schedule between $0 and $14,790.

Example 4: Family of five, $180,000, $150,000 invested, student with $20,000

Married parents earning $110,000 and $70,000, three children, $150,000 in investments, and a student who has $20,000 in a savings account in their own name. Federal tax assumed at $20,000.

The student's $20,000 is assessed at 20% with no protection allowance, adding $4,000 to the SAI; the same money held by the parents would add $2,400. The parents' $150,000 of investments adds $18,000 before the bracket table and roughly $8,460 after it. And a sibling starting college the following year would report the same $41,189 parent contribution rather than half of it, because the number-in-college division was removed by the FAFSA Simplification Act. Families in this range should compare each college's net price calculator, since institutional formulas (including the CSS Profile) can treat siblings and assets differently.

What moves the number and what does not

If your calculated SAI does not reflect your family's current situation because of a job loss, medical expenses, or a one-time income spike in the base year, colleges can exercise professional judgment. The financial aid appeal letter guide explains what to document. To turn the SAI into an actual bill, subtract it from each school's cost of attendance with the college cost calculator, then build the year's spending plan with the college budgeting guide. For the filing process itself, start with the FAFSA 2026-27 guide; for a broader explanation of how SAI replaced EFC, see FAFSA SAI vs EFC.

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