Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Cheaper option
Upfront is cheaper
Total paid under ISA
$18,000
Total paid upfront (incl. financing)
$15,000
Savings by choosing the cheaper option
-$3,000
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How to use this
- 1Enter upfront tuition price ($).
- 2Enter expected post-bootcamp salary ($).
- 3Enter isa percentage of income (%).
- 4Enter isa payment period (months).
- 5Enter isa payment cap ($).
- 6Enter apr if upfront is financed (%).
- 7Read your cheaper option on the right — it updates as you type.
- 8Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Bootcamps often offer a choice between paying tuition upfront or signing an income share agreement (ISA) that takes a percentage of your salary for a fixed period after you get a job. The ISA feels free until you run the numbers against your expected salary. This calculator totals what you'd actually pay under an ISA given your projected post-bootcamp salary and compares it directly against the upfront price, factoring in the payment cap most ISAs include.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Upfront tuition price: 15000 $
- Expected post-bootcamp salary: 75000 $
- ISA percentage of income: 12 %
- ISA payment period: 24 months
- ISA payment cap: 22000 $
- APR if upfront is financed: 0 %
Results
- Cheaper option: Upfront is cheaper
- Total paid under ISA: $18,000
- Total paid upfront (incl. financing): $15,000
- Savings by choosing the cheaper option: -$3,000
What each field means
Inputs
- Upfront tuition price ($)
- The upfront tuition price used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 15000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Expected post-bootcamp salary ($)
- The expected post-bootcamp salary used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 75000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- ISA percentage of income (%)
- The isa percentage of income used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 12 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–30 %.
- ISA payment period (months)
- The isa payment period used in the calculation, measured in months. Starts at 24 months so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 1–60 months.
- ISA payment cap ($)
- The isa payment cap used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 22000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- APR if upfront is financed (%)
- The apr if upfront is financed used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 0 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–25 %.
Results
- Cheaper option
- Returned as a plain value and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total paid under ISA
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total paid upfront (incl. financing)
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Savings by choosing the cheaper option
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
When is an ISA actually the better deal?
When your salary projection is uncertain or you expect to earn on the lower end of outcomes, since most ISAs include an income floor below which you pay nothing. If your salary is likely to be strong and predictable, an ISA usually costs more than the equivalent cash price.
What's the payment cap and why does it matter?
Most ISAs cap total payments at roughly 1.5x the stated tuition price, regardless of how high your salary goes. Without the cap, a high earner could pay far more than upfront tuition over the payment period, so always check this figure is included in a real contract.
Does the ISA percentage apply to gross or take-home pay?
Almost always gross salary, before taxes, and it typically excludes bonuses and equity unless the contract states otherwise. Read the specific ISA agreement — this materially changes the total paid.
What if I don't get a job above the income floor?
Reputable ISAs pause or forgive payments below the minimum income threshold (often $40,000-$50,000) and most cap the total payment window at a fixed number of years even if you never cross that threshold, though terms vary widely by provider.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Bootcamp ISA vs Upfront Tuition Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/bootcamp-isa-vs-upfront
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/bootcamp-isa-vs-upfront" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bootcamp ISA vs Upfront Tuition Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Bootcamp ISA vs Upfront Tuition Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/bootcamp-isa-vs-upfront) (2026).