Stanford, US · 21 months · class of 434
Stanford GSB MBA: cost, salary and payback
Tuition and fees of $197,676 for two years, and a class that goes further than most into venture capital and private equity.
Paid back after graduation in
4.0 years
Total cost $419,380 · 10-year NPV $296,469
| Tuition and fees, whole program | $197,676 |
| Living budget | $84,204 |
| Salary given up, 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$20,000 |
| Total cost | $419,380 |
| Salary after: median base salary | $185,000 |
| Signing bonus × share receiving it | $15,300 |
| 10-year net present value | $296,469 |
| Return on the cost (present values) | 72% |
US dollars at the ECB rate of the last update. Raises of 5% a year with the MBA and 3% without, discounted at 5%, before tax. How this is calculated.
Fees and budget read on October 13, 2026 · employment: Class of 2025 (MBA CSEA standard) · Built by Radif Partners · Method
- Tuition and fees
- $197,676
- Total cost, salary given up included
- $419,380
- median base salary
- $185,000
- Payback, reference person
- 4.0 years
Two years at Stanford GSB cost $281,880 in tuition, fees and the school's own living budget, before the salary you stop earning. For a person earning $90,000 today, the 21 months away add $157,500 and the summer internship gives part of it back, for a total cost of $419,380. The class of 2025 reported a median base salary of $185,000, which repays that total 4.0 years after graduation and leaves a ten-year net present value of $296,469. What sets Stanford apart is where the class goes: 35% into technology and 33% into finance, with 6% in venture capital alone. A large part of the class does not look for a job at all: founders and sponsored students sit outside the salary figure.
Venture capital, private equity and the founders outside the count
Stanford's finance graduates are investors more than bankers. Only 3% of the class went into investment banking, against 16% in private equity at a median $200,000 and 6% in venture capital at $212,500; asset management paid $212,500. On these figures Stanford ranks first of 39 schools in our finance ranking and first of 40 for technology.
The report is honest about what the median leaves out. Among graduates of the class of 2025, the school counts a sixth starting a new business and about one in eight sponsored by a company, neither of whom is in the salary statistics; the median describes the graduates who looked for a job and reported a base salary. A founder's first years usually pay far less, which the calculator cannot know: type your own expected salary in the field "Salary after the MBA" to see that path.
Stanford GSB: where the class went
Share of the class
11%
| Salary reported | $192,000 |
| Graduates, about | 48 |
| Payback with that salary | 3.8 years |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
What makes the bill so high
Tuition runs $178,374 for the two years, and the school adds $19,302 of mandatory fees and health cover. Its budget for a single student on or near the campus, $84,204 for the program, reflects rents in the Bay Area. At the reference salary, the 21 months of pay you give up are the second largest line after tuition; above $102,000 a year they become the largest. The class is small, 434 students entering in 2025, which is one reason the school reports many segments with a single median rather than a range.
Stanford GSB: when the MBA pays back, for your salary
Payback after graduation
4.0 years
| Total cost with the salary given up | $419,380 |
| Salary after (median base salary) | $185,000 |
| 10-year NPV | $296,469 |
Same assumptions as the main calculator; US dollars.
Staying in the United States, and in California
95% of graduates who took a job stayed in the United States. For an international student planning to work at home soon after the degree, the payback above does not apply: the salary used is an American one. The Asia ranking and Europe ranking show which schools actually place there. Against its closest rival, the Harvard and Stanford comparison puts both reports side by side.
Stanford GSB: what a scholarship changes
Payback with the scholarship
3.8 years
| Without it | 4.0 years |
| Total cost with it | $389,380 |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Where Stanford GSB stands in our rankings
- #9 of 40 · Any industry (whole class)
- #16 of 38 · Consulting
- #1 of 39 · Finance, all segments
- #1 of 10 · Private equity
- #1 of 40 · Technology
- #16 of 39 · Working in the United States
Our fit score, reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA (method). Third-party rankings play no part in it.
What the Stanford GSB MBA costs
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition, whole program | $178,374 |
| Mandatory fees | $19,302 |
| Living budget, whole program | $84,204 |
| Salary given up: $90,000 a year for 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$20,000 |
| Total cost, reference person | $419,380 |
Stanford GSB employment report: Class of 2025
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median base salary | $185,000 |
| Middle half of salaries | $165,000 to $200,000 |
| Signing bonus (median) | $30,000, received by 51% |
| Summer internship, per month (median) | $8,000 |
| Graduates who accepted an offer within three months | 81% |
Stanford GSB graduates by industry
| Industry, as the school names it | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Technology (total) | 35% | $185,000 |
| Finance (total) | 33% | $200,000 |
| Consulting | 11% | $192,000 |
| Media / Entertainment + Real Estate + Education + Other (Automotive, Government, Manufacturing, Transportation & Logistics) | 7% | not published |
| Health Care | 5% | $175,000 |
| Energy | 4% | $166,000 |
| Consumer Products | 2% | not published |
| NonProfit | 1% | not published |
| of which investment banking (investment banking) | 3% | not published |
| of which private equity (private equity) | 16% | $200,000 |
| of which venture capital (venture capital) | 6% | $212,500 |
| of which asset management (asset management (Inv. Mgmt. & Hedge Funds)) | 8% | $212,500 |
Where Stanford GSB graduates went to work
| Region | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| US (US (total) + US Mid-Atlantic + US Midwest + US Northeast + US South + US Southwest + US West) | 95% | not published |
| Europe | n/a | not published |
| Asia | 2% | not published |
| Africa | n/a | not published |
| Latin America | 1% | not published |
Stanford GSB graduates by job function
| Function | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Consulting | 12% | $192,000 |
| Management Consulting | 11% | $192,000 |
| Finance | 31% | $200,000 |
| Investment / Portfolio Mgmt | 9% | $200,000 |
| Private Equity | 13% | $200,000 |
| Venture Capital | 5% | $200,000 |
| General Management | 32% | $170,000 |
| Business Ops / Strategy / Planning | 18% | $170,000 |
| Chief of Staff | 7% | $188,800 |
| General Mgmt / Rotational / Leadership | 7% | $170,000 |
| Marketing / Sales | 20% | $180,000 |
| Product Management | 11% | $180,000 |
| Sales / Customer Success / Revenue | 4% | $180,000 |
| Business Development | 3% | not published |
| Other | 4% | $177,500 |
The Stanford GSB class
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| International students | 38% |
| Women | 45% |
| Average years of work experience | 5.3 |
| Class size | 434 |