It’s easy to put off paying for your student loans, since some student loan repayment plans have repayment periods upward of 20, 25, and 30 years. However, if you don’t want to spend a few decades paying off your student loans, you can take steps right now to pay them off fast, including making payments while you're still in school, making larger and/or additional payments, and more.

1. Pay While You’re in School

If you’re currently a student, every little bit you can pay now will help you in the long run. If you can afford to chip away at your loans while in school, then you’ll owe less when you graduate. You can even make payments during your six-month grace period for direct subsidized, unsubsidized or Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL). The more you pay before your loans capitalize, the less interest will get added to your principal balance after you leave school.

2. Pay More Than the Minimum

Based on the size of your loan, your repayment plan will have a minimum amount that must be paid each month to pay off that debt within the repayment period. Making the minimum payment is enough to keep you on track with your repayment plan, but nothing is stopping you from paying more than the required amount each month. If you can add even just a few more dollars to your minimum monthly payment, then you could begin to shave months off of your repayment period.

For many loan servicers, paying extra may go toward your next month's payment, which includes principal and interest. Applying your extra money to your principal will pay off your loan faster as it diminishes that amount that is earning interest. To focus your efforts on your principal, check with your loan servicer. There may be a spot to apply extra money to principal alone.

3. Make an Extra Payment

Whether you come into a work bonus or get a nice tax refund, you can use a lump sum of extra cash to pay down your student loan debt. You can pay toward your principal to focus on lowering the overall amount you owe.

4. Activate Autopay

There’s nothing quite like “set it and forget it.” Some student loan lenders, including federal loans, offer autopay discounts, so you could lower how much you’ll pay in interest over the life of your student loans as a benefit for staying on track with your repayment period.

5. Stick to the Standard Repayment Plan, if You Can

When you leave school, you’re automatically enrolled in the Standard Repayment Plan, which is set to help you pay off your loans in 10 years. This is the fastest repayment plan available, and you’ll pay the least in interest over your repayment period. Compare this to income-driven repayment (IDR) plans, which have longer repayment periods of either 20 or 25 years (depending on the plan).

6. Tap Into Employee Benefits

Some jobs and companies offer matching student loan repayment benefits. They’ll match your payments every month, up to a certain amount. Employers can offer employees up to $5,250 per year in tax-free student loan repayment benefits through 2025. Not every company offers student loan repayment matching, but you may want to ask your employer if they have any special benefits like this. It could help you pay off your loans much faster.

7. Find a Secondary Source of Income

If you’re struggling to find extra funds to put toward paying down your student loans, consider turning a hobby into a source of additional income or use your extra time to get involved in the gig economy. You could deliver groceries, walk dogs, sell homemade creations online, etc. If your primary source of income is used to pay your other bills, then you can use your secondary source of income to chip away at your student loan debt. Just be mindful—jobs that are considered 1099 contractor status do not have taxes taken out. You'll have to set aside money from each paycheck or face a hefty tax bill at the end of the year.

8. Revise Your Budget

If you’ve made a budget that only has you making the minimum monthly payment, you will most likely take longer to pay off your debt. If you have the means, change your budget to focus on paying off your student loans faster. That might mean less money going toward other things, such as dining out, traveling, or shopping. Freeing up those funds means you can devote more money toward paying down your student loans.

9. Check Tax Deductions

The student loan interest deduction lets borrowers claim up to $2,500 in student loan interest payments from last year, depending on their modified adjusted gross income (MAGI). You don’t need to itemize deductions to claim this, and it’s available for federal and private student loans. You then put this tax deduction toward paying down your student debt even further. There might be other deductions and credits for which you’re eligible. Keep in mind that the student loan interest deduction is gradually reduced and eventually phased out for higher-income taxpayers.

10. Look Into Refinancing

If you have private student loans or a mix of federal and private student loans, you may want to think about refinancing your student loans. Refinancing means you’ll take out a new, private loan that pays off your existing loans, and then you’ll make one payment to your new, refinanced loan. Make sure you can get a lower interest rate than what you’re paying now and craft your repayment plan around what you can reasonably afford. There are several student loan companies for refinancing to choose from, each with different benefits and interest rates.

Remember that you lose all federal benefits and protections when you refinance, such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), Saving for a Valuable Education (SAVE) eligibility and deferment and forbearance options. Only take this route if you don’t plan to use federal benefits.

The Bottom Line

Paying back your student loans might feel overwhelming, but there are a few different ways that you can pay them off sooner. Set clear goals, revise your budget, and take advantage of employer benefits and educational tax breaks. The more you focus on paying off your student loans right now, the more money you’ll have for yourself once you do.