How to find your student loan servicer and what you really owe

The U.S. Department of Education hires loan servicing companies to manage your federal loans. They send your bills, take your payments, and process requests like changing your repayment plan. The main federal servicers right now are Aidvantage, Edfinancial, MOHELA, Nelnet, and Central Research, Inc. (CRI). Your loans can move from one servicer to another without you asking, which is how many people lose track.

Not sure which servicer you’re dealing with or how much you owe? Here’s how to find out.

Step 1: Log in to StudentAid.gov

Go to StudentAid.gov and sign in with your account username and password (also called your FSA ID). If you've forgotten them, use the recovery links on the login page. Never pay anyone to do this for you.

Once you're in, open your dashboard and look for the section listing your aid. You'll see each federal loan separately, along with its type, the date you borrowed it, and its status.

Step 2: Find your servicer

On the same page, look for your servicer's name and contact details. That's who you call about anything. If you see more than one servicer, you have loans in more than one place.

If your loans are in default, the Default Resolution Group usually handles them instead of a regular servicer. You can reach them at 1-800-621-3115.

If you can't get into your account at all, call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243.

Step 3: Know what’s included in your balance

Your balance has two parts:

Principal is the amount you borrowed, or what's left unpaid.

Interest is the cost of borrowing, and it adds up daily on most federal loans.

Unpaid interest matters. If you've been in forbearance, your balance may be higher now than when you stopped paying. For example, borrowers who were in the SAVE plan's long forbearance plan have had interest building since August 2025.

Note each loan's interest rate, too. When you have extra money, put it toward the highest-rate loan to save more money in the long run.

For an exact number, ask your servicer for a payoff amount. That's what it would take to pay the loan off on a specific date, including the interest.

Step 4: Download your records

StudentAid.gov lets you download a file with your full federal loan history. Save it somewhere safe. Do the same with your servicer. Download your payment history, too, especially if you've heard your loans are being moved.

Step 5: Track down private loans

Private loans live outside the federal system. To find them, pull your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com and look for student loan accounts that aren't on StudentAid.gov. Old statements and your cosigner's records can also help.

Spotting mistakes

Compare what StudentAid.gov shows with what your servicer shows. They should match. Watch for payments that weren't credited, interest that should be paid, a wrong loan status, or a plan you didn't choose. Ask your servicer to fix any error, in writing if you can. If that doesn't work, you can contact the Federal Student Aid Ombudsman or file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.