How to put student loan payments on pause

Woman reviews personal finances at home, looking at papers in front of a laptop computer

While a pause can offer short-term relief, it is not a long-term solution

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Sometimes, life gets in the way of making your student loan payments. Maybe you have faced an unexpected job loss that shrinks down your budget to the bare essentials. Or perhaps you are going back to school and need some way to put payments on pause while your income is, too.

There are ways to do exactly that — and lately, more and more Americans are taking advantage of options to press pause on the years-long venture that is paying off student loans. "Around 10.3 million borrowers were enrolled in a payment pause known as a forbearance in the third quarter of 2025, up from around 2.9 million during the same time period in 2024," said CNBC, citing data analyzed by higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz. Meanwhile, "another 3.4 million federal student loan borrowers had deferred their payments in the third quarter of this year."

What are your options for pausing student loan payments?

There are two ways to temporarily stop making payments on student loans: deferment and forbearance. These options are available for federal student loans, and some private lenders may offer them as well.

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Deferment and forbearance "act the same way for private student loans: Interest always accrues, and you're always responsible for paying for it," said Nerdwallet. However, there are differences for federal loans: With deferment, "interest does not accrue on subsidized federal student loans and Perkins loans," whereas "interest accrues on all loans" with forbearance, said the outlet.

There are also differences in eligibility requirements, as deferment typically requires a specific qualifying event, such as being unemployed or attending school at least half-time. Forbearance, on the other hand, typically does not require such an event.

When does student loan forbearance or deferment make sense?

If you are starting to worry about missing payments, deferment and forbearance can help you "avoid the harsh consequences of falling behind," said CNBC. Pressing pause on this one particular bill can also "free up some cash to cover other essential expenses and give you some time to get back on your feet financially," said Experian.

There are also some specific life situations that allow you to qualify for deferment (which, unlike forbearance, can last longer than 12 months at a time and also stops interest from continuing to accrue). This includes if you are:

Unemployed
Experiencing economic hardship
Attending school at least half-time
On active military duty or in the Peace Corps
Undergoing cancer treatment
In an approved rehab program

Are there any downsides to pausing student loan payments?

While a pause can offer short-term relief, it is not a long-term solution. Put another way, "you may feel some relief in the moment, but your debt isn't going away," said Ramsey Solutions, a personal finance blog.

Additionally, "time spent in a deferment or forbearance can be incredibly costly," said CNBC. Since interest continues to accrue in forbearance, "a typical federal student loan borrower can see their debt grow by $219 a month in interest charges alone while they pause their payments," said the outlet. This can make the debt more challenging to contend with down the road, potentially interfering with other financial priorities, such as saving for retirement or a down payment for a house.

Becca Stanek has worked as an editor and writer in the personal finance space since 2017. She previously served as a deputy editor and later a managing editor overseeing investing and savings content at LendingTree and as an editor at the financial startup SmartAsset, where she focused on retirement- and financial-adviser-related content. Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.