Obviously, tuition is the largest cost. The other significant cost is housing and food. Depending on where your law school is located housing may or may not be a significant cost. During your first year food will be a significant cost and may decrease in cost after your first year as you adapt to the new learning environment and are able to eat at your home more. During your first year you may find it very difficult to eat at home a lot as you will probably spend a significant time at school or the library.

Many law students obtain government backed student loans (stafford loans) at a reduced interest rate compared with private loans. Although, depending on your law school tuition, the government backed loans often do not even cover tuition. Your law school will be very helpful in obtaining loans. If you are worried about graduating law school with significant debt, i.e. over $100,000, which is not uncommon, you may want to seriously consider going to a public law school where the tuition is significantly lower. Also, most states allow in state tuition after the first year of law school if you obtain residency in the state. Please check with the school to see how long it takes to establish residency in the state and obtain the much lower in state tuition.