Free · now in beta

A college list that
actually fits
your kid.

College Gambit scores schools against what your family actually cares about — cost, culture, academic support, a specific major, how far from home feels right — and gives each one a clear red, amber, or green verdict, with a source behind every number. Once your list is set, you can track every scholarship right alongside it: deadlines, essays, and awards, all in one place.

Try it outSee how it works →

Free — no ads, no lead generation, and nobody buys your student's contact info from us. It's a hobby project and still in beta, so you may hit the occasional rough edge or bug. If you do, I'd genuinely love to hear about it.

Rankings give everyone the same answer.
Your kid isn't everyone.

A school that's perfect for one student can be the wrong call for another. The idea here is simple: let your list turn on the things that actually matter to your family — cost, culture, support, distance from home, a specific program — weighted the way you'd weigh them.

How it works

Three moves to a college list that's yours

  1. 01

    Decide what matters

    Pick from dozens of criteria across the five questions that actually decide fit — Can I get in? Can we afford it? Will I be supported? Is it my kind of place? Does the place itself work? — then weight each one.

  2. 02

    Add your schools

    Search any U.S. college and the data fills itself in on demand. No spreadsheets, no manual entry, no twenty open tabs.

  3. 03

    See your fit board

    Every school scored against your priorities on a clear red / amber / green board, ranked to you — with reach, target and safety tiers and a nudge if you're short on affordable safeties.

Then keep going: track every scholarship you're applying to — deadlines, essay prompts, required materials, and awards — right alongside your college list, in the same free account.

What makes it different

A verdict, not a ranking

Scored to you, not to a list

You set the rubric. The same school lands green for one family and red for another — on cost, culture, or the support your student needs.

A source behind every number

Each value shows where it came from and how current it is, with a link to check it yourself. Opinion is labeled as opinion — never dressed up as fact.

Accessible by design

Never color alone — icon, label and color together, WCAG AA, still readable in grayscale. A real feature, not a checkbox.

Criteria only you would think of

Score every school on the thing your family actually cares about — 'within three hours of home,' 'has a real theater program.'

Why it exists

Built for one kid. Shared with yours.

I built College Gambit for my own daughter. She has very specific interests, and finding schools that hit her particular combination of things — the right program, the right kind of place, close enough to home, actually affordable — turned into a sprawling spreadsheet that was a headache to keep straight. Then came a second spreadsheet for scholarships. At some point I figured it'd be easier to just build the thing I actually wanted, so I did.

It's a hobby project, it's free, and it's still in beta. That means it's genuinely useful already — but you may hit a rough edge or a bug here and there. If something looks off or breaks, tell me; that's how it gets better.

The privacy promise is simple: no ads, no lead generation, and nobody buys your student's information from us — not colleges, not scholarship sites, not anyone. We barely collect anything to begin with: no address, no phone number, no GPA harvesting. And if you ever decide to leave, your data leaves with you — delete your account and it's gone, not "deactivated."

Questions

Common questions

What is College Gambit?
College Gambit is a free tool that builds a personalized college list scored to your family's priorities — and tracks every scholarship alongside it. You choose the criteria that matter to you, weight each one, add any U.S. college, and see every school scored red, amber, or green against those priorities, with a source behind every number. It's a parent's hobby project, still in beta.
Who made it, and why?
A parent built it for their own daughter's college search. She had very specific interests, and finding schools that met her particular combination of criteria turned into a spreadsheet headache — then a second spreadsheet for scholarships. Building an actual app seemed easier, so that's what it became. It's shared for free in case it helps other families in the same spot.
It's in beta — should I expect bugs?
Possibly a few. It's a hobby project, so you may run into the occasional rough edge. It's genuinely useful already, but if something looks off or breaks, we'd love to hear about it — that's how it improves.
Who is College Gambit for?
Parents and students building a college list who want fit judged by what actually matters to them — cost, culture, academic support, a specific major, distance from home — rather than by a one-size-fits-all national ranking.
Does College Gambit help with scholarships too?
Yes. Track every scholarship you're applying to alongside your college list — deadlines, essay prompts, required materials, and awards — in the same free account. We never sell or share your family's data with scholarship sites, the same promise we make for colleges.
How is it different from college ranking sites?
Rankings score every school the same way for everyone. College Gambit scores each school against the rubric you set, so the same school can land green for one family and red for another — a verdict tailored to your student rather than a one-size-fits-all list.
How much does College Gambit cost?
It's free. There are no ads and no lead generation — we never sell or share your family's information with colleges or scholarship sites. We collect as little as possible: no address, no phone number, no GPA harvesting.
Where does the data come from?
From public sources such as the federal College Scorecard and IPEDS plus school-published information. Every value shows where it came from and how current it is, with a link to verify it yourself. Opinion is clearly labeled as opinion, never presented as fact.
Which colleges are included?
Four-year, degree-granting U.S. institutions. Data fills in on demand when you add a school, so there's no manual entry.
Is College Gambit accessible?
Yes. Every fit verdict pairs an icon and a label with color — never color alone — meets WCAG AA contrast, and stays readable in grayscale.

Give it a try

It's free, it's in beta, and it was made by a parent who was in the same spot you might be. Take it for a spin and see if it helps.

Try College Gambit