Whether you're just finishing high school or want to return to school in hopes of starting a new career, a scholarship can help make your dream of attending college a reality. And since scholarships can be awarded for a variety of purposes — including good grades, financial need, community involvement or talent in different fields — there's a good chance you can find options that meet your specific needs and qualifications.

What you need to know about the best scholarship websites

• Scholarship websites compile lists of scholarships from multiple sources
• They can help you narrow down your options through various filters
• They may also provide tips and resources to help increase your chances of winning

Our top picks for the best scholarship websites

• Big Future by College Board
• Careeronestop's Scholarship Finder
• Going Merry
• Internationalstudent.com
• JLV College Counseling
• Scholarship America
• Scholly Scholarships by Sallie Mae
• Fastweb

Best scholarship websites reviews

Big Future by College Board

BigFuture by College Board is a great option for those looking for merit-based scholarships. College Board is a nonprofit organization that administers standardized tests and helps students plan for college. Its website also offers an extensive list of scholarships with details about eligibility criteria and deadlines.

BigFuture users can save their scholarship searches, receive updates when new scholarships become available and get matched to college scholarship opportunities based on their SAT and ACT scores.

Through BigFuture, students who complete their college preparation task list are automatically entered into a monthly scholarship raffle. Students with annual household incomes under $60,000 are allowed two entries per drawing, which can increase their chances of winning.

Careeronestop's Scholarship Finder

CareerOneStop's Scholarship Finder is one of the best sites to find college scholarships that match your qualifications. It’s run by the U.S. Department of Labor and has a variety of filters to help you narrow down your options. You can search by education level, award type, gender and whether you live internationally or plan on studying internationally. The site also provides key contact information such as email addresses and phone numbers for each scholarship opportunity.

Going Merry

Going Merry is a free app that matches students with scholarships, grants and financial aid programs. The company's Scholarship Quick Match tool allows students to fill out a single application to get matches with scholarships that fit their academic profile. Once matched with prospective scholarships, students can further filter the results by award amount, eligibility, scholarship bundles, application process and whether the scholarship is local. The company further streamlines the application process by automatically filling out applications with the student's personal information, saving them time and effort.

The company is operated by Earnest (a private student lender owned by Navient), and it offers plenty of additional resources to help parents and students navigate the college admissions process, including budget calculators, college cost comparison tools and free templates for financial aid appeal letters. Lastly, Going Merry also one of the few college scholarship websites that won't sell your data to private third-parties.

Internationalstudent.com

Internationalstudent.com aims to help students from different countries find scholarship programs that meet their requirements. It does this through a scholarship search engine specifically designed for students looking to study overseas.

On the website, students can find an extensive list of college scholarships, grants and international student loans. They can also access tools and information to help them make the most of their time abroad, including health insurance options, travel tips, detailed instructions on applying for a U.S. student visa, and more.

While the site is easy to navigate, it requires students to input their contact information, country of origin, and intended field of study and degree to generate a list of scholarship options.

JLV College Counseling

JLV College Counseling was founded by an experienced former admissions professional dedicated to helping potential, current and future students and their families through the college admissions process.

The scholarship website is free, updated monthly and lists financial aid opportunities for particular needs. For example, users can sort through scholarships by specific categories, such as options for car accident survivors, first-generation students, and those who have lost a parent.

Scholarship America

Scholarship America is a nonprofit organization that provides scholarship opportunities to students from underrepresented communities. Through its scholarship program, Dollars for Scholars, it works with communities and organizations to raise money for need-based, merit-based and other types of scholarships.

Scholarship America manages scholarships for over 1,400 companies nationwide and has given out $4.2 billion in grants since it was founded. And because it believes that students need more than just money to succeed in college, it also offers resources such as mentoring, emergency grants, financial planning tools and direct student support.

Visitors to the website don't need to create an account to use any of the resources listed there. However, there aren't many scholarship search filters available — you can search only by deadline and state — which could slow down the search process for those with particular needs.

Scholly Scholarships by Sallie Mae

Scholly, featured on ABC’s Shark Tank, is a mobile-friendly platform designed to help students search for scholarships more efficiently. Its mission is to improve the time-consuming process of applying for scholarships.

The company used to charge a monthly fee for its app, but in 2023, it was bought by private student lender Sallie Mae, which gave it the backing to make the tool free for all users. It no longer has a dedicated mobile phone app, though the search engine is still easy to use from mobile devices.

While Scholly's scholarship search tool is useful, users should be aware that results may include sweepstakes listed as scholarships (often advertised as "no essay" awards). This can be misleading to students looking for genuine scholarships awarded based on merit, financial need, community involvement, etc. Sweepstakes may also require users to provide personal information, which can be used for marketing purposes and could result in spam phone calls from different companies.

Fastweb

Fastweb's goal is to make the process of finding scholarships as easy and stress-free as possible by matching students with the scholarships for which they may qualify. To do this, students must fill out a short questionnaire with their contact information, schools of interest, and potential majors. (There's a box in the form that you should leave unchecked if you want to keep your data private. Otherwise Fastweb will share it with colleges and other third parties for marketing purposes.)

Users should note, however, that Fastweb's scholarship homepage includes a list of "no essay" contests and other sweepstakes awards. To find actual scholarships and filter awards, users must scroll down to the "Find College Scholarships" button. They'll also have to create an account to access the scholarship application.

Fastweb's budgeting tools and a part-time job and internship search, powered by Monster.com, can be accessed without an account.

What You Need to Know About Scholarship Websites for College

Scholarship websites allow students and families to sort through a variety of scholarship opportunities in a single location. Many scholarship websites will have the same core list of awards, and which website you use may simply come down to user preference.

Consider the following before using a scholarship website for college:

• Types of scholarships: Most websites list a range of scholarships, including need-based and merit-based options. If you’re looking for specific types of scholarships, such as those for minority students or athletes, make sure the website includes awards in the areas you’re looking for. Also, be on the lookout for sites that claim to list scholarship opportunities but try to enroll you in giveaways and contests instead. The giveaways and contests may offer valid financial rewards, but they're essentially a lottery system.

• Membership and fees: Some scholarship websites may charge a fee to access their scholarship database, so check if there is one before signing up. Remember that many free scholarship websites earn money by selling the information you share in your profile.

• Navigation and user interface: Look for websites that are easy to navigate, have several search filters, and are updated frequently. This will help you save a lot of time as you're narrowing down which scholarships are the best fit for you.

What are the different types of scholarships?

There are two main types of scholarships available: need-based awards and merit-based awards.

Need-based scholarships require students to demonstrate financial need to be eligible for the scholarship award. Merit-based scholarships, on the other hand, are awarded to students who excel in a certain way, whether that be in academics, athletics or another extracurricular achievement or character trait.

You can obtain a scholarship by meeting or exceeding specific standards set forth by the scholarship providers.

Some of the factors scholarship providers may look at to determine an applicant's eligibility include:

• Financial need
• Academic achievement
• Extracurricular skills (performing arts and athletics)
• Volunteerism and philanthropy
• Religious denomination
• Organizational affiliations
• Academic interests (like major or intended career)

How do scholarship websites and search engines work?

Scholarship search engines generally require users to complete an online profile or answer a series of questions to match users with scholarships that meet specific criteria. The search engines scour databases with thousands of available scholarships and help users pare their options through various search filters.

Many sites allow students to save scholarships to their accounts to apply to at a later time. They may also provide free resources to help users complete their scholarship applications, such as essay writing tips or guidelines for formatting resumes.

How to know if scholarship websites are legit

A scholarship website that requires you to pay any sort of fee simply to apply for scholarships is likely a scam. Genuine scholarships should not require payment. (Note that there are some legit websites, including ones on our list, that charge membership fees to access additional services. Be sure to read the fine print about what’s included.)

Other red flags to watch out for are:

• Disorganized layouts
• Outdated information
• Spelling or grammar mistakes.

Always look for sites that are easy to navigate and provide clear, up-to-date details about the scholarship opportunities listed there.

Beware of inadvertently opting into sweepstakes listed as scholarships, otherwise known as luck-based awards. If the application for the scholarship takes less than five minutes to complete or requires only your name and phone number, it's likely not a real scholarship.

Sweepstakes listed as scholarships aren't only misleading but could require users to input personal information for marketing purposes. Additionally, the odds of winning sweepstakes are low, and some may even require participants to pay a fee.

Authentic scholarships generally require letters of recommendation, essays and test scores. This approach guarantees that the scholarship recipient is chosen based on their effort, dedication and involvement in local activities.

If you're still questioning the legitimacy of the scholarship website after an initial review, research the website's background, such as when it was established, who runs it and what its purpose is.

Lastly, find reviews or blog posts about the website to verify its legitimacy. Follow these tips and use caution when researching scholarships online to ensure your personal details stay safe and you don't waste time and effort.

What are the requirements to apply for a scholarship?

The requirements to apply for a scholarship will depend on the type of scholarship for which you're applying.

For example, some scholarship websites require students to answer a series of questions or create an account. They may also need to submit additional documentation such as transcripts, letters of recommendation and essays.

Traditional scholarships offered through universities or private organizations often have more specific qualification criteria. For example, to be considered for the scholarship, the applicant may need to demonstrate financial hardship, meet certain GPA requirements, perform specific extracurricular activities or provide evidence of achievements.

Methodology

To find the best scholarship websites of 2025, we conducted extensive research and narrowed down our options based on key criteria such as ease of use and navigation, number of scholarship opportunities and search filter options. We also took into account whether the website provided additional resources and guides to help students navigate the admissions process and life on campus.

Summary of the 8 Best Scholarship Websites of 2025

• Big Future by College Board
• Careeronestop's Scholarship Finder
• Going Merry
• Internationalstudent.com
• JLV College Counseling
• Scholarship America
• Scholly Scholarships by Sallie Mae
• Fastweb