What Are Bands? The 5 Funding Bands Explained Simply

When people talk about the new funding model, the word band comes up constantly.

Band 1. Band 3. Band 5. What does it mean? How does it affect you?

Here is the simplest possible explanation.

What a band is

A band is a category. The government groups students into five categories based on their household's financial situation. Band 1 is for the most financially vulnerable students. Band 5 is for students from the most financially comfortable households.

Your band determines how much the government pays for you and how much your family pays.

The five bands at a glance

Band 1 — Scholarship: 70%. HELB loan: 25%. Household contribution: 5%. Upkeep loan: up to KSh 60,000/year.

Band 2 — Scholarship: 60%. HELB loan: 25%. Household contribution: 15%. Upkeep loan: KSh 55,000/year.

Band 3 — Scholarship: 50%. HELB loan: 25%. Household contribution: 25%. Upkeep loan: KSh 50,000/year.

Band 4 — Scholarship: 40%. HELB loan: 20%. Household contribution: 40%. Upkeep loan: KSh 45,000/year.

Band 5 — Scholarship: 30%. HELB loan: 30%. Household contribution: 40%. Upkeep loan: KSh 40,000/year.

The important update for 2025 KCSE students

In August 2025 HELB announced that it was moving away from the rigid band categorisation system. The new approach assesses each student individually based on their financial need and programme cost rather than placing them strictly into one of five fixed bands.

This means your HELB funding allocation in 2026 may be more personalised than previous cohorts experienced. The principle remains the same — more need means more support. But the calculation is becoming more flexible and more accurate.

The next article explains exactly what this change means for you specifically.

Do you have a rough sense of which band your household would fall into?

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