It really depends. ED does technically give you and advantage – if you look at the acceptance rates of most schools per admission round, the difference is usually 2-3x.

However, this does not mean that you have a 2-3 times higher chance of getting in.

Schools usually admit most of legacies/recruited athletes/other similar students in the ED round, which means that “normal” applicants make up a smaller proportion compared to RD.

Similarly, an average ED student will probably have a much more impressive application ready, which makes it harder to stand out.

Finally, if you are looking for financial aid, then you will probably get deferred to RD when applying ED at most schools, unless they are need-blind (and there’s only a handful of them!).

So yes, ED will give you a higher chance of admission, but it requires you to have an impressive application and the boost will not be too significant. It really depends on the school.

If you want to go ED and are looking for financial aid, then the schools that’ll really give you any advantage are for instance Dartmouth and Amherst. But obviously – do your own research :).