Does ED boost your chance a lot?

Answered

Yep, basically what @unior said. The acceptance rates are higher when you apply ED but the applicant pool is also typically much stronger which is why we see more acceptances. If you're already a competitive applicant at Villanova then applying ED makes sense. If you're slightly above-average, middle-of-the-pack, or lower than you're unlikely to see any benefits applying ED. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it because you never know, but it will be more difficult for you is all.

And yes, if you DON'T need financial aid in any form that will be a benefit to you. How much of a boost it will give your application is tough to say and probably depends on the college but your chances aren't going to be hurt if you don't need aid.

To answer your 1st question, applying ED to Villanova is very advantageous versus say applying to Georgetown Early which is statistically negligible.

For the Class of 2025 Villanova's acceptance rates were the following. The previous poster's acceptance rates are not current.

Villanova (ED) 1,201 52% 620 Admitted

Villanova (EA) 15,689 20% 3138 Admitted

Villanova (RD) 7,509 31% 2342 Admitted

TOTAL Applied 24,399, Admitted 25% Overall

Therefore, ED has a 2.5 X boost over applying EA and a 68% boost over applying RD. The Common Data Set is not that useful for determining the statistical benefits because for Villanova the data is incomplete. While Paragraph C21 shows the ED applicants and admits for the 2020-2021 cycle, Para. C21 only states that they have an EA program with no data provided. Therefore, it's best to research other sources that might have this data including the college itself. If you look at the previous CDS for Villanova the C22. data is consistently missing as well.

To answer your 2nd question, if you do not check off the question "Will you be applying for Financial Aid" with "Yes", but "No" on your Common App or Coalition App, all admissions officers reading your application file will know that you are not applying for financial aid regardless of whether they are need-blind or need-aware. This will immediately treat your application differently because it is well known that if your family has the ability to pay for your college tuition room and board you are not a burden whatsoever on the college you are applying to. The benefit this will provide you and your family will depend on the competitiveness of the college you are applying to. At a school like Harvard, Yale, Columbia, or Stanford, it may not mean very much at all because a.) they have tens of billions of dollars in their endowment, b.) they all are trying to expand their DEI commitment to admit more low income and marginalized applicants. But at a private Roman Catholic school like Villanova (ND, BC, Georgetown), their endowment is less than some private boarding schools so it will make a difference.

Hope that helps and makes sense to you.