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Which colleges are most affordable for Illinois residents ? The answer may surprise you.
These rankings of the most affordable colleges for Illinois residents are based on the estimated net price for a "typical" middle class family living in the state of Illinois.
Note: Net price is the actual cost of the school paid by the student and family, after factoring in merit and grant aid from the college federal programs and work study.The net prices displayed in these rankings are College Raptor's estimates.
“Typical” middle class family values used in the Net Price estimates on this page are:
| Rank | Institution | Typical Net Price | Sticker Price | % Savings | Undergraduates | Est. Median SAT | Acceptance Rate | Save |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States Coast Guard Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,063 | 1319 | 0.206 | |
| 1 | United States Naval Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,474 | 1305 | 0.0927 | |
| 3 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 3600 | 93300 | 0.9613 | 4,561 | 1542 | 0.0456 | |
| 4 | Princeton University | 3900 | 83400 | 0.9532 | 5,916 | 1528 | 0.0442 | |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania | 4500 | 93100 | 0.9521 | 9,989 | 1535 | 0.0492 | |
| 6 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 5600 | 40700 | 0.8615 | 35,358 | 1448 | 0.1642 | |
| 7 | United States Merchant Marine Academy | 7300 | 8800 | 0.1714 | 962 | 1214 | 0.3424 | |
| 7 | Washington University in St Louis | 7300 | 102300 | 0.9283 | 8,153 | 1512 | 0.1192 | |
| 9 | University of Notre Dame | 7800 | 89100 | 0.9123 | 8,950 | 1497 | 0.0938 | |
| 10 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8600 | 98000 | 0.9125 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 11 | Middlebury College | 8700 | 94500 | 0.908 | 2,640 | 1499 | 0.1277 | |
| 12 | Carnegie Mellon University | 8900 | 90900 | 0.9025 | 7,728 | 1528 | 0.1107 | |
| 13 | Rice University | 9700 | 92500 | 0.8954 | 4,807 | 1528 | 0.0801 | |
| 14 | Portland State University | 10000 | 43300 | 0.7691 | 14,932 | 1174 | 0.8586 | |
| 14 | University of Central Florida | 10000 | 31700 | 0.6853 | 60,083 | 1289 | 0.428 | |
| 16 | Indiana State University | 10100 | 25900 | 0.611 | 6,352 | 1015 | 0.9157 | |
| 16 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 10100 | 41500 | 0.7567 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 18 | University of California-Davis | 10200 | 38600 | 0.7362 | 31,695 | 1290 | 0.4435 | |
| 19 | Wellesley College | 10400 | 95400 | 0.8905 | 2,366 | 1499 | 0.1479 | |
| 20 | Cornell University | 10500 | 93700 | 0.8878 | 16,138 | 1528 | 0.0838 | |
| 21 | University of Nevada-Las Vegas | 10900 | 31800 | 0.6576 | 27,963 | 1090 | 0.8395 | |
| 22 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 11100 | 28100 | 0.6048 | 8,421 | 1054 | 0.9444 | |
| 23 | California State University-Fresno | 11300 | 54600 | 0.7923 | 21,954 | 995 | 0.9526 | |
| 24 | Massachusetts Maritime Academy | 11400 | 46600 | 0.7553 | 1,511 | 1120 | 0.9202 | |
| 25 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 11800 | 39000 | 0.6966 | 17,848 | 1470 | 0.1565 | |
| 26 | Brown University | 11900 | 94000 | 0.8733 | 7,951 | 1500 | 0.0634 | |
| 27 | University of Illinois Chicago | 12200 | 30200 | 0.5969 | 24,260 | 1174 | 0.7576 | |
| 28 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 12600 | 12600 | 0 | 25,312 | 1134 | 0.7395 | |
| 28 | Mount Holyoke College | 12600 | 89900 | 0.8599 | 2,135 | 1419 | 0.3841 | |
| 30 | North Carolina A & T State University | 13000 | 17900 | 0.2745 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.5125 | |
| 31 | Kean University | 13100 | 39200 | 0.6658 | 11,932 | 1040 | 0.7811 | |
| 32 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 13200 | 21300 | 0.3801 | 18,667 | 1090 | 0.9711 | |
| 33 | Louisiana Tech University | 13300 | 42900 | 0.6899 | 11,071 | 1189 | 0.9073 | |
| 34 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 61700 | 0.7774 | 39,193 | 1418 | 0.4081 | |
| 35 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 14000 | 25600 | 0.4523 | 10,396 | 1125 | 0.7162 | |
| 36 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 14100 | 31000 | 0.5458 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 37 | University of Memphis | 14400 | 26400 | 0.4554 | 15,538 | 1080 | 0.7878 | |
| 38 | University of North Alabama | 14600 | 37300 | 0.6087 | 8,078 | 1124 | 0.7054 | |
| 39 | University of Maine at Augusta | 14800 | 54900 | 0.7301 | 4,313 | 0 | 0 | |
| 40 | University of Hawaii at Manoa | 15000 | 54400 | 0.7248 | 15,735 | 1069 | 0.8797 | |
| 41 | University of Kansas | 15600 | 34900 | 0.5524 | 22,544 | 1176 | 0.9258 | |
| 42 | Keene State College | 16200 | 51400 | 0.6848 | 2,640 | 1064 | 0.8982 | |
| 43 | Morgan State University | 16600 | 30700 | 0.4588 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 44 | Bennington College | 16800 | 89500 | 0.8125 | 708 | 1402 | 0.3721 | |
| 44 | Georgia Southern University | 16800 | 20100 | 0.1638 | 25,595 | 1045 | 0.695 | |
| 46 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 16900 | 28100 | 0.3992 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 46 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 16900 | 26300 | 0.3565 | 19,787 | 1197 | 0.8807 | |
| 48 | Barnard College | 17500 | 99700 | 0.8241 | 3,223 | 1499 | 0.1005 | |
| 48 | University of Kentucky | 17500 | 36500 | 0.5208 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 50 | California State University-Sacramento | 17600 | 30700 | 0.4265 | 28,619 | 1015 | 0.9357 | |
| 51 | Yale University | 17700 | 278600 | 0.9365 | 6,667 | 1507 | 0.0475 | |
| 52 | University of Arkansas | 17800 | 28500 | 0.3772 | 29,252 | 1179 | 0.7388 | |
| 53 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 17900 | 47900 | 0.6257 | 21,028 | 1450 | 0.1334 | |
| 54 | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | 18200 | 37500 | 0.5147 | 3,758 | 0 | 0.7236 | |
| 55 | La Roche University | 18500 | 87300 | 0.7883 | 1,972 | 990 | 0.6638 | |
| 55 | University of Rhode Island | 18500 | 33900 | 0.4544 | 14,466 | 1197 | 0.7456 | |
| 57 | Olivet Nazarene University | 18800 | 79300 | 0.7634 | 2,704 | 1104 | 0.5586 | |
| 58 | Connecticut College | 19000 | 93000 | 0.7954 | 1,953 | 1284 | 0.3923 | |
| 59 | Norwich University | 19100 | 100600 | 0.8104 | 2,626 | 1186 | 0.7444 | |
| 60 | Lehigh University | 19200 | 89800 | 0.7863 | 5,986 | 1436 | 0.2896 | |
| 61 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19300 | 29900 | 0.3563 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 62 | University of Houston | 19900 | 28400 | 0.2996 | 40,366 | 1224 | 0.7577 | |
| 63 | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi | 20000 | 55300 | 0.6381 | 2,881 | 1040 | 0.89 | |
| 63 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 76400 | 0.7387 | 20,768 | 1499 | 0.1119 | |
| 65 | South Dakota State University | 20200 | 25200 | 0.2009 | 10,883 | 1115 | 0.9618 | |
| 66 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 20300 | 35200 | 0.4229 | 8,513 | 1160 | 0.9261 | |
| 66 | Syracuse University | 20300 | 83600 | 0.7572 | 16,149 | 1374 | 0.4879 | |
| 68 | University of New Orleans | 20900 | 30000 | 0.3029 | 5,419 | 1040 | 0.7431 | |
| 69 | Iowa State University | 21100 | 25700 | 0.1794 | 26,346 | 1212 | 0.8793 | |
| 70 | Utah State University | 21800 | 38800 | 0.4382 | 26,629 | 1168 | 0.9212 | |
| 71 | Mount Mary University | 22100 | 57200 | 0.6134 | 616 | 1069 | 0.831 | |
| 72 | Marywood University | 22200 | 93800 | 0.7633 | 1,936 | 1144 | 0.7878 | |
| 73 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 22300 | 34200 | 0.3483 | 15,273 | 1115 | 0.8089 | |
| 74 | Tufts University | 22400 | 99000 | 0.7738 | 7,031 | 1497 | 0.1082 | |
| 75 | SUNY Maritime College | 22900 | 59200 | 0.6135 | 1,401 | 1164 | 0.785 | |
| 76 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 23100 | 36100 | 0.3598 | 34,447 | 1273 | 0.8804 | |
| 77 | Judson University | 24000 | 49100 | 0.5122 | 697 | 1010 | 0.8905 | |
| 77 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24000 | 38500 | 0.3764 | 24,019 | 1404 | 0.5989 | |
| 79 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 24100 | 60700 | 0.6029 | 1,984 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 80 | Miami University-Oxford | 24400 | 28300 | 0.1378 | 16,405 | 1284 | 0.74 | |
| 81 | Temple University | 24800 | 36100 | 0.3132 | 21,031 | 1172 | 0.8622 | |
| 82 | Ball State University | 25400 | 25400 | 0 | 15,950 | 1185 | 0.8625 | |
| 83 | Delaware Valley University | 25700 | 95800 | 0.7318 | 1,680 | 1189 | 0.9268 | |
| 84 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,616 | 1410 | 0.4818 | |
| 85 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 26400 | 40600 | 0.3497 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 86 | Drury University | 26800 | 54500 | 0.5082 | 1,453 | 1209 | 0.6575 | |
| 87 | Hobart William Smith Colleges | 27100 | 88300 | 0.693 | 1,862 | 1296 | 0.667 | |
| 88 | University of Southern Mississippi | 27200 | 27200 | 0 | 10,371 | 1181 | 0.926 | |
| 89 | North Dakota State University | 27400 | 30400 | 0.0976 | 9,762 | 1110 | 0.9496 | |
| 90 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 18,028 | 1059 | 0.7996 | |
| 91 | Maine Maritime Academy | 28300 | 34400 | 0.1772 | 977 | 1189 | 0.9615 | |
| 92 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 28600 | 43100 | 0.3367 | 22,313 | 1341 | 0.2996 | |
| 93 | Thomas Jefferson University | 29900 | 70000 | 0.5735 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8098 | |
| 94 | Lawrence Technological University | 30000 | 99100 | 0.6976 | 2,661 | 1149 | 0.8101 | |
| 95 | Ithaca College | 30300 | 72600 | 0.5823 | 4,205 | 1328 | 0.7015 | |
| 96 | Prairie View A & M University | 30800 | 39600 | 0.2221 | 9,022 | 960 | 0.7836 | |
| 97 | Kent State University at Kent | 30900 | 37500 | 0.1751 | 21,144 | 1104 | 0.7603 | |
| 98 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 32000 | 54400 | 0.4117 | 35,248 | 1289 | 0.6939 | |
| 99 | Anderson University | 32200 | 54700 | 0.4116 | 3,724 | 1209 | 0.5491 | |
| 100 | North Carolina State University | 32400 | 54800 | 0.4083 | 29,340 | 1374 | 0.3954 | |
| 100 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 32400 | 38400 | 0.1562 | 23,003 | 1164 | 0.7367 | |
| 102 | Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design | 33700 | 61800 | 0.4556 | 838 | 1143 | 0.6054 | |
| 103 | University of Idaho | 34500 | 48700 | 0.2916 | 9,656 | 1104 | 0.7476 | |
| 104 | Samford University | 34600 | 93800 | 0.6312 | 4,210 | 1199 | 0.8236 | |
| 105 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 34700 | 46400 | 0.2519 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 106 | Chatham University | 34800 | 63900 | 0.4557 | 1,555 | 1197 | 0.6196 | |
| 107 | Texas Tech University | 35600 | 41000 | 0.1318 | 34,021 | 1195 | 0.6906 | |
| 108 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 35900 | 54000 | 0.3352 | 32,041 | 1324 | 0.4358 | |
| 109 | University of Connecticut | 36900 | 66200 | 0.4429 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 110 | Andrews University | 37200 | 76700 | 0.5148 | 1,384 | 1143 | 0.8185 | |
| 111 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66700 | 0.4394 | 31,536 | 1366 | 0.5457 | |
| 112 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 37500 | 40100 | 0.064 | 25,054 | 1225 | 0.7762 | |
| 113 | Benedictine College | 37600 | 52500 | 0.2836 | 2,404 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 114 | Mississippi State University | 38900 | 53400 | 0.2726 | 19,093 | 1205 | 0.8363 | |
| 115 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 39300 | 40300 | 0.0248 | 26,213 | 1209 | 0.7778 | |
| 116 | Drexel University | 39700 | 86400 | 0.5408 | 12,318 | 1354 | 0.699 | |
| 117 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 39900 | 59200 | 0.3258 | 5,986 | 1110 | 0.8916 | |
| 118 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,534 | 1399 | 0.0941 | |
| 119 | Concordia University-Wisconsin | 40900 | 58700 | 0.3035 | 2,401 | 1209 | 0.7819 | |
| 120 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55300 | 0.2497 | 21,388 | 1369 | 0.5945 | |
| 121 | University of Arizona | 42500 | 48600 | 0.1254 | 43,294 | 1186 | 0.8351 | |
| 122 | University of Florida | 42800 | 45700 | 0.0635 | 37,283 | 1406 | 0.2033 | |
| 123 | University of Maryland-College Park | 42900 | 58500 | 0.2665 | 31,875 | 1456 | 0.4503 | |
| 124 | Florida Atlantic University | 45300 | 45300 | 0 | 25,626 | 1150 | 0.5497 | |
| 125 | University at Buffalo | 46400 | 46400 | 0 | 21,192 | 1309 | 0.8059 | |
| 126 | Otis College of Art and Design | 46700 | 79800 | 0.4145 | 1,188 | 1335 | 0.8034 | |
| 127 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47500 | 61500 | 0.2286 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 128 | University of Delaware | 47700 | 62400 | 0.2365 | 19,287 | 1302 | 0.6924 | |
| 129 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48200 | 51200 | 0.0598 | 43,633 | 1342 | 0.4343 | |
| 130 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 49300 | 67600 | 0.2708 | 40,996 | 1399 | 0.4175 | |
| 131 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49500 | 58900 | 0.1596 | 44,314 | 1356 | 0.2222 | |
| 132 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 50600 | 63800 | 0.2065 | 42,565 | 1339 | 0.7887 | |
| 133 | University of California-Berkeley | 51700 | 76600 | 0.325 | 33,513 | 1407 | 0.1145 | |
| 134 | University of Georgia | 52000 | 52100 | 0.0019 | 32,824 | 1348 | 0.3425 | |
| 135 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 52600 | 86300 | 0.3905 | 5,833 | 1440 | 0.6725 | |
| 136 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 53400 | 96100 | 0.4442 | 6,839 | 1469 | 0.1446 | |
| 137 | University of San Francisco | 54700 | 87200 | 0.3727 | 5,171 | 1333 | 0.7176 | |
| 138 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 54900 | 68800 | 0.2022 | 38,572 | 1455 | 0.3659 | |
| 139 | University of Colorado Boulder | 55200 | 70900 | 0.2206 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7809 | |
| 140 | Maryland Institute College of Art | 58100 | 71200 | 0.1836 | 1,192 | 1232 | 0.7681 | |
| 141 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 58600 | 61200 | 0.0419 | 26,490 | 1183 | 0.8863 | |
| 142 | Auburn University | 59400 | 59400 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4593 | |
| 143 | Howard University | 60000 | 88500 | 0.3222 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 144 | Indiana University-Bloomington | 60400 | 63000 | 0.0407 | 38,463 | 1324 | 0.7589 | |
| 145 | Clemson University | 61100 | 63700 | 0.0403 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 146 | Webb Institute | 61200 | 74800 | 0.1819 | 104 | 1465 | 0.2484 | |
| 147 | University of Oregon | 68700 | 71300 | 0.036 | 20,710 | 1193 | 0.8742 | |
| 148 | The Catholic University of America | 82500 | 82500 | 0 | 3,294 | 1229 | 0.7328 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.