Recent Articles
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 | 1,108 | 1334 | 0.2244 | |
| 1 | United States Naval Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,474 | 1305 | 0.0927 | |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3800 | 82600 | 0.954 | 5,813 | 1535 | 0.0462 | |
| 4 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 4900 | 40700 | 0.8787 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 5 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 6 | United States Merchant Marine Academy | 7400 | 8600 | 0.1395 | 962 | 1214 | 0.3424 | |
| 7 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,535 | 1542 | 0.0455 | |
| 8 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0399 | |
| 9 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9000 | 90900 | 0.9007 | 7,377 | 1528 | 0.1166 | |
| 10 | Washington University in St Louis | 9300 | 102300 | 0.9091 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 11 | University of Pennsylvania | 9400 | 92900 | 0.8988 | 11,478 | 1536 | 0.054 | |
| 12 | Wellesley College | 9500 | 91300 | 0.8961 | 2,407 | 1500 | 0.1405 | |
| 13 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 14 | University of Notre Dame | 10700 | 86200 | 0.8763 | 8,880 | 1500 | 0.1127 | |
| 15 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 11500 | 29100 | 0.6053 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 16 | California State University-Sacramento | 11700 | 30700 | 0.6186 | 28,820 | 1035 | 0.9399 | |
| 16 | Cornell University | 11700 | 93100 | 0.8745 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 18 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 12100 | 38800 | 0.6887 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 19 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12200 | 25000 | 0.5113 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 20 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 21 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 12600 | 12600 | 0 | 25,255 | 1134 | 0.7517 | |
| 22 | North Carolina A & T State University | 12800 | 17900 | 0.2857 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 23 | University of North Alabama | 13000 | 28200 | 0.5393 | 7,662 | 1140 | 0.8731 | |
| 24 | Mount Holyoke College | 13400 | 89900 | 0.8512 | 2,178 | 1449 | 0.3603 | |
| 25 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 26 | University of Georgia | 13700 | 26600 | 0.485 | 32,399 | 1382 | 0.377 | |
| 26 | University of Houston | 13700 | 22000 | 0.3766 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 26 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 50700 | 0.7294 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 29 | Middlebury College | 13800 | 89900 | 0.8466 | 2,760 | 1499 | 0.1075 | |
| 29 | Utah State University | 13800 | 20800 | 0.3369 | 25,706 | 1176 | 0.9247 | |
| 31 | Brown University | 13900 | 94000 | 0.8521 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 32 | University of Idaho | 14100 | 25800 | 0.4543 | 9,574 | 1119 | 0.7553 | |
| 33 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5047 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 34 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 14600 | 26500 | 0.4478 | 22,364 | 1159 | 0.7504 | |
| 35 | Northeastern University | 15000 | 89900 | 0.8331 | 17,432 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 36 | University of Maine at Augusta | 15200 | 30600 | 0.5036 | 4,313 | 0 | 0 | |
| 37 | Lehigh University | 15600 | 89600 | 0.8263 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 38 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 16000 | 27700 | 0.4218 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 38 | University of Kansas | 16000 | 34900 | 0.5405 | 22,085 | 1176 | 0.9348 | |
| 38 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 16000 | 22300 | 0.2822 | 24,868 | 1214 | 0.796 | |
| 41 | University of Florida | 16400 | 22500 | 0.271 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 42 | North Carolina State University | 16500 | 28500 | 0.4204 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 43 | Connecticut College | 16700 | 95300 | 0.8244 | 1,990 | 1421 | 0.3704 | |
| 44 | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | 17100 | 29500 | 0.4201 | 3,781 | 1100 | 0.7568 | |
| 45 | Bennington College | 17200 | 89500 | 0.8079 | 797 | 1370 | 0.4453 | |
| 46 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 17500 | 29900 | 0.4159 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 46 | University of Memphis | 17500 | 26400 | 0.3378 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 48 | Barnard College | 17600 | 99700 | 0.8232 | 3,487 | 1499 | 0.0884 | |
| 48 | Keene State College | 17600 | 32100 | 0.4523 | 2,725 | 1085 | 0.9033 | |
| 48 | Morgan State University | 17600 | 28500 | 0.3823 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 51 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 17700 | 17700 | 0 | 18,288 | 1090 | 0.9068 | |
| 52 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 18200 | 18200 | 0 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 53 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 53 | University of California-Berkeley | 18300 | 43500 | 0.5798 | 33,070 | 1407 | 0.1098 | |
| 55 | Indiana University-Bloomington | 18400 | 30600 | 0.3971 | 38,093 | 1302 | 0.7821 | |
| 56 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 18800 | 31000 | 0.394 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 57 | University of Rhode Island | 19200 | 33900 | 0.4337 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 58 | Norwich University | 19600 | 73800 | 0.7342 | 2,626 | 1186 | 0.7444 | |
| 59 | University of Colorado Boulder | 19800 | 31900 | 0.3782 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 60 | University of New Orleans | 19900 | 30600 | 0.3502 | 5,419 | 1040 | 0.7431 | |
| 61 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 62 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 20300 | 29300 | 0.3067 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 63 | Hampshire College | 20600 | 83900 | 0.7548 | 844 | 1254 | 0.7528 | |
| 63 | South Dakota State University | 20600 | 25200 | 0.1844 | 10,719 | 1120 | 0.9834 | |
| 65 | SUNY Maritime College | 21100 | 32000 | 0.3408 | 1,285 | 1215 | 0.7241 | |
| 66 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 67 | Webb Institute | 21500 | 73700 | 0.7085 | 106 | 1475 | 0.1404 | |
| 68 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 69 | La Roche University | 21900 | 72600 | 0.6986 | 1,828 | 1059 | 0.7576 | |
| 70 | University of Illinois Chicago | 22200 | 30100 | 0.2629 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 71 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 23000 | 27500 | 0.1618 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 72 | University of Kentucky | 23900 | 36400 | 0.3448 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 73 | Indiana State University | 24200 | 32400 | 0.2532 | 6,224 | 1020 | 0.8077 | |
| 73 | Judson University | 24200 | 49100 | 0.5069 | 718 | 1015 | 0.4759 | |
| 75 | Temple University | 24800 | 36100 | 0.3132 | 21,457 | 1135 | 0.8041 | |
| 76 | Drury University | 25300 | 52900 | 0.5216 | 1,391 | 1228 | 0.5758 | |
| 77 | Ball State University | 25500 | 25500 | 0 | 15,189 | 1170 | 0.855 | |
| 78 | Mount Mary University | 26000 | 57200 | 0.545 | 752 | 1025 | 0.6233 | |
| 79 | Marywood University | 26100 | 67700 | 0.6142 | 1,833 | 1160 | 0.6058 | |
| 80 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 26400 | 36800 | 0.2828 | 14,783 | 1124 | 0.8096 | |
| 81 | University of Southern Mississippi | 26500 | 26500 | 0 | 10,193 | 1181 | 0.9912 | |
| 82 | University of Arkansas | 26700 | 28900 | 0.0745 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 83 | University of Nevada-Las Vegas | 26800 | 31800 | 0.1573 | 27,132 | 1099 | 0.9617 | |
| 84 | Hobart William Smith Colleges | 27100 | 88300 | 0.693 | 1,794 | 1308 | 0.6399 | |
| 85 | Syracuse University | 27700 | 83100 | 0.6665 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 86 | North Dakota State University | 27800 | 30400 | 0.084 | 9,762 | 1110 | 0.9496 | |
| 86 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 27800 | 31100 | 0.1046 | 19,701 | 1214 | 0.8749 | |
| 88 | Mississippi State University | 28200 | 32300 | 0.1283 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 89 | University of Utah | 28900 | 32000 | 0.0984 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 90 | University of Connecticut | 29200 | 39500 | 0.2608 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 91 | Kent State University at Kent | 30000 | 37500 | 0.2 | 20,841 | 1105 | 0.8634 | |
| 91 | University of Hawaii at Manoa | 30000 | 42200 | 0.2889 | 15,375 | 1103 | 0.866 | |
| 93 | Portland State University | 30800 | 43100 | 0.2864 | 15,414 | 1094 | 0.9087 | |
| 94 | Massachusetts Maritime Academy | 31100 | 40200 | 0.2265 | 1,402 | 1120 | 0.947 | |
| 95 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 96 | Ithaca College | 32100 | 72500 | 0.5571 | 4,268 | 1314 | 0.6901 | |
| 97 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 32200 | 43100 | 0.2531 | 22,033 | 1321 | 0.3132 | |
| 98 | Lawrence Technological University | 32300 | 71900 | 0.5507 | 2,579 | 1159 | 0.559 | |
| 99 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32500 | 35100 | 0.0742 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 100 | Prairie View A & M University | 32900 | 39600 | 0.1691 | 8,877 | 975 | 0.7931 | |
| 101 | Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design | 33600 | 57400 | 0.414 | 838 | 1143 | 0.6054 | |
| 102 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 33900 | 36100 | 0.0609 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 103 | Thomas Jefferson University | 34000 | 68100 | 0.501 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8097 | |
| 104 | University of Oregon | 34700 | 40200 | 0.1383 | 20,622 | 1250 | 0.883 | |
| 105 | Andrews University | 35000 | 70100 | 0.5008 | 1,384 | 1143 | 0.8185 | |
| 105 | Chatham University | 35000 | 63300 | 0.4474 | 1,550 | 1197 | 0.6196 | |
| 107 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 36500 | 47500 | 0.2317 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 108 | California State University-Fresno | 36800 | 43800 | 0.1588 | 21,954 | 995 | 0.9526 | |
| 108 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 36800 | 38900 | 0.0552 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 110 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66300 | 0.436 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 111 | Benedictine College | 37700 | 50800 | 0.2579 | 2,403 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 112 | Delaware Valley University | 39200 | 66900 | 0.4141 | 1,768 | 1208 | 0.9321 | |
| 113 | University of Central Florida | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 59,552 | 1280 | 0.4011 | |
| 114 | Stony Brook University | 39900 | 53000 | 0.2481 | 18,263 | 1410 | 0.4904 | |
| 115 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 116 | Concordia University-Wisconsin | 41400 | 57000 | 0.2738 | 2,401 | 1209 | 0.782 | |
| 117 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55200 | 0.2481 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 118 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 41900 | 53200 | 0.2124 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 119 | Anderson University | 42200 | 53600 | 0.2127 | 3,683 | 1209 | 0.5471 | |
| 120 | Kean University | 42600 | 48300 | 0.118 | 11,758 | 1040 | 0.759 | |
| 121 | University of Maryland-College Park | 43000 | 53600 | 0.1979 | 31,133 | 1463 | 0.4479 | |
| 122 | University at Buffalo | 43900 | 46700 | 0.06 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 123 | Florida Atlantic University | 44400 | 44400 | 0 | 24,876 | 1130 | 0.6613 | |
| 124 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 125 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47100 | 59700 | 0.2117 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 126 | Maine Maritime Academy | 47200 | 49800 | 0.0522 | 945 | 1180 | 0.5414 | |
| 127 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 61300 | 0.211 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 128 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48600 | 51200 | 0.0517 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 128 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48600 | 91400 | 0.4684 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 130 | Drexel University | 48800 | 83900 | 0.4184 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 131 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 59400 | 0.1617 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 132 | Woodbury University | 52900 | 69500 | 0.2388 | 786 | 1087 | 0.8165 | |
| 133 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53000 | 61200 | 0.1332 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 134 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 53300 | 61000 | 0.127 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 135 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 53700 | 62800 | 0.1449 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 136 | University of San Francisco | 53800 | 84800 | 0.3655 | 5,321 | 1292 | 0.6171 | |
| 137 | Howard University | 55000 | 66500 | 0.173 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 138 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 139 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58200 | 64100 | 0.092 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 140 | Auburn University | 58500 | 58500 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 | |
| 141 | Maryland Institute College of Art | 60700 | 71200 | 0.1476 | 1,191 | 1232 | 0.7679 | |
| 142 | Clemson University | 61500 | 63700 | 0.0338 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 143 | California College of the Arts | 65300 | 87600 | 0.2545 | 1,004 | 1079 | 0.911 | |
| 144 | Otis College of Art and Design | 66700 | 79800 | 0.1641 | 1,224 | 1335 | 0.8176 | |
| 145 | The Catholic University of America | 82500 | 82500 | 0 | 3,177 | 1140 | 0.8278 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.