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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 | California Institute of Technology | 4300 | 90300 | 0.9522 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 1 | Rice University | 4300 | 85500 | 0.9496 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 3 | Johns Hopkins University | 4400 | 88600 | 0.9502 | 6,356 | 1543 | 0.0644 | |
| 4 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 4700 | 86800 | 0.9456 | 4,576 | 1535 | 0.0485 | |
| 5 | Yale University | 5500 | 92300 | 0.9403 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 6 | Boston University | 5700 | 88800 | 0.9363 | 18,805 | 1475 | 0.1111 | |
| 6 | University of Pennsylvania | 5700 | 93000 | 0.9389 | 10,013 | 1528 | 0.054 | |
| 8 | Harvard University | 5900 | 90900 | 0.9353 | 7,038 | 1535 | 0.0365 | |
| 9 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 6500 | 94100 | 0.9312 | 9,157 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 10 | Vanderbilt University | 7800 | 95000 | 0.9178 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 11 | Brown University | 8400 | 93900 | 0.9103 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 12 | Washington University in St Louis | 9200 | 96200 | 0.904 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 13 | Duke University | 9800 | 93500 | 0.8955 | 6,523 | 1539 | 0.0571 | |
| 14 | Cornell University | 10300 | 92000 | 0.8877 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0841 | |
| 15 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 11100 | 27200 | 0.5927 | 40,754 | 1391 | 0.3915 | |
| 16 | Lehigh University | 12300 | 85700 | 0.857 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 16 | Northern Illinois University | 12300 | 29000 | 0.5744 | 11,349 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 18 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 12400 | 27200 | 0.5443 | 39,083 | 1412 | 0.4517 | |
| 19 | Northwestern University | 12600 | 87700 | 0.8563 | 8,846 | 1513 | 0.0722 | |
| 20 | The University of Texas at Austin | 13100 | 30700 | 0.573 | 43,165 | 1335 | 0.2664 | |
| 21 | Florida Gulf Coast University | 13500 | 22500 | 0.4006 | 14,243 | 1125 | 0.7675 | |
| 22 | University of Delaware | 13600 | 32500 | 0.5829 | 19,119 | 1303 | 0.6356 | |
| 23 | North Carolina A & T State University | 13700 | 17900 | 0.2353 | 12,216 | 1020 | 0.4617 | |
| 24 | Louisiana Tech University | 13800 | 24900 | 0.4451 | 11,071 | 1164 | 0.9073 | |
| 25 | University of California-Santa Cruz | 13900 | 38000 | 0.6347 | 17,940 | 1281 | 0.6557 | |
| 26 | University of Houston | 14200 | 23600 | 0.3988 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 27 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | 14500 | 41100 | 0.6478 | 8,975 | 1045 | 0.9721 | |
| 27 | Union College | 14500 | 91000 | 0.8407 | 2,065 | 1393 | 0.4392 | |
| 29 | Case Western Reserve University | 14700 | 80400 | 0.8167 | 6,528 | 1485 | 0.3778 | |
| 30 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71300 | 0.792 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 31 | Florida International University | 15100 | 23700 | 0.3621 | 44,904 | 1175 | 0.5466 | |
| 32 | University of California-Riverside | 15500 | 36500 | 0.5749 | 22,599 | 1199 | 0.7685 | |
| 32 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 15500 | 24800 | 0.3744 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 34 | University of Florida | 15900 | 22300 | 0.2871 | 36,567 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 35 | Grand Valley State University | 16000 | 25300 | 0.368 | 19,002 | 1233 | 0.8302 | |
| 36 | University of Arizona | 16100 | 30900 | 0.4797 | 45,025 | 1212 | 0.8614 | |
| 37 | University of California-Los Angeles | 16300 | 36700 | 0.5548 | 33,471 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 38 | University of Southern California | 16600 | 76000 | 0.7815 | 21,023 | 1485 | 0.1002 | |
| 39 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 16700 | 64800 | 0.7426 | 21,075 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 40 | Tufts University | 16900 | 92400 | 0.8175 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1153 | |
| 41 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 17200 | 27200 | 0.3671 | 44,170 | 1327 | 0.4979 | |
| 42 | University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 17400 | 24700 | 0.298 | 8,765 | 1209 | 0.8799 | |
| 43 | Bucknell University | 17700 | 88400 | 0.7996 | 3,920 | 1284 | 0.2893 | |
| 43 | University of Rochester | 17700 | 93100 | 0.8101 | 6,580 | 1469 | 0.4008 | |
| 43 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 17700 | 17700 | 0 | 18,428 | 1090 | 0.9529 | |
| 46 | The College of New Jersey | 17800 | 38200 | 0.5335 | 7,435 | 1248 | 0.6235 | |
| 46 | University of Arkansas | 17800 | 27700 | 0.3574 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.7431 | |
| 48 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 17900 | 28100 | 0.3632 | 20,592 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 49 | University of Louisville | 18000 | 29100 | 0.3818 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 50 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 18200 | 18200 | 0 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 51 | University of Vermont | 18300 | 37800 | 0.5164 | 12,276 | 1379 | 0.653 | |
| 51 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 18300 | 78300 | 0.7664 | 17,901 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 53 | University of Mississippi | 18700 | 45500 | 0.5895 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 54 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 18900 | 18900 | 0 | 14,449 | 1195 | 0.7816 | |
| 55 | Kansas State University | 19000 | 31400 | 0.3947 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8199 | |
| 55 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 19000 | 27000 | 0.2967 | 7,505 | 1059 | 0.9633 | |
| 57 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,650 | 950 | 0.4823 | |
| 58 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 19600 | 27200 | 0.2797 | 31,112 | 1130 | 0.8129 | |
| 59 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 19700 | 40000 | 0.5074 | 1,984 | 1369 | 0.6328 | |
| 60 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 20100 | 38800 | 0.4817 | 36,588 | 1367 | 0.6535 | |
| 60 | University of Colorado Boulder | 20100 | 30600 | 0.3431 | 32,100 | 1290 | 0.8115 | |
| 62 | Alabama State University | 20200 | 37400 | 0.4592 | 3,322 | 945 | 0.9564 | |
| 63 | George Mason University | 20500 | 33500 | 0.3882 | 28,331 | 1268 | 0.8748 | |
| 63 | Marshall University | 20500 | 36300 | 0.4356 | 9,165 | 1065 | 0.9572 | |
| 65 | West Virginia University | 20700 | 28800 | 0.2815 | 18,614 | 1125 | 0.778 | |
| 66 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 20800 | 69400 | 0.7007 | 2,705 | 1292 | 0.6239 | |
| 67 | Montana State University | 20900 | 27100 | 0.2285 | 15,053 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 67 | University of Central Oklahoma | 20900 | 22700 | 0.0793 | 10,454 | 1095 | 0.8176 | |
| 69 | University of Miami | 21100 | 70800 | 0.7023 | 13,250 | 1406 | 0.189 | |
| 70 | Florida State University | 22600 | 25000 | 0.0962 | 32,711 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 71 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 22700 | 26900 | 0.1563 | 2,170 | 1264 | 0.8525 | |
| 71 | University of Memphis | 22700 | 30000 | 0.2437 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 73 | University of South Dakota | 22800 | 26000 | 0.1232 | 7,619 | 1120 | 0.9878 | |
| 74 | Indiana Institute of Technology | 23400 | 48800 | 0.5206 | 1,642 | 1055 | 0.5713 | |
| 75 | Syracuse University | 23500 | 83100 | 0.7172 | 15,958 | 1363 | 0.4611 | |
| 76 | University of Kentucky | 23800 | 36000 | 0.339 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 77 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 23900 | 71600 | 0.6664 | 3,135 | 1299 | 0.5493 | |
| 77 | Oral Roberts University | 23900 | 55600 | 0.5706 | 5,017 | 1139 | 0.989 | |
| 79 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 24100 | 83600 | 0.712 | 7,283 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 79 | University at Buffalo | 24100 | 34000 | 0.2912 | 20,360 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 81 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 24700 | 28500 | 0.1335 | 12,382 | 1242 | 0.8842 | |
| 82 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 25000 | 36600 | 0.3173 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 82 | University of Akron Main Campus | 25000 | 25000 | 0 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 84 | Walla Walla University | 25700 | 51700 | 0.5038 | 1,238 | 1159 | 0.604 | |
| 85 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,263 | 1395 | 0.4904 | |
| 86 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 26200 | 28400 | 0.0776 | 14,504 | 1145 | 0.7637 | |
| 87 | University of Mount Union | 26400 | 50900 | 0.4805 | 1,927 | 1105 | 0.8013 | |
| 88 | Trine University | 26600 | 56100 | 0.5263 | 4,157 | 1209 | 0.8469 | |
| 89 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 27600 | 36700 | 0.2476 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 89 | University of North Texas | 27600 | 37400 | 0.2622 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 91 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | 27700 | 31400 | 0.1178 | 14,019 | 1159 | 0.7781 | |
| 92 | The University of Texas at Dallas | 27900 | 32800 | 0.1492 | 21,858 | 1283 | 0.6513 | |
| 93 | California State University-Long Beach | 28000 | 38400 | 0.2712 | 35,843 | 1135 | 0.4628 | |
| 94 | Mississippi State University | 28100 | 32300 | 0.13 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 95 | Dartmouth College | 28300 | 91100 | 0.689 | 4,570 | 1528 | 0.054 | |
| 96 | Regis College | 28500 | 70400 | 0.595 | 1,055 | 965 | 0.9009 | |
| 96 | University of Hartford | 28500 | 70100 | 0.5926 | 4,223 | 1224 | 0.9579 | |
| 98 | George Fox University | 28700 | 67100 | 0.5727 | 3,401 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 98 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 28700 | 78100 | 0.6326 | 14,267 | 1363 | 0.6693 | |
| 100 | Clemson University | 29100 | 37100 | 0.2156 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 101 | Messiah University | 29300 | 54100 | 0.4586 | 2,618 | 1241 | 0.7897 | |
| 102 | University of Toledo | 29400 | 32600 | 0.0983 | 11,013 | 1159 | 0.9202 | |
| 103 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 29900 | 52900 | 0.435 | 37,140 | 1442 | 0.4237 | |
| 104 | San Jose State University | 30300 | 41000 | 0.2608 | 28,008 | 0 | 0.8461 | |
| 105 | Gannon University | 30500 | 45300 | 0.3268 | 2,768 | 1174 | 0.7416 | |
| 105 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 30500 | 41800 | 0.2705 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 107 | Alfred University | 30600 | 67100 | 0.5442 | 1,474 | 1214 | 0.7384 | |
| 108 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 30900 | 42400 | 0.2713 | 21,947 | 1335 | 0.3122 | |
| 109 | University of Rhode Island | 31300 | 46700 | 0.3298 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 110 | Rockhurst University | 32000 | 62500 | 0.487 | 2,304 | 1124 | 0.7089 | |
| 111 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32300 | 34700 | 0.0691 | 30,564 | 1298 | 0.416 | |
| 112 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 32500 | 38500 | 0.1559 | 7,890 | 1105 | 0.2056 | |
| 112 | Widener University | 32500 | 75300 | 0.5682 | 2,811 | 1155 | 0.8402 | |
| 114 | California Lutheran University | 32700 | 65800 | 0.5027 | 2,297 | 1258 | 0.7567 | |
| 115 | Harding University | 32800 | 47000 | 0.3023 | 3,523 | 1193 | 0.3942 | |
| 115 | North Carolina State University | 32800 | 54800 | 0.4017 | 28,422 | 1335 | 0.4167 | |
| 117 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 33100 | 54600 | 0.3936 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 118 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 33600 | 46200 | 0.2729 | 8,553 | 1054 | 0.8688 | |
| 119 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5882 | 11,677 | 1421 | 0.4709 | |
| 120 | LeTourneau University | 34000 | 54600 | 0.3772 | 3,184 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 120 | Valparaiso University | 34000 | 62700 | 0.4572 | 2,123 | 1247 | 0.8934 | |
| 122 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 34100 | 74600 | 0.5432 | 2,315 | 1382 | 0.7686 | |
| 123 | University of South Florida | 34700 | 34700 | 0 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 124 | University of Nevada-Reno | 35000 | 35000 | 0 | 18,895 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 125 | California Baptist University | 35100 | 65200 | 0.4616 | 8,417 | 1069 | 0.8535 | |
| 126 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 127 | University of Maine | 36100 | 45100 | 0.1996 | 591 | 1199 | 0.9684 | |
| 128 | University of the Pacific | 36400 | 72100 | 0.4953 | 3,249 | 1298 | 0.7132 | |
| 129 | Lawrence Technological University | 36800 | 67800 | 0.457 | 2,579 | 1155 | 0.7403 | |
| 130 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 62000 | 0.3968 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5499 | |
| 130 | Wichita State University | 37400 | 39600 | 0.0556 | 14,280 | 1094 | 0.7211 | |
| 132 | Loyola University Chicago | 37500 | 67600 | 0.4455 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 133 | University of Connecticut | 37600 | 41800 | 0.1005 | 19,388 | 1324 | 0.5395 | |
| 134 | Washington State University | 38500 | 53900 | 0.2859 | 14,346 | 1139 | 0.8797 | |
| 135 | Hofstra University | 38800 | 74600 | 0.4797 | 6,581 | 1323 | 0.6808 | |
| 136 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 39000 | 48900 | 0.2024 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 137 | University of Illinois Chicago | 39200 | 48000 | 0.1832 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 138 | Wayne State University | 39300 | 45500 | 0.1362 | 16,173 | 1174 | 0.7786 | |
| 139 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 39600 | 53700 | 0.2627 | 23,920 | 1390 | 0.5973 | |
| 140 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 40200 | 40200 | 0 | 11,365 | 1216 | 0.8816 | |
| 141 | University of California-San Diego | 40300 | 61100 | 0.3405 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2677 | |
| 142 | Temple University | 40500 | 56100 | 0.278 | 21,428 | 1245 | 0.8045 | |
| 142 | Western New England University | 40500 | 67000 | 0.3957 | 2,616 | 1199 | 0.8348 | |
| 144 | Endicott College | 40800 | 63200 | 0.3544 | 3,176 | 1215 | 0.7229 | |
| 145 | Marquette University | 41300 | 75100 | 0.4502 | 8,045 | 1309 | 0.8134 | |
| 146 | CUNY City College | 41500 | 41500 | 0 | 12,982 | 1169 | 0.5997 | |
| 146 | Fairfield University | 41500 | 77900 | 0.467 | 5,391 | 1350 | 0.3329 | |
| 148 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 42500 | 52100 | 0.1843 | 46,815 | 1339 | 0.6057 | |
| 148 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 42500 | 54900 | 0.2261 | 20,418 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 150 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 42600 | 55100 | 0.227 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 151 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43400 | 68600 | 0.3675 | 3,677 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 152 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43800 | 57100 | 0.2315 | 23,351 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 153 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2748 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 154 | Duquesne University | 45300 | 70500 | 0.3575 | 5,371 | 1269 | 0.8356 | |
| 155 | Saint Louis University | 46000 | 74500 | 0.3826 | 10,436 | 1260 | 0.7504 | |
| 156 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 47200 | 85700 | 0.449 | 5,743 | 1438 | 0.6343 | |
| 157 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 56200 | 0.1476 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 158 | University of California-Merced | 48500 | 52300 | 0.0726 | 8,372 | 1070 | 0.9152 | |
| 159 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49000 | 85800 | 0.4288 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 160 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 49900 | 56400 | 0.1152 | 10,200 | 1346 | 0.6507 | |
| 161 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 50200 | 52300 | 0.0401 | 21,210 | 1171 | 0.9232 | |
| 162 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50400 | 81000 | 0.3776 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 163 | Binghamton University | 50600 | 52800 | 0.0417 | 14,669 | 1417 | 0.3861 | |
| 164 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 50900 | 84200 | 0.3956 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 165 | University of Iowa | 51000 | 53200 | 0.0415 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 166 | Drexel University | 51100 | 82600 | 0.3812 | 13,169 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 167 | University of Utah | 51500 | 53700 | 0.0411 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 168 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 51700 | 51700 | 0 | 33,572 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 169 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 52400 | 56100 | 0.0661 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 170 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 16,199 | 1214 | 0.783 | |
| 171 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 54000 | 59200 | 0.0879 | 24,457 | 1256 | 0.7847 | |
| 172 | University of California-Irvine | 55000 | 64800 | 0.1512 | 30,204 | 1333 | 0.2878 | |
| 173 | Miami University-Oxford | 56100 | 56100 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 174 | Santa Clara University | 56500 | 84800 | 0.3339 | 6,577 | 1427 | 0.48 | |
| 175 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 56700 | 58900 | 0.0374 | 26,500 | 1183 | 0.8857 | |
| 176 | Hawaii Pacific University | 58700 | 60900 | 0.0362 | 3,533 | 1120 | 0.8587 | |
| 177 | Michigan Technological University | 59100 | 59100 | 0 | 6,022 | 1256 | 0.8353 | |
| 178 | University of California-Davis | 63500 | 63500 | 0 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 179 | University of California-Berkeley | 74600 | 75500 | 0.0119 | 33,469 | 1407 | 0.1104 | |
| 180 | The Catholic University of America | 82500 | 82500 | 0 | 3,177 | 1204 | 0.8278 |
School data is from 2022–2023 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.