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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 | 7500 | 91800 | 0.9183 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 2 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 32,952 | 1374 | 0.6778 | |
| 3 | Washington University in St Louis | 9300 | 102300 | 0.9091 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 4 | Stephen F Austin State University | 10100 | 27800 | 0.6356 | 9,129 | 1075 | 0.9399 | |
| 5 | Valdosta State University | 10500 | 24800 | 0.5775 | 7,166 | 1015 | 0.7229 | |
| 6 | The University of Tennessee-Martin | 11200 | 24800 | 0.5489 | 6,809 | 1110 | 0.882 | |
| 7 | Northern Arizona University | 11600 | 27900 | 0.5837 | 22,990 | 1090 | 0.8961 | |
| 8 | The University of Texas at El Paso | 11700 | 26900 | 0.5645 | 21,118 | 980 | 0.9992 | |
| 9 | Lamar University | 12400 | 22900 | 0.458 | 8,184 | 1050 | 0.8641 | |
| 10 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 11 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 13200 | 43000 | 0.693 | 23,181 | 1354 | 0.3297 | |
| 11 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 13200 | 19400 | 0.3197 | 14,416 | 1210 | 0.8851 | |
| 13 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 14 | University of Georgia | 13700 | 26600 | 0.485 | 32,399 | 1382 | 0.377 | |
| 15 | Francis Marion University | 14000 | 24100 | 0.4198 | 3,692 | 1015 | 0.8639 | |
| 16 | Union College | 14100 | 92400 | 0.8473 | 2,065 | 1393 | 0.4392 | |
| 16 | University of Idaho | 14100 | 25800 | 0.4543 | 9,574 | 1119 | 0.7553 | |
| 18 | Arkansas Tech University | 14300 | 34400 | 0.5844 | 8,145 | 1035 | 0.9589 | |
| 18 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5047 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 20 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 14600 | 26500 | 0.4478 | 22,364 | 1159 | 0.7504 | |
| 21 | Texas State University | 15200 | 25500 | 0.4042 | 36,236 | 1100 | 0.8932 | |
| 21 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 15200 | 24900 | 0.3891 | 7,683 | 1120 | 0.9402 | |
| 23 | Coastal Carolina University | 15400 | 27200 | 0.4339 | 10,811 | 1145 | 0.7527 | |
| 23 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 15400 | 25600 | 0.3977 | 10,202 | 1140 | 0.8109 | |
| 23 | Troy University | 15400 | 26700 | 0.4231 | 10,222 | 1090 | 0.9604 | |
| 26 | University of Maine at Farmington | 15500 | 23200 | 0.3317 | 1,677 | 1124 | 0.9672 | |
| 27 | Lehigh University | 15600 | 89600 | 0.8263 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 27 | Northwest Missouri State University | 15600 | 38800 | 0.5992 | 5,241 | 1095 | 0.8609 | |
| 27 | University of West Georgia | 15600 | 24600 | 0.3662 | 9,103 | 1040 | 0.5161 | |
| 30 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 16000 | 22300 | 0.2822 | 24,868 | 1214 | 0.796 | |
| 31 | Eastern Michigan University | 16400 | 36100 | 0.5448 | 10,470 | 1055 | 0.7964 | |
| 31 | Grove City College | 16400 | 39700 | 0.5876 | 2,341 | 1266 | 0.7232 | |
| 33 | West Virginia University | 16500 | 40900 | 0.5963 | 18,206 | 1125 | 0.89 | |
| 34 | Tennessee State University | 16600 | 31000 | 0.4646 | 5,057 | 980 | 0.7011 | |
| 35 | Sam Houston State University | 17000 | 27000 | 0.3705 | 17,787 | 1030 | 0.9026 | |
| 36 | Middle Tennessee State University | 17200 | 23200 | 0.2586 | 18,042 | 1140 | 0.6909 | |
| 36 | Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi | 17200 | 20700 | 0.169 | 8,320 | 1090 | 0.8858 | |
| 38 | University of Louisville | 17500 | 29100 | 0.399 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 39 | Greensboro College | 17700 | 37800 | 0.5317 | 899 | 1005 | 0.7014 | |
| 39 | University of Miami | 17700 | 95700 | 0.8149 | 13,250 | 1406 | 0.189 | |
| 41 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 18200 | 18200 | 0 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 42 | Angelo State University | 18500 | 23100 | 0.2011 | 9,702 | 1055 | 0.8301 | |
| 43 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,650 | 950 | 0.9315 | |
| 44 | University of Mississippi | 19400 | 27000 | 0.2814 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 45 | SUNY Oneonta | 19600 | 29300 | 0.331 | 4,681 | 1234 | 0.696 | |
| 45 | University of Arizona | 19600 | 30900 | 0.3663 | 44,848 | 1233 | 0.8614 | |
| 47 | Loyola University New Orleans | 19900 | 72100 | 0.7238 | 3,007 | 1155 | 0.9305 | |
| 47 | Youngstown State University | 19900 | 34000 | 0.4147 | 9,400 | 1115 | 0.8445 | |
| 49 | Iowa State University | 20000 | 24200 | 0.1732 | 25,628 | 1207 | 0.8866 | |
| 50 | Carroll University | 20300 | 61600 | 0.6708 | 2,581 | 1174 | 0.6684 | |
| 51 | Utica University | 20400 | 43400 | 0.5295 | 2,329 | 1118 | 0.9195 | |
| 52 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20500 | 23200 | 0.1164 | 20,444 | 1209 | 0.8499 | |
| 53 | Our Lady of the Lake University | 20600 | 52900 | 0.6104 | 1,108 | 990 | 0.6578 | |
| 53 | South Dakota State University | 20600 | 25200 | 0.1844 | 10,719 | 1120 | 0.9834 | |
| 53 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 20600 | 28500 | 0.2776 | 11,959 | 1260 | 0.8818 | |
| 53 | University of California-Santa Cruz | 20600 | 42900 | 0.5204 | 17,940 | 1281 | 0.6579 | |
| 57 | South Carolina State University | 20700 | 30000 | 0.3095 | 2,950 | 930 | 0.8262 | |
| 57 | University of Wyoming | 20700 | 27900 | 0.2594 | 8,130 | 1179 | 0.9688 | |
| 59 | Western Illinois University | 20800 | 31000 | 0.329 | 4,525 | 1015 | 0.7118 | |
| 60 | University of Memphis | 20900 | 29600 | 0.2942 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 60 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | 20900 | 27600 | 0.2431 | 11,756 | 1124 | 0.8698 | |
| 62 | Tarleton State University | 21000 | 23000 | 0.087 | 15,254 | 1080 | 0.8955 | |
| 63 | Midwestern State University | 21100 | 28600 | 0.2618 | 4,303 | 1010 | 0.9352 | |
| 64 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 65 | Louisiana Christian University | 21500 | 26000 | 0.1733 | 763 | 1065 | 0.7719 | |
| 66 | Bentley University | 22000 | 85500 | 0.7426 | 4,526 | 1359 | 0.4505 | |
| 67 | Grand Valley State University | 22100 | 35900 | 0.3849 | 19,002 | 1084 | 0.8302 | |
| 68 | Washburn University | 22200 | 29500 | 0.2478 | 5,331 | 1095 | 0.9551 | |
| 69 | Hope College | 22800 | 60100 | 0.6204 | 3,395 | 1241 | 0.7924 | |
| 69 | Oklahoma City University | 22800 | 64400 | 0.6461 | 1,514 | 1174 | 0.7702 | |
| 71 | Southern Connecticut State University | 23000 | 36800 | 0.3747 | 7,252 | 1005 | 0.9147 | |
| 72 | Allegheny College | 23500 | 76200 | 0.6912 | 1,171 | 1279 | 0.5457 | |
| 72 | Aquinas College | 23500 | 53400 | 0.5604 | 1,088 | 1035 | 0.8988 | |
| 72 | East Tennessee State University | 23500 | 30600 | 0.2318 | 10,829 | 1124 | 0.8619 | |
| 72 | West Texas A & M University | 23500 | 29200 | 0.195 | 6,926 | 1060 | 0.9868 | |
| 76 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 23600 | 24900 | 0.0522 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 77 | Bradley University | 24100 | 49900 | 0.5161 | 3,596 | 1223 | 0.7676 | |
| 78 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 27500 | 0.1165 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 79 | Lewis University | 24700 | 57700 | 0.5718 | 4,326 | 1099 | 0.7129 | |
| 80 | Pennsylvania Western University | 24900 | 34400 | 0.2759 | 7,586 | 1045 | 0.9433 | |
| 81 | University of Mary Hardin-Baylor | 25300 | 53800 | 0.5299 | 2,803 | 1099 | 0.9576 | |
| 82 | Ave Maria University | 25500 | 46600 | 0.453 | 1,301 | 1164 | 0.4139 | |
| 83 | Western Kentucky University | 25900 | 41800 | 0.3803 | 14,151 | 970 | 0.9387 | |
| 84 | Ottawa University-Ottawa | 26100 | 64700 | 0.5969 | 870 | 985 | 0.8296 | |
| 85 | Benedictine University | 26500 | 48900 | 0.4581 | 1,972 | 1161 | 0.9523 | |
| 86 | Georgia Southern University | 26600 | 26800 | 0.0075 | 23,541 | 1065 | 0.8789 | |
| 87 | University of Arkansas | 26700 | 28900 | 0.0745 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 88 | Northwood University | 26800 | 54500 | 0.5087 | 2,045 | 1055 | 0.6451 | |
| 89 | Colorado State University Pueblo | 26900 | 30100 | 0.1047 | 5,086 | 1124 | 0.949 | |
| 90 | University of the Incarnate Word | 27000 | 61400 | 0.5604 | 4,638 | 1030 | 0.9814 | |
| 91 | Capital University | 27200 | 62400 | 0.564 | 1,609 | 1084 | 0.7022 | |
| 92 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 27300 | 36500 | 0.2522 | 7,505 | 1073 | 0.9633 | |
| 93 | Kennesaw State University | 27400 | 27400 | 0 | 42,760 | 1120 | 0.6919 | |
| 94 | Cornell College | 27500 | 74800 | 0.6323 | 1,094 | 1243 | 0.799 | |
| 94 | Saginaw Valley State University | 27500 | 39800 | 0.3105 | 6,135 | 1055 | 0.7207 | |
| 96 | Missouri Valley College | 27700 | 38200 | 0.2749 | 1,687 | 980 | 0.6918 | |
| 97 | Oakland University | 27900 | 39300 | 0.2899 | 12,587 | 1130 | 0.8784 | |
| 97 | Villanova University | 27900 | 88800 | 0.6855 | 7,004 | 1457 | 0.2698 | |
| 99 | Wichita State University | 28000 | 39800 | 0.2974 | 13,313 | 1073 | 0.9395 | |
| 100 | John Brown University | 28200 | 48300 | 0.4169 | 1,948 | 1197 | 0.7614 | |
| 101 | George Fox University | 28300 | 69400 | 0.5925 | 3,354 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 101 | Weber State University | 28300 | 33900 | 0.1651 | 31,672 | 0 | 0 | |
| 103 | Westminster University | 28400 | 62600 | 0.5466 | 842 | 1233 | 0.6657 | |
| 104 | University of Dayton | 28800 | 64200 | 0.5515 | 7,740 | 1302 | 0.6545 | |
| 105 | University of North Texas | 28900 | 37400 | 0.2271 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 106 | Jacksonville State University | 29100 | 38200 | 0.2381 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 106 | Marquette University | 29100 | 63800 | 0.544 | 8,045 | 1309 | 0.8134 | |
| 108 | Oklahoma Wesleyan University | 29400 | 56200 | 0.4776 | 765 | 1020 | 0.6617 | |
| 109 | University of South Carolina-Upstate | 29800 | 39700 | 0.2495 | 4,487 | 1115 | 0.6726 | |
| 110 | University of West Florida | 30600 | 38000 | 0.1946 | 9,970 | 1149 | 0.5824 | |
| 111 | Wheaton College | 30700 | 84800 | 0.638 | 2,150 | 1363 | 0.874 | |
| 112 | The College of Wooster | 30800 | 82400 | 0.6266 | 1,738 | 1344 | 0.5953 | |
| 112 | Wofford College | 30800 | 73200 | 0.5786 | 1,817 | 1305 | 0.5194 | |
| 114 | California State University-Long Beach | 31000 | 38900 | 0.2032 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 115 | University of North Dakota | 31100 | 33700 | 0.0785 | 11,033 | 1150 | 0.769 | |
| 116 | University of North Florida | 31300 | 33000 | 0.0516 | 13,735 | 1150 | 0.5324 | |
| 117 | Hampton University | 31400 | 54800 | 0.427 | 3,728 | 947 | 0.6225 | |
| 117 | Rider University | 31400 | 60600 | 0.4816 | 3,145 | 1233 | 0.7864 | |
| 119 | Ohio Wesleyan University | 31700 | 75700 | 0.5809 | 1,525 | 1281 | 0.556 | |
| 120 | Azusa Pacific University | 32300 | 66600 | 0.5147 | 2,759 | 1189 | 0.8843 | |
| 121 | Belmont University | 32400 | 69900 | 0.536 | 7,175 | 1273 | 0.9528 | |
| 122 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32500 | 35100 | 0.0742 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 123 | Samford University | 32600 | 64600 | 0.4955 | 4,210 | 1199 | 0.8236 | |
| 124 | Berry College | 32700 | 60900 | 0.4633 | 2,254 | 1219 | 0.64 | |
| 125 | North Carolina State University | 32800 | 54800 | 0.4007 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 126 | Suffolk University | 32900 | 70300 | 0.5319 | 4,326 | 1209 | 0.8233 | |
| 127 | Cleveland State University | 33500 | 37300 | 0.1019 | 9,482 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 128 | Elizabethtown College | 33700 | 55300 | 0.3907 | 1,903 | 1214 | 0.7787 | |
| 129 | Salisbury University | 34100 | 41700 | 0.1821 | 6,288 | 1250 | 0.8747 | |
| 130 | Beloit College | 35000 | 81400 | 0.5697 | 1,004 | 1299 | 0.6304 | |
| 131 | Cedarville University | 35800 | 57000 | 0.3711 | 5,790 | 1232 | 0.6529 | |
| 132 | Mississippi State University | 36300 | 50500 | 0.2804 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 133 | Georgia State University | 36500 | 45400 | 0.1961 | 27,415 | 1080 | 0.5544 | |
| 134 | Loyola University Maryland | 36700 | 78800 | 0.5343 | 3,881 | 1303 | 0.7549 | |
| 135 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 36800 | 38900 | 0.0552 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 135 | Virginia State University | 36800 | 42200 | 0.1281 | 5,124 | 955 | 0.8863 | |
| 137 | University of Arkansas at Little Rock | 36900 | 37100 | 0.0054 | 5,939 | 1065 | 0.5878 | |
| 138 | Westmont College | 37400 | 80000 | 0.5322 | 1,302 | 1335 | 0.7705 | |
| 139 | Northwest Nazarene University | 37600 | 62800 | 0.4011 | 1,043 | 1134 | 0.6474 | |
| 140 | DePaul University | 37800 | 66000 | 0.4275 | 14,188 | 1254 | 0.7589 | |
| 141 | University of Redlands | 38100 | 84200 | 0.5478 | 2,049 | 1226 | 0.8271 | |
| 142 | Hofstra University | 38200 | 76900 | 0.5032 | 6,581 | 1328 | 0.6808 | |
| 143 | Saint Francis University | 38500 | 63100 | 0.3899 | 2,567 | 1150 | 0.7682 | |
| 144 | Clark Atlanta University | 38600 | 51900 | 0.2561 | 3,618 | 990 | 0.6422 | |
| 145 | State University of New York at Cortland | 38800 | 39900 | 0.0276 | 5,911 | 1175 | 0.5979 | |
| 146 | Xavier University | 39300 | 68100 | 0.4232 | 4,239 | 1218 | 0.8641 | |
| 147 | Arcadia University | 39400 | 71600 | 0.4493 | 2,030 | 1170 | 0.8022 | |
| 147 | Saint Vincent College | 39400 | 64600 | 0.3895 | 1,284 | 1135 | 0.6173 | |
| 149 | Nichols College | 39600 | 59600 | 0.3359 | 1,163 | 1135 | 0.8084 | |
| 150 | Seton Hall University | 39700 | 67400 | 0.4107 | 6,146 | 1313 | 0.7326 | |
| 150 | University of Central Florida | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 59,552 | 1280 | 0.4011 | |
| 152 | University of Maine | 39900 | 45200 | 0.1173 | 9,601 | 1205 | 0.9664 | |
| 153 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 40300 | 44100 | 0.0862 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 154 | Arkansas State University | 40500 | 41000 | 0.0122 | 9,985 | 1075 | 0.8226 | |
| 155 | Appalachian State University | 40600 | 40600 | 0 | 19,560 | 1190 | 0.9014 | |
| 155 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 40600 | 47500 | 0.1453 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 157 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 40700 | 53600 | 0.2408 | 46,815 | 1378 | 0.6057 | |
| 158 | Loyola University Chicago | 41000 | 70600 | 0.4192 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 159 | Seattle University | 42000 | 75000 | 0.4397 | 4,078 | 1305 | 0.7692 | |
| 159 | Susquehanna University | 42000 | 76800 | 0.4533 | 2,246 | 1204 | 0.8143 | |
| 161 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 42400 | 42400 | 0 | 14,449 | 1195 | 0.784 | |
| 162 | Merrimack College | 43500 | 78800 | 0.4474 | 4,102 | 1115 | 0.7002 | |
| 163 | Boise State University | 45100 | 50000 | 0.098 | 23,983 | 1135 | 0.8721 | |
| 164 | James Madison University | 45200 | 45200 | 0 | 20,973 | 1260 | 0.7152 | |
| 165 | Georgia College & State University | 45300 | 52400 | 0.1355 | 6,006 | 1165 | 0.7823 | |
| 166 | Widener University | 45800 | 79400 | 0.4233 | 2,975 | 1184 | 0.7093 | |
| 167 | Saint Louis University | 46200 | 80900 | 0.4287 | 10,413 | 1305 | 0.7504 | |
| 168 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 48000 | 55800 | 0.1398 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 169 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 48100 | 48600 | 0.0103 | 6,800 | 1293 | 0.6857 | |
| 170 | University of Kentucky | 49200 | 58000 | 0.1531 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 171 | Chapman University | 51500 | 93100 | 0.4469 | 7,713 | 1353 | 0.6543 | |
| 172 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 51600 | 52800 | 0.0227 | 21,210 | 1148 | 0.9262 | |
| 173 | Santa Clara University | 57600 | 85400 | 0.3255 | 6,577 | 1427 | 0.48 | |
| 174 | Molloy University | 59800 | 62300 | 0.0402 | 3,240 | 1199 | 0.8174 | |
| 175 | Mercyhurst University | 60900 | 68000 | 0.1044 | 2,274 | 1090 | 0.8102 | |
| 176 | Presbyterian College | 61000 | 62700 | 0.0271 | 853 | 1120 | 0.6837 | |
| 177 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College | 63900 | 63900 | 0 | 3,244 | 1224 | 0.9683 | |
| 178 | University of California-Irvine | 72000 | 75600 | 0.0476 | 30,204 | 1333 | 0.2857 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.