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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 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 34,354 | 1374 | 0.6862 | |
| 2 | California Institute of Technology | 8300 | 91800 | 0.9096 | 971 | 1564 | 0.0379 | |
| 3 | Valdosta State University | 10500 | 24800 | 0.5775 | 7,199 | 1005 | 0.7769 | |
| 4 | Washington University in St Louis | 10700 | 102300 | 0.8957 | 8,153 | 1512 | 0.1192 | |
| 5 | The University of Tennessee-Martin | 11200 | 24800 | 0.5489 | 7,393 | 1125 | 0.8968 | |
| 6 | Northern Arizona University | 11500 | 27900 | 0.5865 | 22,203 | 1129 | 0.8961 | |
| 7 | The University of Texas at El Paso | 11700 | 26900 | 0.5645 | 22,223 | 975 | 0.9994 | |
| 8 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 11900 | 25700 | 0.5363 | 46,627 | 1366 | 0.492 | |
| 9 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12200 | 25000 | 0.5113 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 10 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,421 | 1054 | 0.9444 | |
| 11 | Colorado College | 12800 | 98000 | 0.869 | 1,887 | 1357 | 0.2209 | |
| 12 | Western Kentucky University | 13000 | 27000 | 0.5169 | 13,732 | 1090 | 0.9145 | |
| 13 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 13200 | 19400 | 0.3197 | 14,865 | 1175 | 0.9113 | |
| 14 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 15 | University of Georgia | 13700 | 26600 | 0.485 | 32,824 | 1348 | 0.3425 | |
| 16 | Grand Valley State University | 14100 | 25300 | 0.4432 | 19,154 | 1074 | 0.9271 | |
| 17 | Union College | 14200 | 92400 | 0.8462 | 1,954 | 1399 | 0.4342 | |
| 18 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 12,118 | 1070 | 0.7164 | |
| 19 | Midwestern State University | 14400 | 21600 | 0.3329 | 4,303 | 1055 | 0.9347 | |
| 20 | Stephen F Austin State University | 14700 | 23400 | 0.3714 | 9,905 | 1055 | 0.8339 | |
| 21 | University of California-Irvine | 15100 | 38000 | 0.603 | 30,260 | 1333 | 0.2895 | |
| 22 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 15300 | 25600 | 0.4016 | 10,396 | 1125 | 0.7162 | |
| 23 | Troy University | 15400 | 26700 | 0.4231 | 10,130 | 1075 | 0.9535 | |
| 24 | Lehigh University | 15500 | 89600 | 0.8275 | 5,986 | 1436 | 0.2896 | |
| 25 | Northwest Missouri State University | 15600 | 29800 | 0.4782 | 5,241 | 1095 | 0.8613 | |
| 26 | Sam Houston State University | 15800 | 30300 | 0.4782 | 17,822 | 1035 | 0.9372 | |
| 26 | University of North Texas | 15800 | 26100 | 0.3953 | 34,414 | 1094 | 0.7089 | |
| 28 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 15900 | 27700 | 0.4254 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 29 | Oakland University | 16000 | 28200 | 0.4329 | 12,770 | 1039 | 0.8897 | |
| 30 | Tennessee State University | 16200 | 39200 | 0.5862 | 4,221 | 990 | 0.8463 | |
| 31 | Eastern Michigan University | 16400 | 36100 | 0.5459 | 10,034 | 1055 | 0.7772 | |
| 32 | West Virginia University | 16500 | 40900 | 0.5963 | 18,206 | 1120 | 0.8514 | |
| 33 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 17100 | 17100 | 0 | 14,657 | 1190 | 0.7583 | |
| 34 | Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi | 17200 | 20700 | 0.169 | 8,673 | 1095 | 0.9156 | |
| 35 | University of Louisville | 17500 | 29100 | 0.399 | 17,916 | 1134 | 0.7921 | |
| 35 | University of Memphis | 17500 | 26400 | 0.3378 | 15,538 | 1080 | 0.7878 | |
| 37 | Greensboro College | 17700 | 37800 | 0.5317 | 899 | 1005 | 0.7014 | |
| 37 | University of Miami | 17700 | 95700 | 0.8149 | 13,241 | 1408 | 0.1761 | |
| 39 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 18200 | 18200 | 0 | 35,248 | 1289 | 0.6939 | |
| 40 | Georgia College & State University | 18300 | 18300 | 0 | 6,250 | 1165 | 0.8466 | |
| 41 | Youngstown State University | 18400 | 34000 | 0.4589 | 9,687 | 1120 | 0.9145 | |
| 42 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 18800 | 31000 | 0.394 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 43 | Louisiana Christian University | 19200 | 26000 | 0.2615 | 769 | 1065 | 0.7719 | |
| 43 | Virginia State University | 19200 | 29500 | 0.3488 | 5,124 | 955 | 0.8863 | |
| 45 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,967 | 940 | 0.9602 | |
| 46 | University of Mississippi | 19400 | 27000 | 0.2814 | 22,939 | 1172 | 0.9738 | |
| 47 | University of Maine at Farmington | 19500 | 33700 | 0.4216 | 1,661 | 1062 | 0.9832 | |
| 48 | Loyola University New Orleans | 19700 | 72100 | 0.7266 | 2,871 | 1150 | 0.9058 | |
| 48 | Pennsylvania Western University | 19700 | 29000 | 0.3212 | 7,586 | 1045 | 0.9433 | |
| 50 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 19800 | 30500 | 0.3506 | 6,743 | 1266 | 0.6292 | |
| 51 | Iowa State University | 19900 | 24200 | 0.179 | 26,346 | 1212 | 0.8793 | |
| 52 | Cleveland State University | 20000 | 30900 | 0.3523 | 9,418 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 53 | Georgia State University | 20100 | 26000 | 0.2271 | 26,785 | 1089 | 0.5722 | |
| 54 | Carroll University | 20300 | 61600 | 0.6708 | 2,581 | 1174 | 0.6684 | |
| 54 | Fort Lewis College | 20300 | 29100 | 0.3027 | 3,392 | 1109 | 0.7732 | |
| 56 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20400 | 23200 | 0.1207 | 20,786 | 1225 | 0.8689 | |
| 56 | South Dakota State University | 20400 | 25200 | 0.19 | 10,883 | 1115 | 0.9618 | |
| 58 | Grove City College | 20500 | 39700 | 0.4842 | 2,247 | 1248 | 0.667 | |
| 58 | University of Wyoming | 20500 | 27900 | 0.2644 | 8,138 | 1163 | 0.9695 | |
| 60 | Our Lady of the Lake University | 20600 | 52900 | 0.6104 | 1,108 | 990 | 1 | |
| 60 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 20600 | 28500 | 0.2776 | 11,959 | 1260 | 0.8818 | |
| 62 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | 20900 | 27600 | 0.2431 | 11,756 | 1124 | 0.8727 | |
| 63 | Louisiana Tech University | 21300 | 26100 | 0.1841 | 11,071 | 1189 | 0.9073 | |
| 64 | Bradley University | 21700 | 49900 | 0.5642 | 3,258 | 1174 | 0.7459 | |
| 65 | Niagara University | 21800 | 57400 | 0.62 | 2,638 | 1170 | 0.876 | |
| 66 | Washburn University | 22200 | 29500 | 0.2478 | 5,427 | 1048 | 1 | |
| 67 | Oklahoma City University | 22600 | 64400 | 0.6492 | 1,546 | 1159 | 0.7103 | |
| 68 | Hope College | 22800 | 60100 | 0.6204 | 3,427 | 1216 | 0.8712 | |
| 69 | Southern Connecticut State University | 23000 | 41000 | 0.4392 | 7,252 | 965 | 0.9482 | |
| 70 | Bentley University | 23300 | 85500 | 0.7274 | 4,620 | 1323 | 0.4729 | |
| 71 | West Texas A & M University | 23400 | 29200 | 0.1985 | 7,110 | 1060 | 0.6681 | |
| 72 | East Tennessee State University | 23500 | 30600 | 0.2318 | 10,829 | 1124 | 0.8619 | |
| 73 | Utica University | 23700 | 43400 | 0.4535 | 2,191 | 1214 | 0.9187 | |
| 74 | Allegheny College | 23900 | 76200 | 0.6865 | 1,125 | 1243 | 0.5877 | |
| 75 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College | 24200 | 41300 | 0.4141 | 3,211 | 1243 | 0.9594 | |
| 76 | Park University | 24400 | 31300 | 0.2208 | 4,657 | 1035 | 0.6904 | |
| 76 | University of Arizona | 24400 | 38100 | 0.3597 | 43,294 | 1186 | 0.8351 | |
| 78 | Lewis University | 25100 | 57700 | 0.5649 | 4,914 | 1127 | 0.6916 | |
| 79 | Dillard University | 25300 | 53600 | 0.5284 | 1,070 | 1055 | 0.7371 | |
| 79 | University of Dayton | 25300 | 64200 | 0.606 | 7,252 | 1319 | 0.6659 | |
| 81 | Ave Maria University | 25500 | 46600 | 0.453 | 1,320 | 1164 | 0.4139 | |
| 81 | University of Mary Hardin-Baylor | 25500 | 53800 | 0.5262 | 2,775 | 1105 | 0.9747 | |
| 83 | Ottawa University-Ottawa | 26100 | 64700 | 0.5969 | 871 | 985 | 0.8296 | |
| 83 | University of Evansville | 26100 | 64700 | 0.5967 | 1,920 | 1174 | 0.9412 | |
| 85 | St Bonaventure University | 26300 | 61200 | 0.5702 | 2,134 | 1165 | 0.8533 | |
| 86 | Benedictine University | 26500 | 48900 | 0.4581 | 2,082 | 1124 | 0.9576 | |
| 86 | Georgia Southern University | 26500 | 26800 | 0.0112 | 25,595 | 1045 | 0.695 | |
| 88 | University of Arkansas | 26600 | 28900 | 0.0793 | 29,252 | 1179 | 0.7388 | |
| 89 | University of Idaho | 26700 | 45200 | 0.4089 | 9,656 | 1104 | 0.7476 | |
| 90 | University of the Incarnate Word | 26900 | 61400 | 0.5621 | 4,651 | 1010 | 0.9947 | |
| 91 | Capital University | 27100 | 62400 | 0.5656 | 1,642 | 1045 | 0.6501 | |
| 92 | Saginaw Valley State University | 27300 | 39800 | 0.314 | 6,280 | 1050 | 0.7843 | |
| 92 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 27300 | 36500 | 0.2522 | 7,747 | 1073 | 0.9617 | |
| 94 | Cornell College | 27400 | 74800 | 0.6336 | 1,094 | 1243 | 0.799 | |
| 94 | Kennesaw State University | 27400 | 27400 | 0 | 46,069 | 1119 | 0.7944 | |
| 96 | George Fox University | 27500 | 69400 | 0.6041 | 3,530 | 1168 | 0.9282 | |
| 97 | Missouri Valley College | 27700 | 38200 | 0.2749 | 1,687 | 980 | 0.6922 | |
| 98 | Villanova University | 27800 | 88800 | 0.6867 | 6,933 | 1466 | 0.2814 | |
| 99 | Texas State University | 27900 | 28000 | 0.0036 | 39,353 | 1080 | 0.9118 | |
| 99 | Wichita State University | 27900 | 39800 | 0.3009 | 14,906 | 1065 | 0.7224 | |
| 101 | John Brown University | 28000 | 48300 | 0.4198 | 2,091 | 1187 | 0.6802 | |
| 102 | Francis Marion University | 28500 | 40200 | 0.2914 | 3,793 | 1015 | 0.9508 | |
| 102 | Westminster University | 28500 | 62600 | 0.545 | 868 | 1205 | 0.6513 | |
| 104 | University of South Carolina-Upstate | 28800 | 39700 | 0.2747 | 4,789 | 1040 | 0.6671 | |
| 105 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 29000 | 34000 | 0.1472 | 31,845 | 1298 | 0.5651 | |
| 106 | Jacksonville State University | 29100 | 38200 | 0.2381 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 106 | Marquette University | 29100 | 63800 | 0.544 | 8,206 | 1304 | 0.7802 | |
| 108 | Texas A&M University-Commerce | 29400 | 36500 | 0.1945 | 9,666 | 1040 | 0.7498 | |
| 109 | University of West Florida | 30000 | 38000 | 0.2104 | 9,971 | 1120 | 0.5822 | |
| 110 | University of West Georgia | 30100 | 46800 | 0.3568 | 10,075 | 1035 | 0.7995 | |
| 111 | University of North Florida | 30400 | 33000 | 0.0788 | 14,837 | 1124 | 0.6815 | |
| 112 | The College of Wooster | 30700 | 82400 | 0.6271 | 1,515 | 1345 | 0.6438 | |
| 112 | Wofford College | 30700 | 73200 | 0.5805 | 1,781 | 1305 | 0.5487 | |
| 114 | Wheaton College | 30800 | 84800 | 0.6366 | 2,181 | 1357 | 0.8491 | |
| 115 | California State University-Long Beach | 30900 | 38900 | 0.2058 | 36,056 | 1135 | 0.4543 | |
| 116 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 31000 | 59100 | 0.4752 | 23,091 | 1354 | 0.382 | |
| 116 | University of North Dakota | 31000 | 33700 | 0.0827 | 11,837 | 1189 | 0.8157 | |
| 118 | Lamar University | 31200 | 38300 | 0.1855 | 8,387 | 1040 | 0.8353 | |
| 119 | Rider University | 31400 | 60600 | 0.4816 | 3,052 | 1214 | 0.7741 | |
| 119 | South Carolina State University | 31400 | 41600 | 0.2452 | 3,059 | 925 | 0.6797 | |
| 121 | Angelo State University | 31600 | 35400 | 0.1071 | 10,103 | 1045 | 0.7981 | |
| 121 | Hampton University | 31600 | 54800 | 0.4233 | 4,046 | 1005 | 0.6358 | |
| 121 | Ohio Wesleyan University | 31600 | 75700 | 0.5823 | 1,652 | 1281 | 0.6441 | |
| 124 | Azusa Pacific University | 32200 | 66600 | 0.5162 | 2,759 | 1189 | 0.8842 | |
| 125 | Berry College | 32600 | 60900 | 0.465 | 2,262 | 1219 | 0.7315 | |
| 125 | Samford University | 32600 | 64600 | 0.4955 | 4,210 | 1199 | 0.8236 | |
| 127 | North Carolina State University | 32700 | 54800 | 0.4033 | 29,340 | 1374 | 0.3954 | |
| 128 | Ursinus College | 33200 | 83700 | 0.6038 | 1,378 | 1303 | 0.9285 | |
| 129 | Tarleton State University | 33300 | 33300 | 0 | 17,556 | 1090 | 0.5386 | |
| 130 | Elizabethtown College | 33700 | 55300 | 0.3907 | 1,935 | 1214 | 0.8892 | |
| 131 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 33800 | 41000 | 0.1744 | 23,003 | 1164 | 0.7367 | |
| 132 | Loyola University Maryland | 34400 | 78800 | 0.5635 | 4,013 | 1329 | 0.6986 | |
| 133 | Coastal Carolina University | 34900 | 45100 | 0.2259 | 11,471 | 1160 | 0.7003 | |
| 134 | Beloit College | 35000 | 81400 | 0.5697 | 997 | 1296 | 0.7039 | |
| 135 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3772 | 8,219 | 1100 | 0.9485 | |
| 136 | Cedarville University | 35700 | 57000 | 0.3736 | 5,794 | 1232 | 0.6529 | |
| 137 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 36300 | 53100 | 0.3162 | 32,041 | 1324 | 0.4358 | |
| 138 | Hofstra University | 36400 | 76900 | 0.5266 | 6,599 | 1369 | 0.7267 | |
| 139 | Colorado State University Pueblo | 36600 | 39900 | 0.0825 | 3,893 | 1015 | 0.9839 | |
| 140 | University of Arkansas at Little Rock | 36900 | 37100 | 0.0054 | 5,939 | 1065 | 0.5878 | |
| 141 | Marymount Manhattan College | 37600 | 69900 | 0.4621 | 1,601 | 1224 | 0.8261 | |
| 142 | DePaul University | 37800 | 66000 | 0.4275 | 14,338 | 1258 | 0.878 | |
| 143 | Northwest Nazarene University | 38100 | 62800 | 0.3932 | 1,043 | 1145 | 0.7159 | |
| 143 | University of Redlands | 38100 | 84200 | 0.5478 | 1,941 | 1233 | 0.8272 | |
| 145 | Seton Hall University | 38200 | 67400 | 0.433 | 6,178 | 1328 | 0.6915 | |
| 146 | Xavier University | 38400 | 68100 | 0.4364 | 3,744 | 1286 | 0.848 | |
| 147 | Saint Francis University | 38500 | 63100 | 0.3899 | 2,567 | 1150 | 0.7682 | |
| 148 | Alvernia University | 38700 | 69400 | 0.4422 | 2,192 | 1195 | 0.5806 | |
| 149 | State University of New York at Cortland | 38800 | 39900 | 0.0276 | 5,890 | 1175 | 0.624 | |
| 150 | Mississippi State University | 39100 | 53400 | 0.2675 | 19,093 | 1205 | 0.8363 | |
| 151 | Westmont College | 39200 | 80000 | 0.5097 | 1,311 | 1315 | 0.8059 | |
| 152 | Arcadia University | 39300 | 71600 | 0.4513 | 2,163 | 1159 | 0.7448 | |
| 152 | Saint Vincent College | 39300 | 64600 | 0.3916 | 1,157 | 1140 | 0.7863 | |
| 154 | University of Maine | 39500 | 45200 | 0.1262 | 9,182 | 1195 | 0.9562 | |
| 155 | Nichols College | 39600 | 59600 | 0.3359 | 1,163 | 1135 | 0.8084 | |
| 155 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 39600 | 39800 | 0.005 | 26,213 | 1209 | 0.7778 | |
| 157 | University of Central Florida | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 60,083 | 1289 | 0.428 | |
| 158 | Appalachian State University | 40200 | 40600 | 0.0099 | 19,732 | 1174 | 0.9388 | |
| 159 | Arkansas State University | 40400 | 41000 | 0.0146 | 11,189 | 1080 | 0.7818 | |
| 160 | Butler University | 41400 | 72400 | 0.4283 | 4,418 | 1269 | 0.8209 | |
| 160 | Middle Tennessee State University | 41400 | 46000 | 0.0999 | 18,042 | 1140 | 0.6909 | |
| 162 | Susquehanna University | 42000 | 76800 | 0.4533 | 2,220 | 1199 | 0.7908 | |
| 163 | Seattle University | 42500 | 85100 | 0.5004 | 4,370 | 1299 | 0.7313 | |
| 164 | Boise State University | 42800 | 50000 | 0.144 | 25,308 | 1025 | 0.8389 | |
| 165 | Loyola University Chicago | 42900 | 70600 | 0.3922 | 12,640 | 1262 | 0.751 | |
| 166 | Merrimack College | 43500 | 78800 | 0.4479 | 4,123 | 1124 | 0.6927 | |
| 167 | James Madison University | 45200 | 45200 | 0 | 21,358 | 1259 | 0.6879 | |
| 168 | Widener University | 45400 | 79400 | 0.4283 | 2,975 | 1179 | 0.7093 | |
| 169 | Saint Louis University | 48600 | 80900 | 0.399 | 9,331 | 1250 | 0.7499 | |
| 170 | University of Kentucky | 49000 | 58000 | 0.1552 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 171 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 50500 | 58800 | 0.1411 | 25,054 | 1225 | 0.7762 | |
| 172 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 52300 | 52800 | 0.0095 | 21,469 | 1167 | 0.9061 | |
| 173 | Chapman University | 52500 | 93100 | 0.4361 | 7,630 | 1336 | 0.7206 | |
| 174 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,405 | 1284 | 0.74 | |
| 174 | Santa Clara University | 57400 | 85400 | 0.3279 | 6,695 | 1399 | 0.4788 | |
| 176 | Molloy University | 58600 | 62300 | 0.0594 | 3,396 | 1188 | 0.6633 | |
| 177 | Presbyterian College | 62700 | 62700 | 0 | 903 | 1150 | 0.6515 | |
| 178 | Mercyhurst University | 66000 | 68000 | 0.0294 | 2,214 | 1203 | 0.775 | |
| 179 | University of California-Santa Cruz | 82400 | 82400 | 0 | 18,194 | 1281 | 0.7273 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.