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 Military Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,473 | 1326 | 0.1245 | |
| 2 | Johns Hopkins University | 2700 | 92000 | 0.9704 | 6,356 | 1543 | 0.0644 | |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3800 | 82600 | 0.954 | 5,813 | 1535 | 0.0462 | |
| 4 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 5 | California Institute of Technology | 7500 | 91800 | 0.9183 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 6 | Vanderbilt University | 7700 | 96200 | 0.9195 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 7 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 32,952 | 1374 | 0.6778 | |
| 8 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,535 | 1542 | 0.0455 | |
| 9 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0399 | |
| 10 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9000 | 90900 | 0.9007 | 7,377 | 1528 | 0.1166 | |
| 11 | Washington University in St Louis | 9300 | 102300 | 0.9091 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 12 | Bucknell University | 9600 | 91800 | 0.8959 | 3,920 | 1396 | 0.2893 | |
| 13 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 14 | University of California-Davis | 10200 | 38100 | 0.7328 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 15 | University of Notre Dame | 10700 | 86200 | 0.8763 | 8,880 | 1500 | 0.1127 | |
| 16 | University of Tulsa | 11400 | 62900 | 0.8184 | 2,852 | 1328 | 0.6151 | |
| 17 | Cornell University | 11700 | 93100 | 0.8745 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 18 | Lafayette College | 11900 | 85800 | 0.8618 | 2,775 | 1427 | 0.3145 | |
| 19 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12200 | 25000 | 0.5113 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 20 | Lamar University | 12400 | 22900 | 0.458 | 8,184 | 1050 | 0.8641 | |
| 21 | New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology | 12500 | 25900 | 0.5162 | 1,066 | 1197 | 0.4449 | |
| 21 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 23 | University of South Florida | 12900 | 17100 | 0.2454 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 23 | University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point | 12900 | 24700 | 0.478 | 7,490 | 1140 | 0.918 | |
| 25 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 13200 | 43000 | 0.693 | 23,181 | 1354 | 0.3297 | |
| 26 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 27 | University of Houston | 13700 | 22000 | 0.3766 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 27 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 50700 | 0.7294 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 29 | University of Idaho | 14100 | 25800 | 0.4543 | 9,574 | 1119 | 0.7553 | |
| 30 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5047 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 31 | Northwestern University | 14600 | 88300 | 0.8348 | 9,399 | 1527 | 0.0769 | |
| 32 | Case Western Reserve University | 14800 | 91300 | 0.8383 | 6,528 | 1475 | 0.3654 | |
| 32 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71700 | 0.794 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 34 | University of St Thomas | 14900 | 50900 | 0.7075 | 3,365 | 1095 | 0.8992 | |
| 35 | Northeastern University | 15000 | 89900 | 0.8331 | 17,432 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 36 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 15200 | 24900 | 0.3891 | 7,683 | 1120 | 0.9402 | |
| 37 | Western Michigan University | 15300 | 26500 | 0.423 | 13,027 | 1115 | 0.846 | |
| 38 | Lehigh University | 15600 | 89600 | 0.8263 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 38 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 15600 | 25800 | 0.3938 | 5,386 | 1050 | 0.9092 | |
| 40 | University of Kansas | 16000 | 34900 | 0.5405 | 22,085 | 1176 | 0.9348 | |
| 41 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 42 | University of Florida | 16400 | 22500 | 0.271 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 43 | North Carolina State University | 16500 | 28500 | 0.4204 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 43 | Wayne State University | 16500 | 32900 | 0.4982 | 16,012 | 1174 | 0.8116 | |
| 43 | West Virginia University | 16500 | 40900 | 0.5963 | 18,206 | 1125 | 0.89 | |
| 46 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 17500 | 29900 | 0.4159 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 46 | University of Louisville | 17500 | 29100 | 0.399 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 48 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 17900 | 44300 | 0.5956 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 49 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 18000 | 39000 | 0.5397 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 50 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 18200 | 28600 | 0.3634 | 4,218 | 1030 | 0.9489 | |
| 51 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 52 | Youngstown State University | 18400 | 34000 | 0.4589 | 9,400 | 1115 | 0.8445 | |
| 53 | University of Mississippi | 18600 | 45000 | 0.5871 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 54 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 18800 | 31000 | 0.394 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 55 | McNeese State University | 18900 | 27400 | 0.3102 | 5,668 | 1060 | 0.7827 | |
| 56 | University of Nevada-Reno | 19200 | 28200 | 0.3189 | 19,117 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 57 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 19900 | 78600 | 0.7467 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 58 | Cleveland State University | 20000 | 30900 | 0.3523 | 9,482 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 58 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 60 | University of Rochester | 20200 | 93100 | 0.7833 | 6,580 | 1462 | 0.4008 | |
| 61 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20500 | 23200 | 0.1164 | 20,444 | 1209 | 0.8499 | |
| 62 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 20700 | 39200 | 0.4722 | 11,355 | 1222 | 0.8816 | |
| 62 | University of Wyoming | 20700 | 27900 | 0.2594 | 8,130 | 1179 | 0.9688 | |
| 64 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 65 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 66 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 22200 | 33600 | 0.339 | 21,210 | 1148 | 0.9262 | |
| 67 | Florida State University | 22600 | 32400 | 0.3029 | 32,720 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 67 | New York University | 22600 | 91800 | 0.7535 | 29,060 | 1520 | 0.0923 | |
| 69 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 23000 | 69800 | 0.6709 | 3,135 | 1307 | 0.5493 | |
| 69 | San Jose State University | 23000 | 41100 | 0.4405 | 28,008 | 1124 | 0.8461 | |
| 71 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 23400 | 34500 | 0.3221 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 72 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 27500 | 0.1165 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 73 | Tennessee Technological University | 25000 | 33700 | 0.257 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 74 | Clarkson University | 25700 | 78000 | 0.6707 | 2,296 | 1302 | 0.7736 | |
| 75 | Michigan State University | 25800 | 28900 | 0.1089 | 41,234 | 1279 | 0.848 | |
| 76 | Christian Brothers University | 25900 | 57600 | 0.5497 | 1,155 | 1110 | 0.867 | |
| 77 | Dordt University | 26200 | 52500 | 0.5007 | 1,716 | 1205 | 0.6847 | |
| 77 | Iowa State University | 26200 | 42800 | 0.3881 | 25,628 | 1207 | 0.8866 | |
| 79 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 26300 | 28400 | 0.0757 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 79 | Tuskegee University | 26300 | 42100 | 0.3757 | 2,659 | 1090 | 0.4868 | |
| 81 | Trine University | 26600 | 56100 | 0.5253 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 82 | University of Arkansas | 26700 | 28900 | 0.0745 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 83 | Kansas State University | 27000 | 31400 | 0.1414 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 84 | University of Arizona | 27100 | 38100 | 0.2888 | 44,848 | 1233 | 0.8614 | |
| 85 | Rowan University | 27500 | 41300 | 0.3345 | 16,100 | 1219 | 0.7766 | |
| 85 | University of Minnesota Duluth | 27500 | 31300 | 0.1229 | 8,426 | 1235 | 0.8875 | |
| 85 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 88 | Syracuse University | 27700 | 83100 | 0.6665 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 89 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 27800 | 31100 | 0.1046 | 19,701 | 1214 | 0.8749 | |
| 90 | Villanova University | 27900 | 88800 | 0.6855 | 7,004 | 1457 | 0.2698 | |
| 91 | Mississippi State University | 28200 | 32300 | 0.1283 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 92 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28600 | 32300 | 0.1145 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 93 | Colorado School of Mines | 28800 | 38100 | 0.2439 | 6,195 | 1399 | 0.6069 | |
| 93 | University of Dayton | 28800 | 64200 | 0.5515 | 7,740 | 1302 | 0.6545 | |
| 95 | University of Utah | 28900 | 32000 | 0.0984 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 96 | Michigan Technological University | 29000 | 34700 | 0.1643 | 6,013 | 1256 | 0.9243 | |
| 97 | Clemson University | 29200 | 37100 | 0.2141 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 97 | University of Connecticut | 29200 | 39500 | 0.2608 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 99 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 29300 | 34000 | 0.1383 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 100 | University of Toledo | 29500 | 32600 | 0.0966 | 11,013 | 1229 | 0.9202 | |
| 101 | Montana State University | 29600 | 31900 | 0.072 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 102 | New Mexico State University-Main Campus | 30500 | 39200 | 0.2222 | 12,507 | 1010 | 0.8897 | |
| 102 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30500 | 78100 | 0.6093 | 14,267 | 1381 | 0.6693 | |
| 104 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 30600 | 38500 | 0.2052 | 7,890 | 1110 | 0.2056 | |
| 105 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 30900 | 36900 | 0.1624 | 5,552 | 1305 | 0.7255 | |
| 105 | West Virginia University Institute of Technology | 30900 | 39900 | 0.2256 | 1,278 | 1025 | 0.3668 | |
| 107 | University of North Dakota | 31100 | 33700 | 0.0785 | 11,033 | 1150 | 0.769 | |
| 108 | Hampton University | 31400 | 54800 | 0.427 | 3,728 | 947 | 0.6225 | |
| 109 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 31500 | 41200 | 0.2357 | 25,255 | 1134 | 0.7517 | |
| 109 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1416 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 111 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 31800 | 49500 | 0.3579 | 1,813 | 1109 | 0.9484 | |
| 112 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32500 | 35100 | 0.0742 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 113 | Prairie View A & M University | 32900 | 39600 | 0.1691 | 8,877 | 975 | 0.7931 | |
| 113 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 32900 | 45100 | 0.2705 | 10,767 | 1326 | 0.7243 | |
| 113 | University of Rhode Island | 32900 | 46400 | 0.2907 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 116 | California Baptist University | 33600 | 65600 | 0.4878 | 8,417 | 1070 | 0.8488 | |
| 117 | Auburn University | 33700 | 34100 | 0.0117 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 | |
| 118 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 33900 | 41000 | 0.1742 | 22,364 | 1159 | 0.7504 | |
| 119 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 34500 | 34500 | 0 | 10,202 | 1140 | 0.8109 | |
| 120 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3775 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8304 | |
| 121 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 36600 | 40000 | 0.085 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 122 | University of New Haven | 36800 | 67300 | 0.453 | 4,903 | 1164 | 0.6038 | |
| 123 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66300 | 0.436 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 124 | Kettering University | 37500 | 71800 | 0.4776 | 1,212 | 1260 | 0.7867 | |
| 125 | Benedictine College | 37700 | 50800 | 0.2579 | 2,403 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 126 | Washington State University | 38200 | 53900 | 0.2906 | 21,455 | 1125 | 0.8664 | |
| 127 | University of Illinois Chicago | 38300 | 50600 | 0.2431 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 128 | University of South Alabama | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 9,241 | 1140 | 0.7096 | |
| 129 | University of Maine | 39900 | 45200 | 0.1173 | 9,601 | 1205 | 0.9664 | |
| 130 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 40400 | 50000 | 0.1922 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 130 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 132 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 40700 | 53600 | 0.2408 | 46,815 | 1378 | 0.6057 | |
| 133 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 41500 | 83200 | 0.5012 | 2,315 | 1404 | 0.7686 | |
| 133 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55200 | 0.2481 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 135 | University of Maryland-College Park | 43000 | 53600 | 0.1979 | 31,133 | 1463 | 0.4479 | |
| 136 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43600 | 68700 | 0.3659 | 3,666 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 136 | Manhattan University | 43600 | 74100 | 0.4115 | 2,744 | 1274 | 0.7894 | |
| 138 | University at Buffalo | 43900 | 46700 | 0.06 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 138 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43900 | 57100 | 0.2305 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 140 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2746 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 141 | Widener University | 45800 | 79400 | 0.4233 | 2,975 | 1184 | 0.7093 | |
| 142 | University of California-San Diego | 45900 | 76000 | 0.396 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2671 | |
| 143 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 144 | University of Colorado Boulder | 47000 | 57700 | 0.1842 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 145 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 48100 | 48600 | 0.0103 | 6,800 | 1293 | 0.6857 | |
| 146 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 61300 | 0.211 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 147 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48600 | 51200 | 0.0517 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 147 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48600 | 91400 | 0.4684 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 149 | Drexel University | 48800 | 83900 | 0.4184 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 149 | University of Georgia | 48800 | 51600 | 0.0542 | 32,399 | 1382 | 0.377 | |
| 151 | University of California-Riverside | 49200 | 66000 | 0.2547 | 22,600 | 1199 | 0.7639 | |
| 151 | University of Kentucky | 49200 | 58000 | 0.1531 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 153 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49700 | 85800 | 0.4206 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 154 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 59400 | 0.1617 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 154 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 49800 | 62200 | 0.1995 | 37,140 | 1406 | 0.4237 | |
| 156 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50500 | 83600 | 0.3958 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 157 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 50900 | 84700 | 0.3991 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 158 | University of Iowa | 51000 | 53200 | 0.0404 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 159 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53000 | 61200 | 0.1332 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 160 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 53300 | 53300 | 0 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 160 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 53300 | 61000 | 0.127 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 162 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 53700 | 62800 | 0.1449 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 163 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 54000 | 59200 | 0.087 | 24,449 | 1256 | 0.7847 | |
| 164 | Howard University | 55000 | 66500 | 0.173 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 165 | The University of Alabama | 55800 | 55800 | 0 | 34,389 | 1284 | 0.7665 | |
| 166 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58200 | 64100 | 0.092 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 167 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 61000 | 63200 | 0.0348 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 168 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 63700 | 63700 | 0 | 10,200 | 1325 | 0.6507 | |
| 169 | University of California-Berkeley | 70800 | 76100 | 0.0697 | 33,070 | 1407 | 0.1098 | |
| 170 | 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.