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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 | United States Military Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,507 | 1335 | 0.1161 | |
| 2 | Johns Hopkins University | 2700 | 91800 | 0.9709 | 6,354 | 1554 | 0.0611 | |
| 3 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 3900 | 112100 | 0.9651 | 4,561 | 1542 | 0.0456 | |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3900 | 83400 | 0.9533 | 5,916 | 1528 | 0.0442 | |
| 5 | University of Chicago | 4000 | 94800 | 0.9576 | 7,519 | 1535 | 0.0456 | |
| 6 | University of Pennsylvania | 4600 | 93100 | 0.951 | 9,989 | 1535 | 0.0492 | |
| 7 | Northwestern University | 6600 | 88300 | 0.9254 | 9,060 | 1533 | 0.0769 | |
| 8 | Lafayette College | 7700 | 112400 | 0.9316 | 2,675 | 1415 | 0.3116 | |
| 9 | Vanderbilt University | 7800 | 98000 | 0.9204 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 10 | University of Notre Dame | 7900 | 86900 | 0.9096 | 8,950 | 1497 | 0.0938 | |
| 11 | Brigham Young University | 8100 | 22100 | 0.6333 | 34,354 | 1374 | 0.6862 | |
| 12 | California Institute of Technology | 8400 | 117400 | 0.9284 | 971 | 1564 | 0.0379 | |
| 13 | Carnegie Mellon University | 8900 | 112200 | 0.9209 | 7,728 | 1528 | 0.1107 | |
| 13 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8900 | 96500 | 0.9082 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 13 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 8900 | 38900 | 0.7719 | 38,572 | 1455 | 0.3659 | |
| 16 | Rice University | 9700 | 92600 | 0.895 | 4,807 | 1528 | 0.0801 | |
| 16 | University of Tulsa | 9700 | 82000 | 0.8815 | 2,852 | 1328 | 0.615 | |
| 18 | University of California-Davis | 10100 | 49800 | 0.7964 | 31,695 | 1290 | 0.4435 | |
| 19 | University of Rochester | 10600 | 96300 | 0.8904 | 6,096 | 1448 | 0.4191 | |
| 20 | Washington University in St Louis | 10700 | 102300 | 0.8957 | 8,153 | 1512 | 0.1192 | |
| 21 | University of California-San Diego | 11600 | 45200 | 0.7437 | 35,442 | 1375 | 0.2856 | |
| 22 | Cornell University | 13100 | 93700 | 0.8601 | 16,138 | 1528 | 0.0838 | |
| 23 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 38400 | 0.6464 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 24 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 61700 | 0.7784 | 39,193 | 1418 | 0.4081 | |
| 25 | University of Houston | 13800 | 21800 | 0.3669 | 40,366 | 1224 | 0.7577 | |
| 26 | Brown University | 13900 | 120200 | 0.8843 | 7,951 | 1500 | 0.0634 | |
| 26 | Louisiana Tech University | 13900 | 43500 | 0.6804 | 11,071 | 1189 | 0.9073 | |
| 28 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 14100 | 31000 | 0.5458 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 28 | Youngstown State University | 14100 | 28400 | 0.5033 | 9,687 | 1120 | 0.9145 | |
| 30 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28100 | 0.4927 | 12,118 | 1070 | 0.7164 | |
| 31 | West Virginia University Institute of Technology | 14400 | 36200 | 0.6021 | 1,278 | 1025 | 0.3668 | |
| 32 | Case Western Reserve University | 14600 | 92100 | 0.8412 | 6,657 | 1484 | 0.3778 | |
| 32 | University of California-Riverside | 14600 | 118100 | 0.8761 | 24,034 | 1199 | 0.8609 | |
| 34 | Bucknell University | 14700 | 92800 | 0.8413 | 3,928 | 1275 | 0.322 | |
| 35 | University of Maine | 15100 | 33300 | 0.5468 | 9,182 | 1195 | 0.9562 | |
| 36 | Stanford University | 15200 | 1865100 | 0.9919 | 7,346 | 1542 | 0.038 | |
| 37 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 15800 | 24200 | 0.3478 | 7,637 | 1115 | 0.1865 | |
| 38 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 16000 | 62800 | 0.7449 | 25,312 | 1134 | 0.7395 | |
| 38 | University of Kansas | 16000 | 34900 | 0.5417 | 22,544 | 1176 | 0.9258 | |
| 40 | McNeese State University | 16500 | 27800 | 0.4068 | 5,668 | 1060 | 0.7827 | |
| 40 | University of Arizona | 16500 | 41400 | 0.6016 | 43,294 | 1186 | 0.8351 | |
| 42 | University of Louisville | 17000 | 29100 | 0.4162 | 17,916 | 1134 | 0.7921 | |
| 43 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 17200 | 43500 | 0.6051 | 1,829 | 1149 | 0.945 | |
| 44 | University of Kentucky | 17500 | 46800 | 0.6264 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 45 | University of South Alabama | 17700 | 40600 | 0.5635 | 9,530 | 1140 | 0.9455 | |
| 45 | Yale University | 17700 | 275000 | 0.9356 | 6,667 | 1507 | 0.0475 | |
| 47 | University of Arkansas | 17800 | 36800 | 0.5156 | 29,252 | 1179 | 0.7388 | |
| 48 | Northeastern University | 17900 | 90000 | 0.8011 | 22,456 | 1481 | 0.0562 | |
| 49 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 18100 | 28600 | 0.3669 | 3,991 | 1010 | 0.9654 | |
| 50 | Texas Tech University | 18200 | 27100 | 0.3283 | 34,021 | 1195 | 0.6906 | |
| 51 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 18500 | 65300 | 0.7167 | 6,743 | 1266 | 0.6292 | |
| 51 | University of Rhode Island | 18500 | 81200 | 0.7721 | 14,466 | 1197 | 0.7456 | |
| 53 | San Jose State University | 18700 | 41100 | 0.5452 | 29,890 | 1135 | 0.8039 | |
| 54 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19300 | 29900 | 0.3538 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 55 | Lehigh University | 19400 | 111000 | 0.8254 | 5,986 | 1436 | 0.2896 | |
| 56 | University of Illinois Chicago | 19700 | 30100 | 0.3453 | 24,260 | 1174 | 0.7576 | |
| 57 | Syracuse University | 19800 | 83600 | 0.7632 | 16,149 | 1374 | 0.4879 | |
| 58 | Iowa State University | 19900 | 24200 | 0.179 | 26,346 | 1212 | 0.8793 | |
| 58 | University of Southern California | 19900 | 76200 | 0.7388 | 20,768 | 1499 | 0.1119 | |
| 60 | Marian University | 21800 | 59800 | 0.635 | 2,378 | 1085 | 0.9546 | |
| 61 | Western Michigan University | 22200 | 37800 | 0.413 | 13,714 | 1089 | 0.9121 | |
| 62 | Florida State University | 22400 | 32200 | 0.3047 | 34,271 | 1369 | 0.2383 | |
| 62 | Tufts University | 22400 | 120000 | 0.813 | 7,031 | 1497 | 0.1082 | |
| 64 | The University of Alabama | 22600 | 36800 | 0.3859 | 35,621 | 1238 | 0.7117 | |
| 65 | Lamar University | 23000 | 37500 | 0.3867 | 8,387 | 1040 | 0.8353 | |
| 65 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 23000 | 27500 | 0.1618 | 18,028 | 1059 | 0.7996 | |
| 65 | University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point | 23000 | 25000 | 0.08 | 7,753 | 1140 | 0.9245 | |
| 68 | Montana State University | 23100 | 73500 | 0.6859 | 15,142 | 1184 | 0.9938 | |
| 68 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 23100 | 28400 | 0.1863 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 70 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 23300 | 26900 | 0.1338 | 20,786 | 1225 | 0.8689 | |
| 71 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 23400 | 31100 | 0.2475 | 19,787 | 1197 | 0.8807 | |
| 72 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 23500 | 34500 | 0.3191 | 10,396 | 1125 | 0.7162 | |
| 73 | University of Dayton | 24100 | 94000 | 0.7436 | 7,252 | 1319 | 0.6659 | |
| 73 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24100 | 38400 | 0.3726 | 24,019 | 1404 | 0.5989 | |
| 75 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 28300 | 0.1413 | 16,405 | 1284 | 0.74 | |
| 76 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 24400 | 73400 | 0.6676 | 3,190 | 1317 | 0.6187 | |
| 76 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 24400 | 31600 | 0.2275 | 9,827 | 1329 | 0.6737 | |
| 78 | Tennessee Technological University | 24900 | 33700 | 0.2612 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 79 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 25600 | 80500 | 0.6823 | 17,848 | 1470 | 0.1565 | |
| 80 | Christian Brothers University | 25800 | 57600 | 0.5513 | 1,155 | 1110 | 0.867 | |
| 81 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,616 | 1410 | 0.4818 | |
| 81 | University of Akron Main Campus | 26100 | 28000 | 0.0677 | 11,691 | 1074 | 0.7722 | |
| 83 | Dordt University | 26200 | 52500 | 0.5007 | 1,716 | 1205 | 0.6847 | |
| 84 | Clarkson University | 26400 | 78000 | 0.6617 | 2,163 | 1283 | 0.825 | |
| 85 | Trine University | 26500 | 56100 | 0.5278 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 86 | Cleveland State University | 27100 | 38500 | 0.2959 | 9,418 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 87 | West Virginia University | 27200 | 51100 | 0.468 | 18,206 | 1120 | 0.8514 | |
| 88 | California State University-Long Beach | 27300 | 43100 | 0.367 | 36,056 | 1135 | 0.4543 | |
| 89 | Wayne State University | 28100 | 46800 | 0.3998 | 16,390 | 1183 | 0.8359 | |
| 90 | Oregon State University | 28800 | 36700 | 0.2153 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 91 | New York University | 29000 | 92100 | 0.6851 | 29,471 | 1520 | 0.0906 | |
| 91 | University of Minnesota Duluth | 29000 | 32000 | 0.095 | 8,706 | 1230 | 0.8906 | |
| 93 | University of South Florida | 29600 | 36700 | 0.1934 | 39,093 | 1255 | 0.4071 | |
| 94 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 29700 | 59100 | 0.4972 | 23,091 | 1354 | 0.382 | |
| 95 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30300 | 78200 | 0.6122 | 14,267 | 1363 | 0.6693 | |
| 96 | New Mexico State University-Main Campus | 30500 | 39400 | 0.226 | 13,039 | 1020 | 0.894 | |
| 97 | University of Toledo | 30700 | 42000 | 0.269 | 10,726 | 1134 | 0.8889 | |
| 98 | University of North Dakota | 31000 | 33700 | 0.0827 | 11,837 | 1189 | 0.8157 | |
| 99 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 21,028 | 1450 | 0.1334 | |
| 100 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 31300 | 39400 | 0.2054 | 11,087 | 1326 | 0.7397 | |
| 101 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31400 | 36700 | 0.1443 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.5125 | |
| 102 | Hampton University | 31600 | 54800 | 0.4233 | 4,046 | 1005 | 0.6358 | |
| 103 | Tuskegee University | 31800 | 53200 | 0.4026 | 2,660 | 1090 | 0.4868 | |
| 104 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 32000 | 54400 | 0.4117 | 35,248 | 1289 | 0.6939 | |
| 105 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 32100 | 36700 | 0.1252 | 42,565 | 1339 | 0.7887 | |
| 105 | Villanova University | 32100 | 114000 | 0.7185 | 6,933 | 1466 | 0.2814 | |
| 107 | Prairie View A & M University | 32600 | 39600 | 0.1767 | 9,022 | 960 | 0.7836 | |
| 108 | North Carolina State University | 32700 | 54800 | 0.4033 | 29,340 | 1374 | 0.3954 | |
| 109 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 33000 | 72600 | 0.5451 | 2,836 | 1283 | 0.6711 | |
| 110 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 33100 | 34200 | 0.0321 | 31,845 | 1298 | 0.5651 | |
| 111 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 34000 | 47000 | 0.2767 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 112 | California Baptist University | 34500 | 69100 | 0.5009 | 8,707 | 1024 | 0.8139 | |
| 113 | University of Idaho | 34800 | 48700 | 0.2854 | 9,656 | 1104 | 0.7476 | |
| 114 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3772 | 8,219 | 1100 | 0.9485 | |
| 115 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 36000 | 56300 | 0.3603 | 5,687 | 1305 | 0.7863 | |
| 116 | Colorado School of Mines | 36200 | 59600 | 0.3928 | 6,195 | 1399 | 0.6069 | |
| 117 | Auburn University | 36400 | 85500 | 0.5741 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4593 | |
| 117 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 36400 | 53600 | 0.321 | 32,041 | 1324 | 0.4358 | |
| 119 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 36600 | 40000 | 0.0851 | 1,984 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 120 | University of Connecticut | 37100 | 70600 | 0.4746 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 121 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 37300 | 41600 | 0.1031 | 5,386 | 995 | 0.9092 | |
| 121 | University of Nevada-Reno | 37300 | 44800 | 0.1674 | 20,204 | 1109 | 0.8313 | |
| 123 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66600 | 0.4382 | 31,536 | 1366 | 0.5457 | |
| 124 | Benedictine College | 37600 | 52500 | 0.2836 | 2,404 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 124 | Kettering University | 37600 | 71800 | 0.4763 | 1,212 | 1204 | 0.7867 | |
| 126 | Widener University | 37800 | 79400 | 0.5241 | 2,975 | 1179 | 0.7093 | |
| 127 | Washington State University | 38100 | 53900 | 0.2932 | 21,400 | 1131 | 0.861 | |
| 128 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 38400 | 60200 | 0.3616 | 23,003 | 1164 | 0.7367 | |
| 129 | Manhattan University | 38500 | 73700 | 0.4776 | 2,378 | 1174 | 0.8216 | |
| 130 | Mississippi State University | 39100 | 53400 | 0.2675 | 19,093 | 1205 | 0.8363 | |
| 130 | New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology | 39100 | 44400 | 0.1192 | 1,066 | 1197 | 0.4449 | |
| 132 | Drexel University | 39600 | 107600 | 0.6318 | 12,318 | 1354 | 0.699 | |
| 133 | University of Wyoming | 40000 | 45300 | 0.1168 | 8,138 | 1163 | 0.9695 | |
| 134 | University of Mississippi | 40100 | 60300 | 0.3349 | 22,939 | 1172 | 0.9738 | |
| 135 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40300 | 90200 | 0.5531 | 33,534 | 1399 | 0.0941 | |
| 136 | Kansas State University | 40600 | 41600 | 0.024 | 16,555 | 1163 | 0.875 | |
| 137 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41400 | 58900 | 0.2971 | 21,388 | 1369 | 0.5945 | |
| 138 | University at Buffalo | 41500 | 46400 | 0.1057 | 21,192 | 1309 | 0.8059 | |
| 139 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 42600 | 57200 | 0.2552 | 10,900 | 1222 | 0.8914 | |
| 140 | University of Maryland-College Park | 43000 | 68700 | 0.3743 | 31,875 | 1456 | 0.4503 | |
| 141 | University of Florida | 43100 | 45700 | 0.057 | 37,283 | 1406 | 0.2033 | |
| 142 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 43200 | 108500 | 0.6019 | 35,358 | 1448 | 0.1642 | |
| 143 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43400 | 68700 | 0.3679 | 4,279 | 1234 | 0.5796 | |
| 144 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 43600 | 53400 | 0.1837 | 21,469 | 1167 | 0.9061 | |
| 145 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 43900 | 83400 | 0.4735 | 2,160 | 1374 | 0.809 | |
| 146 | University of New Haven | 46200 | 107200 | 0.5691 | 4,969 | 1219 | 0.5589 | |
| 147 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47100 | 59800 | 0.2121 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 148 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 47200 | 53300 | 0.1144 | 34,447 | 1273 | 0.8804 | |
| 149 | University of Delaware | 47700 | 62000 | 0.2314 | 19,287 | 1302 | 0.6924 | |
| 150 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48500 | 51200 | 0.0544 | 43,633 | 1342 | 0.4343 | |
| 151 | University of Georgia | 48600 | 51800 | 0.0618 | 32,824 | 1348 | 0.3425 | |
| 152 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 48700 | 86200 | 0.4349 | 4,206 | 1430 | 0.5068 | |
| 153 | Michigan State University | 49200 | 56200 | 0.1245 | 41,415 | 1212 | 0.8324 | |
| 154 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 58800 | 0.153 | 44,314 | 1356 | 0.2222 | |
| 155 | University of Colorado Boulder | 50000 | 56000 | 0.1072 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7809 | |
| 156 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 50400 | 72700 | 0.3067 | 46,627 | 1366 | 0.492 | |
| 156 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50400 | 95600 | 0.473 | 5,461 | 1292 | 0.6189 | |
| 158 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 50500 | 58800 | 0.1411 | 25,054 | 1225 | 0.7762 | |
| 159 | University of Utah | 51400 | 53700 | 0.0426 | 29,335 | 1222 | 0.9015 | |
| 160 | University of California-Berkeley | 51700 | 98700 | 0.4761 | 33,513 | 1407 | 0.1145 | |
| 161 | University of Iowa | 52100 | 54400 | 0.0421 | 23,407 | 1203 | 0.799 | |
| 162 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 53000 | 86300 | 0.3859 | 5,833 | 1440 | 0.6725 | |
| 163 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 17,157 | 1204 | 0.7654 | |
| 164 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 54100 | 95100 | 0.4311 | 6,839 | 1469 | 0.1446 | |
| 165 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 57900 | 65700 | 0.1188 | 40,996 | 1399 | 0.4175 | |
| 166 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 58100 | 59900 | 0.0301 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 167 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58300 | 63500 | 0.0819 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 168 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 58900 | 61200 | 0.0374 | 26,490 | 1183 | 0.8863 | |
| 169 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 59300 | 61600 | 0.0372 | 25,141 | 1256 | 0.7613 | |
| 170 | Howard University | 59900 | 67300 | 0.1099 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 171 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 60200 | 64800 | 0.0709 | 8,513 | 1160 | 0.9261 | |
| 172 | Michigan Technological University | 60600 | 76100 | 0.2037 | 6,009 | 1247 | 0.8546 | |
| 173 | Clemson University | 61400 | 63700 | 0.036 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 174 | University of California-Irvine | 72000 | 85400 | 0.1569 | 30,260 | 1333 | 0.2895 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.