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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 | 32,952 | 1374 | 0.6778 | |
| 2 | East Central University | 10700 | 24700 | 0.5673 | 2,644 | 1055 | 0.5815 | |
| 3 | California State University-Sacramento | 11700 | 30700 | 0.6186 | 28,820 | 1035 | 0.9399 | |
| 4 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 5 | Texas Woman's University | 12100 | 28200 | 0.571 | 10,039 | 1035 | 0.9612 | |
| 6 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 7 | Eastern Illinois University | 12600 | 24300 | 0.4831 | 6,785 | 985 | 0.6535 | |
| 8 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 9 | Delta State University | 14000 | 23200 | 0.3971 | 1,876 | 1040 | 1 | |
| 10 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5047 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 11 | Stephen F Austin State University | 14700 | 23400 | 0.3714 | 9,129 | 1075 | 0.9399 | |
| 12 | Pittsburg State University | 14900 | 23900 | 0.376 | 4,472 | 1055 | 0.8942 | |
| 13 | Wayne State College | 15100 | 20300 | 0.2561 | 3,902 | 0 | 0 | |
| 14 | Chadron State College | 15200 | 25000 | 0.3926 | 1,690 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 | University of Maryland Eastern Shore | 15300 | 26900 | 0.4309 | 2,476 | 930 | 0.9641 | |
| 16 | Southeastern Louisiana University | 15500 | 26800 | 0.4211 | 13,192 | 1075 | 0.9931 | |
| 17 | Mississippi University for Women | 16000 | 21400 | 0.2527 | 1,962 | 1055 | 0.9031 | |
| 18 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 19 | Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus | 16400 | 28200 | 0.4179 | 7,353 | 1085 | 0.9077 | |
| 20 | University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff | 18100 | 25300 | 0.285 | 1,817 | 905 | 0.4118 | |
| 21 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 22 | Carson-Newman University | 19500 | 51900 | 0.6245 | 1,596 | 1110 | 0.9045 | |
| 22 | Southeast Missouri State University | 19500 | 30600 | 0.3614 | 7,926 | 945 | 0.7352 | |
| 24 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20500 | 23200 | 0.1164 | 20,444 | 1209 | 0.8499 | |
| 25 | South Carolina State University | 20700 | 30000 | 0.3095 | 2,950 | 930 | 0.8262 | |
| 26 | Western Illinois University | 20800 | 31000 | 0.329 | 4,525 | 1015 | 0.7118 | |
| 27 | University of Northern Iowa | 20900 | 24000 | 0.1312 | 7,711 | 1129 | 0.9274 | |
| 28 | Henderson State University | 21100 | 30600 | 0.31 | 1,461 | 990 | 0.8192 | |
| 29 | Texas Southern University | 22100 | 25500 | 0.1335 | 6,844 | 915 | 0.9691 | |
| 30 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 23000 | 27500 | 0.1618 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 31 | Central Washington University | 23400 | 27900 | 0.1615 | 10,317 | 1045 | 0.9062 | |
| 32 | Tennessee Technological University | 25000 | 33700 | 0.257 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 33 | The University of Tennessee-Martin | 25200 | 31500 | 0.2001 | 6,809 | 1110 | 0.882 | |
| 34 | Seattle Pacific University | 25800 | 70000 | 0.6314 | 1,776 | 1180 | 0.834 | |
| 35 | Minnesota State University, Mankato | 25900 | 28000 | 0.0767 | 13,433 | 1145 | 0.8844 | |
| 36 | Iowa State University | 26200 | 42800 | 0.3881 | 25,628 | 1207 | 0.8866 | |
| 37 | Kansas State University | 27000 | 31400 | 0.1409 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 38 | California State University-Northridge | 27100 | 36500 | 0.2586 | 32,756 | 1005 | 0.9345 | |
| 39 | Fort Valley State University | 27300 | 45200 | 0.3959 | 2,699 | 1025 | 0.6587 | |
| 40 | Freed-Hardeman University | 27700 | 35900 | 0.2284 | 1,873 | 1120 | 0.5968 | |
| 40 | Norfolk State University | 27700 | 40100 | 0.309 | 5,410 | 935 | 0.8777 | |
| 42 | Alabama A & M University | 28200 | 37700 | 0.2518 | 6,370 | 915 | 0.5795 | |
| 43 | Southern University and A & M College | 28600 | 32900 | 0.1309 | 6,713 | 930 | 0.3512 | |
| 44 | Jacksonville State University | 29100 | 38200 | 0.2381 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 45 | Montana State University | 29600 | 31900 | 0.072 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 46 | Morgan State University | 29700 | 41900 | 0.2914 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 47 | Oklahoma Baptist University | 30500 | 54700 | 0.4419 | 1,427 | 1025 | 0.4941 | |
| 48 | San Francisco State University | 30800 | 47700 | 0.3544 | 19,444 | 1035 | 0.9644 | |
| 49 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1416 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 50 | Baylor University | 31900 | 70300 | 0.546 | 14,915 | 1321 | 0.5128 | |
| 51 | Bridgewater College | 32000 | 40200 | 0.2028 | 1,407 | 1174 | 0.9172 | |
| 52 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 32200 | 36700 | 0.1214 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 53 | Liberty University | 33200 | 44600 | 0.2556 | 52,961 | 1174 | 0.9898 | |
| 54 | Auburn University | 33700 | 34100 | 0.0117 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 | |
| 55 | Meredith College | 34000 | 64200 | 0.4706 | 1,206 | 1237 | 0.7418 | |
| 56 | University of Montevallo | 35400 | 44900 | 0.2118 | 2,642 | 1124 | 0.5385 | |
| 57 | California State University-Fresno | 36800 | 43800 | 0.1588 | 21,954 | 995 | 0.9526 | |
| 58 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66300 | 0.436 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 59 | University of Central Arkansas | 38100 | 40200 | 0.0534 | 8,268 | 1110 | 0.8949 | |
| 60 | Illinois State University | 43900 | 49100 | 0.1049 | 19,107 | 1120 | 0.8815 | |
| 61 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48600 | 51200 | 0.0517 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 62 | University of Kentucky | 49100 | 58000 | 0.1535 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 63 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 59400 | 0.1617 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 64 | University of Utah | 51600 | 53700 | 0.04 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 65 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53000 | 61200 | 0.1332 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 66 | The University of Alabama | 55800 | 55800 | 0 | 34,389 | 1284 | 0.7665 | |
| 67 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.