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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 | CUNY Graduate School and University Center | 5900 | 34100 | 0.8272 | 3,237 | 0 | 0.3861 | |
| 2 | California Institute of Technology | 8000 | 90300 | 0.9112 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 3 | College of Staten Island CUNY | 8300 | 33400 | 0.7524 | 10,049 | 1005 | 0.9234 | |
| 3 | CUNY Brooklyn College | 8300 | 31800 | 0.74 | 11,562 | 1110 | 0.5836 | |
| 5 | Southeastern Oklahoma State University | 9200 | 30500 | 0.6982 | 3,207 | 1050 | 0.8034 | |
| 6 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 10200 | 94100 | 0.8919 | 9,157 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 7 | New Mexico Highlands University | 10500 | 21500 | 0.5112 | 1,710 | 945 | 0.9481 | |
| 7 | Valdosta State University | 10500 | 24800 | 0.5776 | 7,206 | 1015 | 0.7214 | |
| 9 | Christopher Newport University | 11900 | 33900 | 0.6489 | 4,407 | 1209 | 0.8796 | |
| 10 | Northern Illinois University | 12400 | 29000 | 0.5718 | 11,349 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 11 | Northwestern University | 12600 | 87700 | 0.8563 | 8,846 | 1513 | 0.0722 | |
| 12 | Northern Kentucky University | 12700 | 25900 | 0.5105 | 10,163 | 1090 | 0.8307 | |
| 13 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 12900 | 37100 | 0.6518 | 4,218 | 1020 | 0.9307 | |
| 14 | The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | 13100 | 27100 | 0.5158 | 28,674 | 980 | 0.9401 | |
| 15 | Fort Hays State University | 13300 | 22000 | 0.3956 | 10,206 | 1120 | 0.9177 | |
| 15 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 13300 | 13300 | 0 | 18,428 | 1090 | 0.9529 | |
| 17 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 32200 | 0.5744 | 39,083 | 1412 | 0.4517 | |
| 18 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | 14400 | 41100 | 0.6502 | 8,975 | 1045 | 0.9721 | |
| 19 | Goshen College | 14900 | 55800 | 0.734 | 780 | 995 | 0.8404 | |
| 20 | Alabama State University | 15100 | 28000 | 0.4611 | 3,322 | 945 | 0.9564 | |
| 21 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 15300 | 28100 | 0.4555 | 8,553 | 1054 | 0.8688 | |
| 22 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 15500 | 24800 | 0.3744 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 23 | Wayne State College | 15600 | 26400 | 0.4096 | 3,902 | 1075 | 1 | |
| 24 | Northwestern State University of Louisiana | 16000 | 28800 | 0.4443 | 7,595 | 1075 | 0.9226 | |
| 25 | Northeastern University | 16100 | 89900 | 0.8213 | 22,695 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 26 | Grand Valley State University | 16200 | 25300 | 0.3601 | 19,002 | 1233 | 0.8302 | |
| 27 | Southern University at New Orleans | 16300 | 31600 | 0.484 | 1,773 | 885 | 0.6021 | |
| 28 | SUNY at Fredonia | 16500 | 27800 | 0.407 | 2,876 | 1193 | 0.792 | |
| 29 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 16800 | 64800 | 0.7406 | 21,075 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 30 | Dickinson State University | 17200 | 23700 | 0.2739 | 1,339 | 1005 | 0.3695 | |
| 31 | Frostburg State University | 17500 | 26900 | 0.3488 | 2,619 | 1082 | 0.892 | |
| 32 | University of South Alabama | 17900 | 22400 | 0.2013 | 9,241 | 1140 | 0.7096 | |
| 33 | Georgia Southern University | 18100 | 23800 | 0.2399 | 23,618 | 1065 | 0.8789 | |
| 34 | University of Houston-Victoria | 18400 | 34400 | 0.4654 | 2,707 | 930 | 0.7671 | |
| 35 | Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania | 18600 | 25200 | 0.2618 | 6,853 | 1090 | 0.7147 | |
| 35 | State University of New York at Oswego | 18600 | 27500 | 0.3235 | 5,517 | 1174 | 0.8057 | |
| 37 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Schuylkill | 19200 | 32900 | 0.417 | 624 | 1115 | 0.9664 | |
| 38 | Coppin State University | 19300 | 43100 | 0.5526 | 1,810 | 950 | 0.4956 | |
| 39 | Cleveland State University | 19700 | 37300 | 0.4721 | 9,418 | 1005 | 0.913 | |
| 39 | Savannah State University | 19700 | 27300 | 0.2779 | 2,857 | 950 | 0.8368 | |
| 41 | Towson University | 19800 | 30000 | 0.3395 | 16,264 | 1093 | 0.8198 | |
| 42 | Florida Memorial University | 20100 | 46100 | 0.5641 | 1,299 | 0 | 0.7431 | |
| 43 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 20200 | 38800 | 0.481 | 36,588 | 1367 | 0.6535 | |
| 44 | Central College | 20400 | 36800 | 0.4455 | 1,084 | 1140 | 0.8617 | |
| 45 | Saint Mary's University of Minnesota | 20800 | 57800 | 0.6395 | 1,083 | 1205 | 0.9278 | |
| 46 | Lincoln University | 20900 | 24900 | 0.1606 | 1,707 | 920 | 0 | |
| 46 | University of Maryland-College Park | 20900 | 27100 | 0.2289 | 31,133 | 1456 | 0.448 | |
| 48 | Tarleton State University | 21000 | 23000 | 0.087 | 15,130 | 0 | 0.5256 | |
| 48 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 21000 | 30300 | 0.3066 | 1,809 | 1109 | 0.9484 | |
| 50 | Luther College | 21500 | 71900 | 0.7011 | 1,384 | 1226 | 0.8402 | |
| 50 | Pennsylvania Western University | 21500 | 29400 | 0.2688 | 7,586 | 1070 | 0.9433 | |
| 50 | Rutgers University-Newark | 21500 | 38900 | 0.4474 | 7,417 | 1214 | 0.7873 | |
| 50 | Stockton University | 21500 | 32100 | 0.33 | 7,565 | 1135 | 0.8894 | |
| 54 | Bradley University | 22200 | 48300 | 0.5396 | 3,596 | 1174 | 0.7675 | |
| 55 | SUNY Buffalo State University | 22400 | 32000 | 0.2999 | 5,205 | 1118 | 0.744 | |
| 56 | University of Wisconsin-Green Bay | 22700 | 22800 | 0.0044 | 10,656 | 1075 | 0.7289 | |
| 57 | University of Illinois Chicago | 22800 | 30300 | 0.2473 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 58 | Dakota State University | 23100 | 25600 | 0.0977 | 3,066 | 1192 | 0.8814 | |
| 59 | Averett University | 23300 | 57200 | 0.593 | 1,180 | 1010 | 0.478 | |
| 59 | Robert Morris University | 23300 | 58000 | 0.5993 | 3,769 | 1180 | 0.9057 | |
| 61 | Syracuse University | 23600 | 83100 | 0.716 | 15,958 | 1363 | 0.4611 | |
| 62 | University of Kentucky | 23900 | 36000 | 0.3357 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 63 | Ramapo College of New Jersey | 24100 | 34500 | 0.3014 | 5,444 | 1214 | 0.7064 | |
| 64 | Bemidji State University | 24300 | 26400 | 0.0786 | 3,610 | 1110 | 0.9131 | |
| 65 | Minnesota State University Moorhead | 24600 | 26600 | 0.0779 | 3,413 | 1085 | 0.5295 | |
| 66 | Notre Dame of Maryland University | 24700 | 62200 | 0.6033 | 686 | 1030 | 0.8649 | |
| 67 | Dominican University | 24800 | 55500 | 0.5522 | 2,690 | 1035 | 0.9032 | |
| 67 | Elmhurst University | 24800 | 67000 | 0.6301 | 3,170 | 1148 | 0.7357 | |
| 69 | Oklahoma Baptist University | 24900 | 51700 | 0.5179 | 1,409 | 1110 | 0.6327 | |
| 70 | Boston College | 25100 | 94600 | 0.7347 | 9,654 | 1490 | 0.1619 | |
| 71 | Houghton University | 25200 | 35500 | 0.29 | 939 | 1277 | 0.8866 | |
| 72 | Texas A&M University-Commerce | 25500 | 37400 | 0.3186 | 9,666 | 1040 | 0.7498 | |
| 73 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 25800 | 36500 | 0.2928 | 14,783 | 1124 | 0.8096 | |
| 73 | Westfield State University | 25800 | 39000 | 0.3381 | 3,868 | 1105 | 0.8671 | |
| 75 | Northwood University | 25900 | 54500 | 0.5252 | 1,989 | 1075 | 0.839 | |
| 76 | Bethune-Cookman University | 26000 | 32700 | 0.205 | 2,739 | 910 | 0.8824 | |
| 76 | Doane University | 26000 | 62800 | 0.5861 | 1,323 | 1125 | 0.9801 | |
| 78 | Benedictine University | 26500 | 48900 | 0.4581 | 1,972 | 1150 | 0.9523 | |
| 78 | Norwich University | 26500 | 70900 | 0.6264 | 2,642 | 1209 | 0.7361 | |
| 80 | Columbia College | 26900 | 41300 | 0.349 | 876 | 1025 | 0.8878 | |
| 80 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Brandywine | 26900 | 35600 | 0.2442 | 1,236 | 1203 | 0.9811 | |
| 82 | Kennesaw State University | 27000 | 27000 | 0 | 42,840 | 1120 | 0.6919 | |
| 82 | University of North Georgia | 27000 | 35500 | 0.2393 | 18,329 | 1100 | 0.6794 | |
| 84 | Emporia State University | 27200 | 37700 | 0.2783 | 2,396 | 1075 | 0.9771 | |
| 85 | Fairmont State University | 27500 | 32000 | 0.1408 | 3,060 | 1005 | 0.9924 | |
| 86 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | 27600 | 27600 | 0 | 11,756 | 1124 | 0.8727 | |
| 86 | University of North Texas | 27600 | 37400 | 0.2622 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 88 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 28000 | 28000 | 0 | 10,767 | 1326 | 0.7243 | |
| 89 | Jacksonville State University | 28500 | 38200 | 0.2537 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 90 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28600 | 31500 | 0.0921 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 91 | George Fox University | 28700 | 67100 | 0.5727 | 3,401 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 91 | Mercy University | 28700 | 44500 | 0.3552 | 6,775 | 1074 | 0.8584 | |
| 91 | Salisbury University | 28700 | 28700 | 0 | 6,288 | 1250 | 0.8747 | |
| 94 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Greater Allegheny | 28800 | 44100 | 0.3472 | 352 | 1180 | 0.9647 | |
| 95 | Radford University | 28900 | 32800 | 0.1189 | 6,161 | 1070 | 0.8953 | |
| 95 | University of South Carolina-Upstate | 28900 | 39700 | 0.2722 | 4,478 | 1065 | 0.8132 | |
| 97 | Concord University | 29000 | 46500 | 0.3763 | 1,609 | 990 | 0.9256 | |
| 98 | Furman University | 29200 | 79600 | 0.6329 | 2,383 | 1359 | 0.4295 | |
| 99 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 29500 | 36500 | 0.1919 | 7,505 | 1059 | 0.9633 | |
| 100 | University of Louisiana at Monroe | 29700 | 38200 | 0.2227 | 6,550 | 1140 | 0.7456 | |
| 101 | Lenoir-Rhyne University | 29900 | 51100 | 0.4151 | 1,477 | 1075 | 0.8068 | |
| 101 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 29900 | 52900 | 0.435 | 37,140 | 1442 | 0.4237 | |
| 103 | Saint Xavier University | 30300 | 51200 | 0.4067 | 3,039 | 1125 | 0.8575 | |
| 103 | San Jose State University | 30300 | 41000 | 0.2608 | 28,008 | 0 | 0.8461 | |
| 105 | Albright College | 30600 | 48700 | 0.3717 | 1,328 | 1050 | 0.8615 | |
| 106 | University of Northwestern-St Paul | 30700 | 54600 | 0.4374 | 3,163 | 1165 | 0.9347 | |
| 106 | West Virginia Wesleyan College | 30700 | 52800 | 0.4182 | 938 | 1090 | 0.951 | |
| 108 | University of Toledo | 30900 | 42000 | 0.2639 | 11,013 | 1159 | 0.9202 | |
| 109 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 31000 | 36900 | 0.1604 | 5,552 | 1305 | 0.7255 | |
| 110 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 31100 | 33200 | 0.0625 | 14,504 | 1145 | 0.7637 | |
| 110 | SUNY Brockport | 31100 | 37900 | 0.1794 | 5,816 | 1195 | 0.7068 | |
| 112 | University of Arkansas at Little Rock | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1417 | 5,789 | 1115 | 0.5774 | |
| 112 | Washington Adventist University | 31500 | 37800 | 0.1668 | 605 | 950 | 0.4536 | |
| 114 | Thomas Jefferson University | 31600 | 67700 | 0.5331 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8098 | |
| 115 | Angelo State University | 31800 | 35400 | 0.101 | 9,779 | 1055 | 0.8301 | |
| 115 | University of North Florida | 31800 | 37900 | 0.161 | 13,735 | 1150 | 0.5324 | |
| 117 | Saint Michael's College | 32000 | 68400 | 0.5319 | 1,120 | 1240 | 0.8451 | |
| 118 | McKendree University | 32100 | 52200 | 0.3857 | 1,605 | 1098 | 0.6388 | |
| 119 | Hampton University | 32300 | 47000 | 0.3128 | 3,728 | 956 | 0.6225 | |
| 119 | University of Scranton | 32300 | 76300 | 0.5763 | 3,613 | 1220 | 0.812 | |
| 121 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32500 | 34700 | 0.0633 | 30,564 | 1298 | 0.416 | |
| 122 | California Lutheran University | 32700 | 65800 | 0.5027 | 2,297 | 1258 | 0.7567 | |
| 122 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Beaver | 32700 | 40200 | 0.1867 | 482 | 1195 | 0.9565 | |
| 124 | Harding University | 32900 | 47000 | 0.2995 | 3,523 | 1193 | 0.3942 | |
| 124 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Mont Alto | 32900 | 44100 | 0.2539 | 581 | 1129 | 0.9821 | |
| 126 | Grambling State University | 33200 | 35300 | 0.0595 | 4,279 | 965 | 0.2368 | |
| 127 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 33300 | 54600 | 0.3899 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 128 | Wilkes University | 33400 | 61900 | 0.4597 | 1,956 | 1153 | 0.9146 | |
| 129 | College of Charleston | 33700 | 33700 | 0 | 10,880 | 1255 | 0.6003 | |
| 129 | Elizabethtown College | 33700 | 54600 | 0.383 | 1,903 | 1214 | 0.7787 | |
| 129 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5882 | 11,677 | 1421 | 0.4709 | |
| 132 | LeTourneau University | 34100 | 54600 | 0.3754 | 3,184 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 133 | Morgan State University | 34400 | 37200 | 0.0753 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 134 | Colorado State University Pueblo | 34700 | 37800 | 0.0813 | 5,086 | 1000 | 0.9821 | |
| 134 | University of South Florida | 34700 | 34700 | 0 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 136 | DePaul University | 34900 | 56200 | 0.3791 | 14,188 | 1218 | 0.7589 | |
| 137 | City University of Seattle | 35100 | 45400 | 0.227 | 1,180 | 0 | 0.9025 | |
| 137 | Coastal Carolina University | 35100 | 44700 | 0.2146 | 10,811 | 1145 | 0.7527 | |
| 139 | Adelphi University | 35300 | 63300 | 0.4433 | 5,325 | 1218 | 0.6591 | |
| 139 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 139 | University of Mount Olive | 35300 | 35300 | 0 | 1,937 | 945 | 0.7775 | |
| 142 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 35700 | 42400 | 0.158 | 31,112 | 1130 | 0.8129 | |
| 143 | Mercer University | 36500 | 60500 | 0.3967 | 4,690 | 1273 | 0.6889 | |
| 144 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 36900 | 38900 | 0.0533 | 23,351 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 145 | East Carolina University | 37100 | 40100 | 0.0748 | 21,445 | 1120 | 0.8922 | |
| 145 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington | 37100 | 38100 | 0.0262 | 2,884 | 1175 | 0.9677 | |
| 145 | University of Michigan-Flint | 37100 | 39400 | 0.0584 | 5,011 | 1103 | 0.7047 | |
| 148 | Immaculata University | 37200 | 47800 | 0.2215 | 1,652 | 1245 | 0.8578 | |
| 149 | SUNY Polytechnic Institute | 37600 | 38900 | 0.0334 | 1,919 | 1245 | 0.7844 | |
| 149 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 37600 | 41600 | 0.0979 | 5,187 | 1005 | 0.9229 | |
| 151 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 38400 | 38400 | 0 | 14,416 | 1205 | 0.8851 | |
| 152 | Suffolk University | 38600 | 73600 | 0.4758 | 4,324 | 1209 | 0.822 | |
| 153 | Wayne State University | 39300 | 45500 | 0.1362 | 16,173 | 1174 | 0.7786 | |
| 154 | Pace University | 39700 | 74100 | 0.464 | 8,038 | 1274 | 0.7592 | |
| 155 | Stony Brook University | 39900 | 53000 | 0.2467 | 18,263 | 1395 | 0.4904 | |
| 156 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Hazleton | 40000 | 45400 | 0.1189 | 502 | 1204 | 0.9641 | |
| 157 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks | 40300 | 40300 | 0 | 1,880 | 1185 | 0.9867 | |
| 158 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg | 40500 | 40500 | 0 | 4,047 | 1219 | 0.976 | |
| 159 | Loyola University Maryland | 42000 | 78800 | 0.4671 | 3,881 | 1309 | 0.7549 | |
| 160 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 42500 | 54900 | 0.2261 | 20,418 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 161 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 42600 | 55100 | 0.227 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 162 | CUNY Bernard M Baruch College | 43400 | 43400 | 0 | 16,086 | 1293 | 0.5117 | |
| 162 | Western Oregon University | 43400 | 43400 | 0 | 3,343 | 1120 | 0.9871 | |
| 164 | University of California-Riverside | 43500 | 66400 | 0.3448 | 22,599 | 1199 | 0.7685 | |
| 165 | Merrimack College | 43600 | 78800 | 0.4464 | 4,199 | 1115 | 0.7361 | |
| 166 | CUNY Lehman College | 44400 | 45800 | 0.0306 | 11,217 | 1020 | 0.4601 | |
| 167 | James Madison University | 46400 | 46400 | 0 | 21,112 | 1260 | 0.7151 | |
| 168 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 56200 | 0.1476 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 169 | Molloy University | 48200 | 62300 | 0.2265 | 3,240 | 1199 | 0.8174 | |
| 170 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 49900 | 56400 | 0.1152 | 10,200 | 1346 | 0.6507 | |
| 171 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 50200 | 52300 | 0.0401 | 21,210 | 1171 | 0.9232 | |
| 172 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 51000 | 84200 | 0.3944 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 173 | Drexel University | 51200 | 82600 | 0.38 | 13,169 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 174 | University of Colorado Boulder | 51500 | 56300 | 0.0852 | 32,100 | 1290 | 0.8115 | |
| 175 | University of Utah | 51600 | 53700 | 0.0386 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 176 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 16,199 | 1214 | 0.783 | |
| 177 | Fordham University | 56000 | 94600 | 0.4082 | 10,307 | 1415 | 0.5628 | |
| 178 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 56900 | 58900 | 0.0352 | 26,500 | 1183 | 0.8857 | |
| 179 | Clemson University | 61600 | 63700 | 0.0326 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 180 | Thiel College | 67400 | 69100 | 0.0246 | 831 | 1065 | 0.7189 |
School data is from 2022–2023 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.