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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 | 5700 | 43900 | 0.8704 | 3,237 | 0 | 0.3861 | |
| 2 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 6600 | 39100 | 0.8321 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 3 | California Institute of Technology | 8000 | 90300 | 0.9112 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 4 | CUNY Bernard M Baruch College | 8200 | 34500 | 0.7619 | 16,086 | 1293 | 0.5117 | |
| 4 | CUNY Lehman College | 8200 | 35100 | 0.7671 | 11,217 | 1020 | 0.4601 | |
| 6 | Southeastern Oklahoma State University | 9200 | 30500 | 0.6982 | 3,207 | 1050 | 0.8034 | |
| 7 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 10200 | 94100 | 0.8919 | 9,157 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 8 | New Mexico Highlands University | 10500 | 21500 | 0.5112 | 1,710 | 945 | 0.9481 | |
| 8 | Valdosta State University | 10500 | 24800 | 0.5776 | 7,206 | 1015 | 0.7214 | |
| 10 | Coppin State University | 10700 | 32800 | 0.6736 | 1,810 | 950 | 0.4956 | |
| 11 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 11300 | 34400 | 0.6706 | 37,140 | 1442 | 0.4237 | |
| 12 | Savannah State University | 11400 | 17400 | 0.3441 | 2,857 | 950 | 0.8368 | |
| 13 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 11800 | 27800 | 0.5744 | 21,075 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 14 | Christopher Newport University | 11900 | 33900 | 0.6489 | 4,407 | 1209 | 0.8796 | |
| 15 | Northern Illinois University | 12400 | 29000 | 0.5718 | 11,349 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 16 | Northwestern University | 12600 | 87700 | 0.8563 | 8,846 | 1513 | 0.0722 | |
| 17 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 12700 | 37100 | 0.6572 | 4,218 | 1020 | 0.9307 | |
| 18 | Texas A&M University-Commerce | 13000 | 24000 | 0.4583 | 9,666 | 1040 | 0.7498 | |
| 19 | Fort Hays State University | 13400 | 22000 | 0.3911 | 10,206 | 1120 | 0.9177 | |
| 20 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 32200 | 0.5744 | 39,083 | 1412 | 0.4517 | |
| 21 | University of Wisconsin-Green Bay | 13900 | 19600 | 0.2907 | 10,656 | 1075 | 0.7289 | |
| 22 | Radford University | 14300 | 21900 | 0.347 | 6,161 | 1070 | 0.8953 | |
| 23 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | 14400 | 41100 | 0.6502 | 8,975 | 1045 | 0.9721 | |
| 24 | Goshen College | 14900 | 55800 | 0.734 | 780 | 995 | 0.8404 | |
| 25 | Alabama State University | 15100 | 28000 | 0.4604 | 3,322 | 945 | 0.9564 | |
| 26 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 15200 | 35700 | 0.5744 | 26,500 | 1183 | 0.8857 | |
| 26 | University of North Texas | 15200 | 25400 | 0.4022 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 28 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 15300 | 28100 | 0.4555 | 8,553 | 1054 | 0.8688 | |
| 29 | Concord University | 15400 | 31700 | 0.514 | 1,609 | 990 | 0.9256 | |
| 30 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 15500 | 24800 | 0.3744 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 31 | Wayne State College | 15600 | 26400 | 0.4096 | 3,902 | 1075 | 1 | |
| 32 | James Madison University | 15700 | 28600 | 0.4503 | 21,112 | 1260 | 0.7151 | |
| 33 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Beaver | 15900 | 35400 | 0.5503 | 482 | 1195 | 0.9565 | |
| 34 | Northeastern University | 16100 | 89900 | 0.8213 | 22,695 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 35 | Grand Valley State University | 16200 | 25300 | 0.3601 | 19,002 | 1233 | 0.8302 | |
| 36 | Southern University at New Orleans | 16300 | 31600 | 0.484 | 1,773 | 885 | 0.6021 | |
| 37 | College of Staten Island CUNY | 16500 | 42300 | 0.6101 | 10,049 | 1005 | 0.9234 | |
| 38 | Dickinson State University | 17200 | 23700 | 0.2739 | 1,339 | 1005 | 0.3695 | |
| 39 | Frostburg State University | 17400 | 26900 | 0.3525 | 2,619 | 1082 | 0.892 | |
| 40 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 17700 | 17700 | 0 | 18,428 | 1090 | 0.9529 | |
| 41 | University of South Alabama | 17800 | 22400 | 0.2057 | 9,241 | 1140 | 0.7096 | |
| 42 | Morgan State University | 18000 | 19700 | 0.0864 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 43 | SUNY Polytechnic Institute | 18300 | 20300 | 0.0985 | 1,919 | 1245 | 0.7844 | |
| 44 | University of Houston-Victoria | 18400 | 34400 | 0.4654 | 2,707 | 930 | 0.7671 | |
| 45 | State University of New York at Oswego | 18600 | 27500 | 0.3235 | 5,517 | 1174 | 0.8057 | |
| 46 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Schuylkill | 19600 | 32900 | 0.4048 | 624 | 1115 | 0.9664 | |
| 46 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 19600 | 27200 | 0.2797 | 31,112 | 1130 | 0.8129 | |
| 46 | Westfield State University | 19600 | 32500 | 0.3975 | 3,868 | 1105 | 0.8671 | |
| 49 | Florida Memorial University | 20100 | 46100 | 0.5641 | 1,299 | 0 | 0.7431 | |
| 49 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 20100 | 36200 | 0.4442 | 36,588 | 1367 | 0.6535 | |
| 51 | Central College | 20400 | 36800 | 0.4455 | 1,084 | 1140 | 0.8617 | |
| 51 | Dakota State University | 20400 | 22500 | 0.0912 | 3,066 | 1192 | 0.8814 | |
| 53 | Saint Mary's University of Minnesota | 20800 | 57800 | 0.6395 | 1,083 | 1205 | 0.9278 | |
| 54 | University of Maryland-College Park | 20900 | 27100 | 0.2289 | 31,133 | 1456 | 0.448 | |
| 55 | Cleveland State University | 21300 | 30900 | 0.3103 | 9,418 | 1005 | 0.913 | |
| 56 | Luther College | 21500 | 71900 | 0.7011 | 1,384 | 1226 | 0.8402 | |
| 56 | Rutgers University-Newark | 21500 | 38900 | 0.4474 | 7,417 | 1214 | 0.7873 | |
| 58 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington | 22100 | 36400 | 0.3924 | 2,884 | 1175 | 0.9677 | |
| 59 | Bradley University | 22200 | 48300 | 0.5396 | 3,596 | 1174 | 0.7675 | |
| 59 | University of Arkansas at Little Rock | 22200 | 28000 | 0.207 | 5,789 | 1115 | 0.5774 | |
| 61 | SUNY Buffalo State University | 22500 | 32000 | 0.2967 | 5,205 | 1118 | 0.744 | |
| 62 | University of Illinois Chicago | 22800 | 30300 | 0.2473 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 63 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Hazleton | 23200 | 33800 | 0.3133 | 502 | 1204 | 0.9641 | |
| 64 | Averett University | 23300 | 57200 | 0.593 | 1,180 | 1010 | 0.478 | |
| 64 | Robert Morris University | 23300 | 58000 | 0.5993 | 3,769 | 1180 | 0.9057 | |
| 66 | Syracuse University | 23600 | 83100 | 0.716 | 15,958 | 1363 | 0.4611 | |
| 67 | The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | 24200 | 39200 | 0.3828 | 28,674 | 980 | 0.9401 | |
| 68 | Bemidji State University | 24300 | 26400 | 0.0786 | 3,610 | 1110 | 0.9131 | |
| 68 | Grambling State University | 24300 | 26700 | 0.09 | 4,279 | 965 | 0.2368 | |
| 70 | Northwestern State University of Louisiana | 24400 | 37400 | 0.3473 | 7,595 | 1075 | 0.9226 | |
| 71 | Minnesota State University Moorhead | 24600 | 26600 | 0.0779 | 3,413 | 1085 | 0.5295 | |
| 72 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 24700 | 32200 | 0.2328 | 10,200 | 1346 | 0.6507 | |
| 72 | Notre Dame of Maryland University | 24700 | 62200 | 0.6033 | 686 | 1030 | 0.8649 | |
| 74 | Dominican University | 24800 | 55500 | 0.5522 | 2,690 | 1035 | 0.9032 | |
| 74 | Elmhurst University | 24800 | 67000 | 0.6301 | 3,170 | 1148 | 0.7357 | |
| 76 | Colorado State University Pueblo | 24900 | 28000 | 0.1098 | 5,086 | 1000 | 0.9821 | |
| 76 | Oklahoma Baptist University | 24900 | 51700 | 0.5179 | 1,409 | 1110 | 0.6327 | |
| 78 | Boston College | 25100 | 94600 | 0.7347 | 9,654 | 1490 | 0.1619 | |
| 79 | Houghton University | 25200 | 35500 | 0.29 | 939 | 1277 | 0.8866 | |
| 80 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 25800 | 36500 | 0.2928 | 14,783 | 1124 | 0.8096 | |
| 80 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 25800 | 35700 | 0.2775 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 82 | Northwood University | 25900 | 54500 | 0.5252 | 1,989 | 1075 | 0.839 | |
| 83 | Bethune-Cookman University | 26000 | 32700 | 0.205 | 2,739 | 910 | 0.8824 | |
| 83 | Doane University | 26000 | 62800 | 0.5861 | 1,323 | 1125 | 0.9801 | |
| 85 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks | 26400 | 36800 | 0.2826 | 1,880 | 1185 | 0.9867 | |
| 86 | Benedictine University | 26500 | 48900 | 0.4581 | 1,972 | 1150 | 0.9523 | |
| 86 | Georgia Southern University | 26500 | 26700 | 0.0075 | 23,618 | 1065 | 0.8789 | |
| 86 | Norwich University | 26500 | 70900 | 0.6264 | 2,642 | 1209 | 0.7361 | |
| 89 | Pennsylvania Western University | 26600 | 35600 | 0.2531 | 7,586 | 1070 | 0.9433 | |
| 90 | Columbia College | 26900 | 41300 | 0.349 | 876 | 1025 | 0.8878 | |
| 91 | Kennesaw State University | 27000 | 27000 | 0 | 42,840 | 1120 | 0.6919 | |
| 91 | Northern Kentucky University | 27000 | 31600 | 0.1454 | 10,163 | 1090 | 0.8307 | |
| 91 | University of North Georgia | 27000 | 35500 | 0.2393 | 18,329 | 1100 | 0.6794 | |
| 94 | Emporia State University | 27200 | 37700 | 0.2783 | 2,396 | 1075 | 0.9771 | |
| 95 | Fairmont State University | 27500 | 32000 | 0.1408 | 3,060 | 1005 | 0.9924 | |
| 96 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | 27600 | 27600 | 0 | 11,756 | 1124 | 0.8727 | |
| 97 | Jacksonville State University | 28500 | 38200 | 0.2537 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 97 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 28500 | 41900 | 0.3197 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 99 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28600 | 31500 | 0.0921 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 100 | George Fox University | 28700 | 67100 | 0.5727 | 3,401 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 100 | Mercy University | 28700 | 44500 | 0.3552 | 6,775 | 1074 | 0.8584 | |
| 102 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Greater Allegheny | 28800 | 44100 | 0.3472 | 352 | 1180 | 0.9647 | |
| 103 | University of South Carolina-Upstate | 28900 | 39700 | 0.2722 | 4,478 | 1065 | 0.8132 | |
| 104 | Furman University | 29200 | 79600 | 0.6329 | 2,383 | 1359 | 0.4295 | |
| 104 | Lincoln University | 29200 | 40900 | 0.2859 | 1,707 | 920 | 0 | |
| 106 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 29500 | 36500 | 0.1919 | 7,505 | 1059 | 0.9633 | |
| 107 | University of Louisiana at Monroe | 29700 | 38200 | 0.2227 | 6,550 | 1140 | 0.7456 | |
| 108 | Lenoir-Rhyne University | 29900 | 51100 | 0.4151 | 1,477 | 1075 | 0.8068 | |
| 109 | Saint Xavier University | 30300 | 51200 | 0.4067 | 3,039 | 1125 | 0.8575 | |
| 109 | San Jose State University | 30300 | 41000 | 0.2608 | 28,008 | 0 | 0.8461 | |
| 111 | SUNY at Fredonia | 30500 | 39600 | 0.2301 | 2,876 | 1193 | 0.792 | |
| 112 | Albright College | 30600 | 48700 | 0.3717 | 1,328 | 1050 | 0.8615 | |
| 113 | University of Northwestern-St Paul | 30700 | 54600 | 0.4374 | 3,163 | 1165 | 0.9347 | |
| 113 | West Virginia Wesleyan College | 30700 | 52800 | 0.4182 | 938 | 1090 | 0.951 | |
| 115 | University of Toledo | 30900 | 42000 | 0.2639 | 11,013 | 1159 | 0.9202 | |
| 116 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 31100 | 33200 | 0.0625 | 14,504 | 1145 | 0.7637 | |
| 116 | SUNY Brockport | 31100 | 37900 | 0.1794 | 5,816 | 1195 | 0.7068 | |
| 118 | Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania | 31400 | 31400 | 0 | 6,853 | 1090 | 0.7147 | |
| 119 | Washington Adventist University | 31500 | 37800 | 0.1668 | 605 | 950 | 0.4536 | |
| 120 | Thomas Jefferson University | 31600 | 67700 | 0.5331 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8098 | |
| 121 | Angelo State University | 31800 | 35400 | 0.101 | 9,779 | 1055 | 0.8301 | |
| 121 | CUNY Brooklyn College | 31800 | 31800 | 0 | 11,562 | 1110 | 0.5836 | |
| 121 | University of North Florida | 31800 | 37900 | 0.161 | 13,735 | 1150 | 0.5324 | |
| 124 | Saint Michael's College | 32000 | 68400 | 0.5319 | 1,120 | 1240 | 0.8451 | |
| 125 | McKendree University | 32100 | 52200 | 0.3857 | 1,605 | 1098 | 0.6388 | |
| 126 | Hampton University | 32300 | 47000 | 0.3128 | 3,728 | 956 | 0.6225 | |
| 126 | University of Scranton | 32300 | 76300 | 0.5763 | 3,613 | 1220 | 0.812 | |
| 128 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32500 | 34700 | 0.0633 | 30,564 | 1298 | 0.416 | |
| 129 | California Lutheran University | 32700 | 65800 | 0.5027 | 2,297 | 1258 | 0.7567 | |
| 130 | Harding University | 32900 | 47000 | 0.2995 | 3,523 | 1193 | 0.3942 | |
| 130 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Mont Alto | 32900 | 44100 | 0.2539 | 581 | 1129 | 0.9821 | |
| 130 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 32900 | 45200 | 0.2722 | 10,767 | 1326 | 0.7243 | |
| 133 | Tarleton State University | 33300 | 33300 | 0 | 15,130 | 0 | 0.5256 | |
| 134 | Wilkes University | 33400 | 61900 | 0.4597 | 1,956 | 1153 | 0.9146 | |
| 135 | Stockton University | 33500 | 44500 | 0.2473 | 7,565 | 1135 | 0.8894 | |
| 136 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Brandywine | 33600 | 40900 | 0.1786 | 1,236 | 1203 | 0.9811 | |
| 137 | Elizabethtown College | 33700 | 54600 | 0.383 | 1,903 | 1214 | 0.7787 | |
| 137 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5882 | 11,677 | 1421 | 0.4709 | |
| 139 | LeTourneau University | 34000 | 54600 | 0.3772 | 3,184 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 140 | University of South Florida | 34700 | 34700 | 0 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 141 | DePaul University | 34900 | 56200 | 0.3791 | 14,188 | 1218 | 0.7589 | |
| 142 | City University of Seattle | 35100 | 45400 | 0.227 | 1,180 | 0 | 0.9025 | |
| 142 | Coastal Carolina University | 35100 | 44700 | 0.2146 | 10,811 | 1145 | 0.7527 | |
| 142 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 35100 | 49600 | 0.2921 | 1,809 | 1109 | 0.9484 | |
| 145 | Adelphi University | 35300 | 63300 | 0.4433 | 5,325 | 1218 | 0.6591 | |
| 145 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 145 | University of Mount Olive | 35300 | 35300 | 0 | 1,937 | 945 | 0.7775 | |
| 148 | Salisbury University | 36100 | 40900 | 0.1175 | 6,288 | 1250 | 0.8747 | |
| 149 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 36200 | 56300 | 0.3565 | 5,552 | 1305 | 0.7255 | |
| 150 | Mercer University | 36500 | 60500 | 0.3967 | 4,690 | 1273 | 0.6889 | |
| 150 | Towson University | 36500 | 45700 | 0.2013 | 16,264 | 1093 | 0.8198 | |
| 152 | East Carolina University | 37100 | 40100 | 0.0748 | 21,445 | 1120 | 0.8922 | |
| 152 | University of Michigan-Flint | 37100 | 39400 | 0.0584 | 5,011 | 1103 | 0.7047 | |
| 154 | Immaculata University | 37200 | 47800 | 0.2215 | 1,652 | 1245 | 0.8578 | |
| 155 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 37600 | 41600 | 0.0979 | 5,187 | 1005 | 0.9229 | |
| 156 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 38400 | 38400 | 0 | 14,416 | 1205 | 0.8851 | |
| 157 | Suffolk University | 38600 | 73600 | 0.4758 | 4,324 | 1209 | 0.822 | |
| 158 | Wayne State University | 39300 | 45500 | 0.1362 | 16,173 | 1174 | 0.7786 | |
| 159 | Pace University | 39700 | 74100 | 0.464 | 8,038 | 1274 | 0.7592 | |
| 160 | Stony Brook University | 39900 | 53000 | 0.2467 | 18,263 | 1395 | 0.4904 | |
| 161 | Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg | 40500 | 40500 | 0 | 4,047 | 1219 | 0.976 | |
| 162 | Loyola University Maryland | 42000 | 78800 | 0.4671 | 3,881 | 1309 | 0.7549 | |
| 163 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 42500 | 54900 | 0.2261 | 20,418 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 164 | Western Oregon University | 43400 | 43400 | 0 | 3,343 | 1120 | 0.9871 | |
| 165 | University of California-Riverside | 43500 | 66400 | 0.3448 | 22,599 | 1199 | 0.7685 | |
| 166 | Merrimack College | 43600 | 78800 | 0.4464 | 4,199 | 1115 | 0.7361 | |
| 167 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 44000 | 57100 | 0.2292 | 23,351 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 168 | Ramapo College of New Jersey | 47400 | 48100 | 0.0145 | 5,444 | 1214 | 0.7064 | |
| 169 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 56200 | 0.1476 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 170 | Molloy University | 48200 | 62300 | 0.2265 | 3,240 | 1199 | 0.8174 | |
| 171 | College of Charleston | 49700 | 59000 | 0.1577 | 10,880 | 1255 | 0.6003 | |
| 172 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 50100 | 52300 | 0.042 | 21,210 | 1171 | 0.9232 | |
| 173 | University of Kentucky | 51000 | 56000 | 0.0893 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 174 | Drexel University | 51200 | 82600 | 0.38 | 13,169 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 175 | University of Colorado Boulder | 51500 | 56300 | 0.0852 | 32,100 | 1290 | 0.8115 | |
| 176 | University of Utah | 51600 | 53700 | 0.0386 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 177 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 16,199 | 1214 | 0.783 | |
| 178 | Fordham University | 56000 | 94600 | 0.4082 | 10,307 | 1415 | 0.5628 | |
| 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.