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 Coast Guard Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,108 | 1334 | 0.2244 | |
| 1 | United States Naval Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,474 | 1305 | 0.0927 | |
| 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 | United States Merchant Marine Academy | 7400 | 8600 | 0.1395 | 962 | 1214 | 0.3424 | |
| 6 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,535 | 1542 | 0.0455 | |
| 7 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0399 | |
| 8 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9000 | 90900 | 0.9007 | 7,377 | 1528 | 0.1166 | |
| 9 | Washington University in St Louis | 9300 | 102300 | 0.9087 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 10 | University of Pennsylvania | 9500 | 92900 | 0.8977 | 11,478 | 1536 | 0.054 | |
| 10 | Wellesley College | 9500 | 91300 | 0.8961 | 2,407 | 1500 | 0.1405 | |
| 12 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 13 | University of Notre Dame | 10700 | 86200 | 0.8763 | 8,880 | 1500 | 0.1127 | |
| 14 | California State University-Fresno | 11300 | 19600 | 0.4228 | 21,954 | 995 | 0.9526 | |
| 15 | California State University-Sacramento | 11700 | 30700 | 0.6186 | 28,820 | 1035 | 0.9399 | |
| 16 | Cornell University | 11800 | 93100 | 0.8735 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 16 | Florida Atlantic University | 11800 | 25800 | 0.5433 | 24,876 | 1130 | 0.6613 | |
| 18 | University of Central Florida | 12000 | 25300 | 0.525 | 59,552 | 1280 | 0.4011 | |
| 18 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 20 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12200 | 25000 | 0.5113 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 20 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 12200 | 38800 | 0.6861 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 22 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 12400 | 29200 | 0.5745 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 23 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 12600 | 12600 | 0 | 25,255 | 1134 | 0.7517 | |
| 24 | North Carolina A & T State University | 12800 | 17900 | 0.2857 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 25 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 13300 | 13300 | 0 | 18,288 | 1090 | 0.9068 | |
| 26 | Mount Holyoke College | 13400 | 89900 | 0.8512 | 2,178 | 1449 | 0.3603 | |
| 27 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 28 | Middlebury College | 13800 | 89900 | 0.8466 | 2,760 | 1499 | 0.1075 | |
| 28 | Utah State University | 13800 | 20800 | 0.3369 | 25,706 | 1176 | 0.9247 | |
| 30 | Brown University | 13900 | 94000 | 0.8521 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 31 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 32 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 14700 | 26500 | 0.4465 | 22,364 | 1159 | 0.7504 | |
| 33 | Northeastern University | 15000 | 89900 | 0.8331 | 17,432 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 34 | Lehigh University | 15600 | 89600 | 0.8263 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 34 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 15600 | 31000 | 0.4964 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 36 | Ball State University | 15700 | 22400 | 0.2995 | 15,189 | 1170 | 0.855 | |
| 37 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 16000 | 27700 | 0.4218 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 38 | University of Florida | 16500 | 22500 | 0.2666 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 39 | Connecticut College | 16700 | 95300 | 0.8244 | 1,990 | 1421 | 0.3704 | |
| 40 | Bennington College | 17200 | 89500 | 0.8074 | 797 | 1370 | 0.4453 | |
| 41 | University of Memphis | 17500 | 26400 | 0.3378 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 42 | Barnard College | 17600 | 99700 | 0.8232 | 3,487 | 1499 | 0.0884 | |
| 42 | Keene State College | 17600 | 32100 | 0.4523 | 2,725 | 1085 | 0.9033 | |
| 44 | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | 17800 | 38700 | 0.5395 | 3,781 | 1100 | 0.7568 | |
| 45 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 18000 | 39000 | 0.5385 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 46 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 47 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 18800 | 31000 | 0.394 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 48 | University of New Orleans | 19200 | 27200 | 0.2941 | 5,419 | 1040 | 0.7431 | |
| 49 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19300 | 29900 | 0.3543 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 50 | Norwich University | 19600 | 73800 | 0.7342 | 2,626 | 1186 | 0.7444 | |
| 51 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 52 | South Dakota State University | 20600 | 25200 | 0.1826 | 10,719 | 1120 | 0.9834 | |
| 53 | Hampshire College | 20700 | 83900 | 0.7536 | 844 | 1254 | 0.7528 | |
| 54 | North Dakota State University | 21000 | 25700 | 0.183 | 9,762 | 1110 | 0.9496 | |
| 55 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 55 | Webb Institute | 21400 | 89600 | 0.7608 | 106 | 1475 | 0.1404 | |
| 57 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 58 | La Roche University | 21900 | 72600 | 0.6986 | 1,828 | 1059 | 0.7576 | |
| 59 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 23400 | 34500 | 0.3221 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 60 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 23700 | 34400 | 0.311 | 14,783 | 1124 | 0.8096 | |
| 61 | University of Kentucky | 23900 | 36400 | 0.3444 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 62 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24100 | 39300 | 0.3873 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 63 | Indiana State University | 24200 | 32400 | 0.2532 | 6,224 | 1020 | 0.8077 | |
| 63 | Judson University | 24200 | 49100 | 0.5063 | 718 | 1015 | 0.4759 | |
| 63 | University of Kansas | 24200 | 37600 | 0.3561 | 22,085 | 1176 | 0.9348 | |
| 66 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 24600 | 40500 | 0.3927 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 67 | Drury University | 25300 | 52900 | 0.5216 | 1,391 | 1228 | 0.5758 | |
| 68 | Mount Mary University | 26000 | 57200 | 0.5445 | 752 | 1025 | 0.6233 | |
| 69 | Marywood University | 26100 | 67700 | 0.6142 | 1,833 | 1160 | 0.6058 | |
| 69 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,263 | 1410 | 0.4904 | |
| 71 | University of Southern Mississippi | 26500 | 26500 | 0 | 10,193 | 1181 | 0.9912 | |
| 72 | University of Arkansas | 26800 | 28900 | 0.0729 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 72 | University of Nevada-Las Vegas | 26800 | 31800 | 0.1573 | 27,132 | 1099 | 0.9617 | |
| 74 | University of Idaho | 27000 | 45200 | 0.4023 | 9,574 | 1119 | 0.7553 | |
| 75 | Hobart William Smith Colleges | 27200 | 88300 | 0.6918 | 1,794 | 1308 | 0.6399 | |
| 76 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 77 | Syracuse University | 27700 | 83100 | 0.6665 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 78 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 27800 | 31100 | 0.1064 | 19,701 | 1214 | 0.8749 | |
| 78 | University of North Alabama | 27800 | 37300 | 0.2547 | 7,662 | 1140 | 0.8731 | |
| 80 | Mississippi State University | 28200 | 32300 | 0.1269 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 81 | University of Utah | 28900 | 32000 | 0.097 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 82 | University of Connecticut | 29200 | 39500 | 0.2608 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 83 | Morgan State University | 29700 | 41900 | 0.2914 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 84 | Kent State University at Kent | 30000 | 37500 | 0.2 | 20,841 | 1105 | 0.8634 | |
| 84 | University of Hawaii at Manoa | 30000 | 42200 | 0.2889 | 15,375 | 1103 | 0.866 | |
| 86 | Portland State University | 30800 | 43100 | 0.2854 | 15,414 | 1094 | 0.9087 | |
| 87 | Massachusetts Maritime Academy | 31100 | 40200 | 0.2265 | 1,402 | 1120 | 0.947 | |
| 88 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 89 | Kean University | 31400 | 39500 | 0.2051 | 11,758 | 1040 | 0.759 | |
| 90 | Ithaca College | 32100 | 72500 | 0.5571 | 4,268 | 1314 | 0.6901 | |
| 91 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 32200 | 43100 | 0.2531 | 22,033 | 1321 | 0.3132 | |
| 92 | Lawrence Technological University | 32300 | 71900 | 0.5507 | 2,579 | 1159 | 0.559 | |
| 93 | University of Maine at Augusta | 32800 | 39600 | 0.1717 | 4,313 | 0 | 0 | |
| 94 | North Carolina State University | 32900 | 54800 | 0.3999 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 94 | Prairie View A & M University | 32900 | 39600 | 0.1691 | 8,877 | 975 | 0.7931 | |
| 94 | University of Rhode Island | 32900 | 46400 | 0.2907 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 97 | Auburn University | 33700 | 34100 | 0.0117 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 | |
| 97 | Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design | 33700 | 57400 | 0.4132 | 838 | 1143 | 0.6054 | |
| 99 | Thomas Jefferson University | 34000 | 68100 | 0.501 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8097 | |
| 100 | Andrews University | 35000 | 70100 | 0.5008 | 1,384 | 1143 | 0.8185 | |
| 100 | Chatham University | 35000 | 63300 | 0.4474 | 1,550 | 1197 | 0.6196 | |
| 102 | SUNY Maritime College | 35600 | 41600 | 0.1441 | 1,285 | 1215 | 0.7241 | |
| 102 | Temple University | 35600 | 56400 | 0.3689 | 21,457 | 1135 | 0.8041 | |
| 104 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 36600 | 40000 | 0.085 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 105 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 36800 | 38900 | 0.0541 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 106 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66300 | 0.436 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 107 | Benedictine College | 37700 | 50800 | 0.2579 | 2,403 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 108 | University of Illinois Chicago | 38200 | 50600 | 0.2451 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 109 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 38700 | 53100 | 0.2711 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 110 | Delaware Valley University | 39200 | 66900 | 0.4141 | 1,768 | 1208 | 0.9321 | |
| 111 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 39600 | 39800 | 0.005 | 24,868 | 1214 | 0.796 | |
| 112 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 40400 | 50000 | 0.1922 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 112 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 114 | Concordia University-Wisconsin | 41400 | 57000 | 0.2738 | 2,401 | 1209 | 0.782 | |
| 115 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 41900 | 53200 | 0.2124 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 116 | Anderson University | 42200 | 53600 | 0.2127 | 3,683 | 1209 | 0.5471 | |
| 117 | University of Maryland-College Park | 43000 | 53600 | 0.1979 | 31,133 | 1463 | 0.4479 | |
| 118 | University at Buffalo | 43900 | 46700 | 0.06 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 119 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 120 | University of Colorado Boulder | 47000 | 57700 | 0.1843 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 121 | Maine Maritime Academy | 47200 | 49800 | 0.0522 | 945 | 1180 | 0.5414 | |
| 122 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 61300 | 0.211 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 123 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48600 | 51200 | 0.0508 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 124 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48700 | 91400 | 0.4673 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 125 | University of Georgia | 48800 | 51600 | 0.0542 | 32,399 | 1382 | 0.377 | |
| 126 | Drexel University | 48900 | 83900 | 0.4172 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 127 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 59400 | 0.1617 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 128 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 51000 | 84700 | 0.398 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 129 | Woodbury University | 53000 | 69500 | 0.2373 | 786 | 1087 | 0.8165 | |
| 130 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53100 | 61200 | 0.1324 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 131 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 53300 | 53300 | 0 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 131 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 53300 | 61000 | 0.1262 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 133 | University of San Francisco | 53800 | 84800 | 0.3655 | 5,321 | 1292 | 0.6171 | |
| 134 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 135 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58200 | 64100 | 0.092 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 136 | Howard University | 60000 | 66500 | 0.0978 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 137 | Maryland Institute College of Art | 60700 | 71200 | 0.1476 | 1,191 | 1232 | 0.7679 | |
| 138 | Indiana University-Bloomington | 60900 | 63000 | 0.0334 | 38,093 | 1302 | 0.7821 | |
| 139 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 61000 | 63200 | 0.0348 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 140 | Clemson University | 61500 | 63700 | 0.0331 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 141 | University of Oregon | 64200 | 71300 | 0.0997 | 20,622 | 1250 | 0.883 | |
| 142 | California College of the Arts | 65300 | 87600 | 0.2545 | 1,004 | 1079 | 0.911 | |
| 143 | Otis College of Art and Design | 66700 | 79800 | 0.1641 | 1,224 | 1335 | 0.8176 | |
| 144 | University of California-Berkeley | 70800 | 76100 | 0.0697 | 33,070 | 1407 | 0.1098 | |
| 145 | The Catholic University of America | 82500 | 82500 | 0 | 3,177 | 1140 | 0.8278 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
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