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 | 1,063 | 1334 | 0.206 | |
| 1 | United States Naval Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,474 | 1305 | 0.0927 | |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3900 | 83500 | 0.9538 | 5,916 | 1535 | 0.0442 | |
| 4 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 4000 | 93300 | 0.9568 | 4,561 | 1542 | 0.0456 | |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania | 4500 | 93100 | 0.9521 | 9,989 | 1536 | 0.0492 | |
| 6 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 5600 | 40700 | 0.8615 | 35,358 | 1435 | 0.1642 | |
| 7 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 7000 | 41500 | 0.8323 | 38,572 | 1406 | 0.3659 | |
| 8 | United States Merchant Marine Academy | 7300 | 7900 | 0.0759 | 962 | 1214 | 0.3424 | |
| 9 | Washington University in St Louis | 7500 | 102300 | 0.9267 | 8,153 | 1513 | 0.1192 | |
| 10 | University of Notre Dame | 7600 | 89100 | 0.9146 | 8,950 | 1500 | 0.0938 | |
| 11 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8700 | 98000 | 0.9113 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 12 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9200 | 90900 | 0.8984 | 7,728 | 1528 | 0.1107 | |
| 13 | Portland State University | 9600 | 43300 | 0.7788 | 14,932 | 1094 | 0.8586 | |
| 14 | Indiana State University | 9900 | 32400 | 0.6947 | 6,352 | 1020 | 0.9157 | |
| 14 | Rice University | 9900 | 92500 | 0.8932 | 4,807 | 1535 | 0.0801 | |
| 16 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 10200 | 41300 | 0.7533 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 16 | University of California-Davis | 10200 | 38600 | 0.7366 | 31,695 | 1290 | 0.4435 | |
| 18 | University of California-Berkeley | 10400 | 44400 | 0.766 | 33,513 | 1407 | 0.1145 | |
| 19 | Wellesley College | 10500 | 95500 | 0.8904 | 2,366 | 1499 | 0.1479 | |
| 20 | University of Nevada-Las Vegas | 10900 | 27400 | 0.6019 | 27,963 | 1099 | 0.8395 | |
| 21 | Middlebury College | 11100 | 94500 | 0.8829 | 2,640 | 1499 | 0.1277 | |
| 21 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 11100 | 28100 | 0.6048 | 8,421 | 1045 | 0.9444 | |
| 23 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 11200 | 33800 | 0.6688 | 40,996 | 1331 | 0.4175 | |
| 24 | Massachusetts Maritime Academy | 11400 | 46600 | 0.7553 | 1,511 | 1120 | 0.9202 | |
| 25 | California State University-Fresno | 11500 | 19600 | 0.4121 | 21,954 | 995 | 0.9526 | |
| 26 | Cornell University | 11600 | 93700 | 0.8761 | 16,138 | 1521 | 0.0838 | |
| 27 | Mount Holyoke College | 12400 | 89900 | 0.8621 | 2,135 | 1449 | 0.3841 | |
| 27 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 12400 | 31100 | 0.6022 | 39,193 | 1418 | 0.4081 | |
| 29 | Brown University | 12900 | 94000 | 0.8627 | 7,951 | 1500 | 0.0634 | |
| 30 | North Carolina A & T State University | 13000 | 17900 | 0.2745 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.5125 | |
| 31 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 13200 | 27400 | 0.519 | 18,667 | 1090 | 0.9711 | |
| 32 | Louisiana Tech University | 13300 | 42900 | 0.6899 | 11,071 | 1189 | 0.9073 | |
| 32 | Northern Illinois University | 13300 | 32200 | 0.5857 | 12,118 | 1070 | 0.7164 | |
| 34 | University of Illinois Chicago | 13700 | 30200 | 0.5467 | 24,260 | 1252 | 0.7576 | |
| 34 | University of North Alabama | 13700 | 28200 | 0.5145 | 8,078 | 1140 | 0.7054 | |
| 36 | Utah State University | 14000 | 21000 | 0.3327 | 26,629 | 1176 | 0.9212 | |
| 37 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 14100 | 31000 | 0.5458 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 38 | University of Memphis | 14300 | 29100 | 0.5088 | 15,538 | 1075 | 0.7878 | |
| 39 | University of Maine at Augusta | 14800 | 54900 | 0.7301 | 4,313 | 0 | 0 | |
| 40 | University of Hawaii at Manoa | 15000 | 56900 | 0.7364 | 15,735 | 1103 | 0.8797 | |
| 41 | Lehigh University | 15700 | 89800 | 0.8252 | 5,986 | 1436 | 0.2896 | |
| 42 | Keene State College | 16200 | 51400 | 0.6843 | 2,640 | 1085 | 0.8982 | |
| 43 | Texas Tech University | 16400 | 27900 | 0.4116 | 34,021 | 1200 | 0.6906 | |
| 44 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 16600 | 41200 | 0.5978 | 25,312 | 1134 | 0.7395 | |
| 44 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 16600 | 26500 | 0.3756 | 23,003 | 1159 | 0.7367 | |
| 46 | Georgia Southern University | 16700 | 49700 | 0.6641 | 25,595 | 1065 | 0.695 | |
| 47 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 16800 | 28100 | 0.4019 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 48 | Bennington College | 17000 | 89500 | 0.8107 | 708 | 1370 | 0.3721 | |
| 48 | Connecticut College | 17000 | 93000 | 0.8169 | 1,953 | 1421 | 0.3923 | |
| 50 | Prairie View A & M University | 17200 | 44200 | 0.6105 | 9,022 | 975 | 0.7836 | |
| 51 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 17400 | 29900 | 0.4174 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 52 | Barnard College | 17500 | 99700 | 0.8241 | 3,223 | 1499 | 0.1005 | |
| 53 | Yale University | 17700 | 278600 | 0.9364 | 6,667 | 1507 | 0.0475 | |
| 54 | Morgan State University | 17800 | 42200 | 0.5786 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 54 | University of Arkansas | 17800 | 28400 | 0.3726 | 29,252 | 1179 | 0.7388 | |
| 56 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 17900 | 47900 | 0.6257 | 21,028 | 1435 | 0.1334 | |
| 57 | The University of Texas at Austin | 18100 | 28200 | 0.3585 | 44,314 | 1356 | 0.2222 | |
| 58 | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | 18300 | 37500 | 0.512 | 3,758 | 1100 | 0.7236 | |
| 59 | La Roche University | 18700 | 87300 | 0.786 | 1,972 | 1059 | 0.6638 | |
| 59 | Olivet Nazarene University | 18700 | 79300 | 0.7637 | 2,704 | 1104 | 0.5586 | |
| 61 | Norwich University | 19100 | 100600 | 0.8104 | 2,626 | 1186 | 0.7444 | |
| 62 | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi | 20000 | 55300 | 0.6381 | 2,881 | 1040 | 0.89 | |
| 62 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 20000 | 45100 | 0.5568 | 31,536 | 1366 | 0.5457 | |
| 64 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 20100 | 31100 | 0.3539 | 19,787 | 1214 | 0.8807 | |
| 65 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 20300 | 39800 | 0.4894 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 66 | Syracuse University | 20500 | 83600 | 0.7548 | 16,149 | 1363 | 0.4879 | |
| 67 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 20700 | 30600 | 0.3258 | 43,633 | 1327 | 0.4343 | |
| 68 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 20900 | 80400 | 0.7399 | 17,848 | 1470 | 0.1565 | |
| 69 | Iowa State University | 21300 | 25700 | 0.1728 | 26,346 | 1207 | 0.8793 | |
| 69 | University of New Orleans | 21300 | 30400 | 0.2995 | 5,419 | 1040 | 0.7431 | |
| 71 | South Dakota State University | 21800 | 25200 | 0.1346 | 10,883 | 1120 | 0.9618 | |
| 72 | Marywood University | 22600 | 93800 | 0.7591 | 1,936 | 1160 | 0.7878 | |
| 73 | Tufts University | 23100 | 99000 | 0.7665 | 7,031 | 1507 | 0.1082 | |
| 73 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 23100 | 36100 | 0.3598 | 34,447 | 1264 | 0.8804 | |
| 73 | University of Southern Mississippi | 23100 | 23100 | 0 | 10,371 | 1181 | 0.926 | |
| 76 | University of Houston | 23600 | 28400 | 0.1692 | 40,366 | 1249 | 0.7577 | |
| 77 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 23700 | 34500 | 0.3133 | 10,396 | 1125 | 0.7162 | |
| 78 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24000 | 38500 | 0.3764 | 24,019 | 1397 | 0.5989 | |
| 79 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 24100 | 60700 | 0.6029 | 1,984 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 80 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 28300 | 0.1413 | 16,405 | 1299 | 0.74 | |
| 81 | Judson University | 24800 | 51000 | 0.5145 | 697 | 1015 | 0.8905 | |
| 82 | California State University-Sacramento | 24900 | 29700 | 0.1615 | 28,619 | 1035 | 0.9357 | |
| 82 | University at Buffalo | 24900 | 34000 | 0.2677 | 21,192 | 1303 | 0.8059 | |
| 84 | Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 25100 | 36900 | 0.3201 | 15,273 | 1124 | 0.8089 | |
| 85 | Ball State University | 25400 | 26200 | 0.0305 | 15,950 | 1170 | 0.8625 | |
| 85 | Hobart William Smith Colleges | 25400 | 88300 | 0.7122 | 1,862 | 1308 | 0.667 | |
| 87 | SUNY Maritime College | 25600 | 59200 | 0.5679 | 1,401 | 1215 | 0.785 | |
| 88 | Mount Mary University | 25900 | 57200 | 0.5475 | 616 | 1025 | 0.831 | |
| 89 | University of Kansas | 26500 | 37600 | 0.2974 | 22,544 | 1176 | 0.9258 | |
| 90 | Drury University | 27000 | 54500 | 0.5045 | 1,453 | 1228 | 0.6575 | |
| 91 | Florida Atlantic University | 27300 | 27300 | 0 | 25,626 | 1130 | 0.5497 | |
| 92 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 18,028 | 1044 | 0.7996 | |
| 93 | Kent State University at Kent | 27600 | 37500 | 0.2639 | 21,144 | 1105 | 0.7603 | |
| 93 | North Dakota State University | 27600 | 30400 | 0.092 | 9,762 | 1110 | 0.9496 | |
| 95 | Chatham University | 28500 | 60800 | 0.5311 | 1,555 | 1197 | 0.6196 | |
| 96 | University of Southern California | 29700 | 98300 | 0.698 | 20,768 | 1492 | 0.1119 | |
| 97 | Thomas Jefferson University | 29800 | 70000 | 0.574 | 3,772 | 1255 | 0.8098 | |
| 98 | Mississippi State University | 30000 | 34400 | 0.1276 | 19,093 | 1214 | 0.8363 | |
| 99 | Lawrence Technological University | 30100 | 99100 | 0.6966 | 2,661 | 1159 | 0.8101 | |
| 100 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32000 | 35200 | 0.0908 | 32,041 | 1302 | 0.4358 | |
| 101 | Anderson University | 32200 | 54700 | 0.4116 | 3,724 | 1209 | 0.5491 | |
| 102 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 32500 | 54400 | 0.4025 | 35,248 | 1273 | 0.6939 | |
| 103 | North Carolina State University | 32600 | 54800 | 0.4052 | 29,340 | 1378 | 0.3954 | |
| 104 | Ithaca College | 33600 | 76000 | 0.5582 | 4,205 | 1314 | 0.7015 | |
| 104 | Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design | 33600 | 61800 | 0.4561 | 838 | 1143 | 0.6054 | |
| 106 | University of Idaho | 34000 | 48700 | 0.302 | 9,656 | 1119 | 0.7476 | |
| 107 | Samford University | 34600 | 93800 | 0.6312 | 4,210 | 1199 | 0.8236 | |
| 108 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 35200 | 46500 | 0.2431 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 109 | Auburn University | 35300 | 35300 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4593 | |
| 109 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 35300 | 43100 | 0.1811 | 22,313 | 1321 | 0.2996 | |
| 109 | Temple University | 35300 | 57200 | 0.3826 | 21,031 | 1135 | 0.8622 | |
| 112 | University of Rhode Island | 36000 | 58400 | 0.3835 | 14,466 | 1148 | 0.7456 | |
| 113 | University of Connecticut | 37000 | 66200 | 0.4414 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 114 | Andrews University | 37200 | 76700 | 0.5148 | 1,384 | 1143 | 0.8185 | |
| 115 | Benedictine College | 37600 | 52700 | 0.2866 | 2,404 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 116 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 37700 | 40100 | 0.0598 | 25,054 | 1239 | 0.7762 | |
| 117 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 39300 | 40300 | 0.0248 | 26,213 | 1214 | 0.7778 | |
| 118 | Stony Brook University | 39600 | 53000 | 0.2527 | 18,616 | 1410 | 0.4818 | |
| 119 | Drexel University | 40400 | 86400 | 0.5324 | 12,318 | 1339 | 0.699 | |
| 119 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,534 | 1399 | 0.0941 | |
| 121 | Concordia University-Wisconsin | 41100 | 58700 | 0.3 | 2,401 | 1209 | 0.7819 | |
| 122 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41400 | 55300 | 0.2516 | 21,388 | 1375 | 0.5945 | |
| 123 | University of Central Florida | 42100 | 42100 | 0 | 60,083 | 1280 | 0.428 | |
| 124 | Delaware Valley University | 42400 | 67200 | 0.3689 | 1,680 | 1208 | 0.9268 | |
| 125 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 42500 | 59200 | 0.2819 | 5,986 | 1174 | 0.8916 | |
| 126 | University of Maryland-College Park | 42900 | 58600 | 0.2679 | 31,875 | 1463 | 0.4503 | |
| 127 | University of Florida | 43100 | 45700 | 0.0569 | 37,283 | 1399 | 0.2033 | |
| 128 | Kean University | 44600 | 45700 | 0.0222 | 11,932 | 1040 | 0.7811 | |
| 129 | Otis College of Art and Design | 46700 | 79800 | 0.4145 | 1,188 | 1335 | 0.8034 | |
| 130 | Maine Maritime Academy | 47100 | 53000 | 0.1114 | 977 | 1180 | 0.9615 | |
| 131 | University of Georgia | 47400 | 52300 | 0.0937 | 32,824 | 1382 | 0.3425 | |
| 132 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 62500 | 0.2259 | 19,287 | 1294 | 0.6924 | |
| 133 | University of Kentucky | 48500 | 59900 | 0.1905 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 134 | University of Arizona | 48600 | 48600 | 0 | 43,294 | 1233 | 0.8351 | |
| 135 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 50800 | 63800 | 0.2038 | 42,565 | 1338 | 0.7887 | |
| 136 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 51100 | 86300 | 0.4079 | 5,833 | 1438 | 0.6725 | |
| 137 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 52800 | 61200 | 0.1372 | 26,490 | 1204 | 0.8863 | |
| 138 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 53900 | 96100 | 0.439 | 6,839 | 1469 | 0.1446 | |
| 139 | Howard University | 55000 | 88500 | 0.3787 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 140 | University of Colorado Boulder | 55400 | 70900 | 0.2186 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7809 | |
| 141 | University of San Francisco | 56100 | 90300 | 0.3788 | 5,171 | 1292 | 0.7176 | |
| 142 | Maryland Institute College of Art | 58300 | 71200 | 0.1812 | 1,192 | 1232 | 0.7681 | |
| 142 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58300 | 63700 | 0.0848 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 144 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 59700 | 62300 | 0.0417 | 8,513 | 1203 | 0.9261 | |
| 145 | Indiana University-Bloomington | 60600 | 63000 | 0.038 | 38,463 | 1302 | 0.7589 | |
| 146 | Webb Institute | 61100 | 124900 | 0.5106 | 104 | 1475 | 0.2484 | |
| 147 | Clemson University | 61300 | 63700 | 0.0376 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 148 | University of Oregon | 63900 | 71300 | 0.1038 | 20,710 | 1250 | 0.8742 | |
| 149 | The Catholic University of America | 81900 | 82500 | 0.0073 | 3,294 | 1140 | 0.7328 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
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