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 | California Institute of Technology | 4300 | 90300 | 0.9522 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 1 | Rice University | 4300 | 85500 | 0.9496 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 3 | Johns Hopkins University | 4400 | 88600 | 0.9502 | 6,356 | 1543 | 0.0644 | |
| 4 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 4700 | 86800 | 0.9456 | 4,576 | 1535 | 0.0485 | |
| 5 | Yale University | 5500 | 92300 | 0.9403 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 6 | Boston University | 5700 | 88800 | 0.9363 | 18,805 | 1475 | 0.1111 | |
| 6 | University of Pennsylvania | 5700 | 93000 | 0.9389 | 10,013 | 1528 | 0.054 | |
| 8 | Harvard University | 5900 | 90900 | 0.9353 | 7,038 | 1535 | 0.0365 | |
| 9 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 6500 | 94100 | 0.9312 | 9,157 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 10 | CUNY City College | 7500 | 31200 | 0.7597 | 12,982 | 1169 | 0.5997 | |
| 11 | Vanderbilt University | 7800 | 95000 | 0.9178 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 12 | Brown University | 8400 | 93900 | 0.9103 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 13 | Washington University in St Louis | 9200 | 96200 | 0.904 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 14 | Duke University | 9800 | 93500 | 0.8955 | 6,523 | 1539 | 0.0571 | |
| 15 | University of California-Davis | 10100 | 37800 | 0.732 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 16 | Cornell University | 10300 | 92000 | 0.8877 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0841 | |
| 17 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 11300 | 34400 | 0.6706 | 37,140 | 1442 | 0.4237 | |
| 18 | Marshall University | 11400 | 27100 | 0.5784 | 9,165 | 1065 | 0.9572 | |
| 19 | Lehigh University | 12300 | 85700 | 0.857 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 19 | Northern Illinois University | 12300 | 29000 | 0.5744 | 11,349 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 21 | Northwestern University | 12600 | 87700 | 0.8563 | 8,846 | 1513 | 0.0722 | |
| 22 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12800 | 24400 | 0.4759 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 23 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 13300 | 13300 | 0 | 18,428 | 1090 | 0.9529 | |
| 24 | Florida Gulf Coast University | 13500 | 22500 | 0.4006 | 14,243 | 1125 | 0.7675 | |
| 25 | University of South Florida | 13700 | 17100 | 0.1987 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 25 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 32200 | 0.5744 | 39,083 | 1412 | 0.4517 | |
| 27 | Louisiana Tech University | 13800 | 24900 | 0.4451 | 11,071 | 1164 | 0.9073 | |
| 28 | Kansas State University | 14100 | 26100 | 0.4588 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8199 | |
| 29 | University of Houston | 14200 | 23600 | 0.3988 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 30 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | 14500 | 41100 | 0.6478 | 8,975 | 1045 | 0.9721 | |
| 30 | Union College | 14500 | 91000 | 0.8407 | 2,065 | 1393 | 0.4392 | |
| 32 | Case Western Reserve University | 14700 | 80400 | 0.8167 | 6,528 | 1485 | 0.3778 | |
| 33 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71300 | 0.792 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 34 | University of California-Berkeley | 15000 | 43500 | 0.655 | 33,469 | 1407 | 0.1104 | |
| 35 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 15200 | 35700 | 0.5744 | 26,500 | 1183 | 0.8857 | |
| 36 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 15400 | 28100 | 0.452 | 8,553 | 1054 | 0.8688 | |
| 37 | Florida State University | 15600 | 23100 | 0.3246 | 32,711 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 38 | North Carolina State University | 16500 | 28500 | 0.4223 | 28,422 | 1335 | 0.4167 | |
| 39 | University of Southern California | 16600 | 76000 | 0.7815 | 21,023 | 1485 | 0.1002 | |
| 40 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 16700 | 64800 | 0.7426 | 21,075 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 41 | Tufts University | 16900 | 92400 | 0.8175 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1153 | |
| 42 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 17200 | 27200 | 0.3671 | 44,170 | 1327 | 0.4979 | |
| 43 | University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 17400 | 24700 | 0.298 | 8,765 | 1209 | 0.8799 | |
| 44 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 17500 | 33600 | 0.4788 | 21,210 | 1171 | 0.9232 | |
| 45 | Bucknell University | 17700 | 88400 | 0.7996 | 3,920 | 1284 | 0.2893 | |
| 45 | University of Rochester | 17700 | 93100 | 0.8101 | 6,580 | 1469 | 0.4008 | |
| 47 | University of Vermont | 18300 | 37800 | 0.5164 | 12,276 | 1379 | 0.653 | |
| 47 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 18300 | 78300 | 0.7664 | 17,901 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 49 | University of Mississippi | 18700 | 45500 | 0.5895 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 50 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 18900 | 18900 | 0 | 14,449 | 1195 | 0.7816 | |
| 51 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 19000 | 27000 | 0.2967 | 7,505 | 1059 | 0.9633 | |
| 52 | San Jose State University | 19200 | 29900 | 0.3576 | 28,008 | 0 | 0.8461 | |
| 53 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,650 | 950 | 0.4823 | |
| 54 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 19500 | 29300 | 0.3339 | 1,984 | 1369 | 0.6328 | |
| 54 | University of Nevada-Reno | 19500 | 28200 | 0.3085 | 18,895 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 56 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 19600 | 27200 | 0.2797 | 31,112 | 1130 | 0.8129 | |
| 57 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19800 | 31000 | 0.3619 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 58 | The University of Texas at Austin | 20000 | 26900 | 0.2564 | 43,165 | 1335 | 0.2664 | |
| 59 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 20100 | 36200 | 0.445 | 36,588 | 1367 | 0.6535 | |
| 59 | University of Colorado Boulder | 20100 | 30600 | 0.3431 | 32,100 | 1290 | 0.8115 | |
| 61 | Alabama State University | 20200 | 37400 | 0.4592 | 3,322 | 945 | 0.9564 | |
| 62 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 20600 | 38100 | 0.4588 | 11,365 | 1216 | 0.8816 | |
| 63 | West Virginia University | 20700 | 28800 | 0.2815 | 18,614 | 1125 | 0.778 | |
| 64 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 20800 | 69400 | 0.7007 | 2,705 | 1292 | 0.6239 | |
| 65 | Montana State University | 20900 | 27100 | 0.2285 | 15,053 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 66 | University of Miami | 21100 | 70800 | 0.7023 | 13,250 | 1406 | 0.189 | |
| 67 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 22700 | 26900 | 0.1563 | 2,170 | 1264 | 0.8525 | |
| 67 | University of Memphis | 22700 | 30000 | 0.2437 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 69 | University of South Dakota | 22800 | 26000 | 0.1232 | 7,619 | 1120 | 0.9878 | |
| 70 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 22900 | 22900 | 0 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 70 | Washington State University | 22900 | 36800 | 0.3783 | 14,346 | 1139 | 0.8797 | |
| 72 | Indiana Institute of Technology | 23400 | 48800 | 0.5206 | 1,642 | 1055 | 0.5713 | |
| 73 | Syracuse University | 23500 | 83100 | 0.7172 | 15,958 | 1363 | 0.4611 | |
| 74 | University of Kentucky | 23800 | 36000 | 0.339 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 75 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 23900 | 71600 | 0.6664 | 3,135 | 1299 | 0.5493 | |
| 75 | Oral Roberts University | 23900 | 55600 | 0.5706 | 5,017 | 1139 | 0.989 | |
| 77 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 24100 | 83600 | 0.712 | 7,283 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 77 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24100 | 37100 | 0.3508 | 23,920 | 1390 | 0.5973 | |
| 79 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 24600 | 32200 | 0.2359 | 10,200 | 1346 | 0.6507 | |
| 80 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 25000 | 36600 | 0.3173 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 80 | University of Akron Main Campus | 25000 | 25000 | 0 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 82 | Walla Walla University | 25700 | 51700 | 0.5038 | 1,238 | 1159 | 0.604 | |
| 83 | The College of New Jersey | 26000 | 42000 | 0.3812 | 7,435 | 1248 | 0.6235 | |
| 84 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 26200 | 28400 | 0.0776 | 14,504 | 1145 | 0.7637 | |
| 85 | University of Mount Union | 26400 | 50900 | 0.4805 | 1,927 | 1105 | 0.8013 | |
| 86 | University of Arizona | 26500 | 35200 | 0.247 | 45,025 | 1212 | 0.8614 | |
| 87 | Trine University | 26600 | 56100 | 0.5263 | 4,157 | 1209 | 0.8469 | |
| 88 | University of Arkansas | 26800 | 30800 | 0.1302 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.7431 | |
| 89 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 27600 | 36700 | 0.2476 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 89 | University of North Texas | 27600 | 37400 | 0.2622 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 91 | The University of Texas at Dallas | 27900 | 32800 | 0.1492 | 21,858 | 1283 | 0.6513 | |
| 91 | University of Louisville | 27900 | 42200 | 0.3387 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 93 | California State University-Long Beach | 28000 | 38400 | 0.2712 | 35,843 | 1135 | 0.4628 | |
| 94 | Grand Valley State University | 28200 | 35700 | 0.2101 | 19,002 | 1233 | 0.8302 | |
| 95 | Dartmouth College | 28300 | 91100 | 0.689 | 4,570 | 1528 | 0.054 | |
| 96 | Regis College | 28500 | 70400 | 0.595 | 1,055 | 965 | 0.9009 | |
| 96 | University of Hartford | 28500 | 70100 | 0.5926 | 4,223 | 1224 | 0.9579 | |
| 98 | George Fox University | 28700 | 67100 | 0.5727 | 3,401 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 98 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 28700 | 78100 | 0.6326 | 14,267 | 1363 | 0.6693 | |
| 100 | University of Utah | 28800 | 32000 | 0.1002 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 101 | University of Iowa | 28900 | 31100 | 0.0709 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 102 | Michigan Technological University | 29100 | 34700 | 0.1615 | 6,022 | 1256 | 0.8353 | |
| 103 | Messiah University | 29300 | 54100 | 0.4586 | 2,618 | 1241 | 0.7897 | |
| 104 | University of Toledo | 29400 | 32600 | 0.0983 | 11,013 | 1159 | 0.9202 | |
| 105 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 29900 | 31100 | 0.0385 | 20,592 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 106 | Gannon University | 30500 | 45300 | 0.3268 | 2,768 | 1174 | 0.7416 | |
| 107 | Alfred University | 30600 | 67100 | 0.5442 | 1,474 | 1214 | 0.7384 | |
| 108 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 30900 | 42400 | 0.2713 | 21,947 | 1335 | 0.3122 | |
| 109 | University of Rhode Island | 31300 | 46700 | 0.3298 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 110 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31700 | 36400 | 0.129 | 12,216 | 1020 | 0.4617 | |
| 111 | Rockhurst University | 32000 | 62500 | 0.487 | 2,304 | 1124 | 0.7089 | |
| 112 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32300 | 34700 | 0.0691 | 30,564 | 1298 | 0.416 | |
| 113 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 32500 | 38500 | 0.1559 | 7,890 | 1105 | 0.2056 | |
| 113 | Widener University | 32500 | 75300 | 0.5682 | 2,811 | 1155 | 0.8402 | |
| 115 | California Lutheran University | 32700 | 65800 | 0.5027 | 2,297 | 1258 | 0.7567 | |
| 116 | Harding University | 32800 | 47000 | 0.3023 | 3,523 | 1193 | 0.3942 | |
| 117 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 33100 | 54600 | 0.3936 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 118 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5882 | 11,677 | 1421 | 0.4709 | |
| 119 | LeTourneau University | 34000 | 54600 | 0.3772 | 3,184 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 119 | Valparaiso University | 34000 | 62700 | 0.4572 | 2,123 | 1247 | 0.8934 | |
| 121 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 34100 | 74600 | 0.5432 | 2,315 | 1382 | 0.7686 | |
| 122 | California Baptist University | 35100 | 65200 | 0.4616 | 8,417 | 1069 | 0.8535 | |
| 123 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 124 | University of Maine | 36100 | 45100 | 0.1996 | 591 | 1199 | 0.9684 | |
| 125 | Mississippi State University | 36300 | 50500 | 0.2815 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 126 | University of the Pacific | 36400 | 72100 | 0.4953 | 3,249 | 1298 | 0.7132 | |
| 127 | Florida International University | 36500 | 36800 | 0.0081 | 44,904 | 1175 | 0.5466 | |
| 128 | Lawrence Technological University | 36800 | 67800 | 0.457 | 2,579 | 1155 | 0.7403 | |
| 129 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 62000 | 0.3968 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5499 | |
| 129 | Wichita State University | 37400 | 39600 | 0.0556 | 14,280 | 1094 | 0.7211 | |
| 131 | Loyola University Chicago | 37500 | 67600 | 0.4455 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 132 | University of Central Oklahoma | 37600 | 38500 | 0.0234 | 10,454 | 1095 | 0.8176 | |
| 132 | University of Connecticut | 37600 | 41800 | 0.1005 | 19,388 | 1324 | 0.5395 | |
| 134 | Hofstra University | 38800 | 74600 | 0.4797 | 6,581 | 1323 | 0.6808 | |
| 135 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 39000 | 48900 | 0.2024 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 136 | University of Illinois Chicago | 39200 | 48000 | 0.1832 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 137 | Wayne State University | 39300 | 45500 | 0.1362 | 16,173 | 1174 | 0.7786 | |
| 138 | Stony Brook University | 39800 | 53000 | 0.2491 | 18,263 | 1395 | 0.4904 | |
| 139 | University of California-San Diego | 40300 | 61100 | 0.3405 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2677 | |
| 139 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 40300 | 56700 | 0.2893 | 40,754 | 1391 | 0.3915 | |
| 141 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 68600 | 0.4116 | 33,471 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 142 | Temple University | 40500 | 56100 | 0.278 | 21,428 | 1245 | 0.8045 | |
| 142 | Western New England University | 40500 | 67000 | 0.3957 | 2,616 | 1199 | 0.8348 | |
| 144 | Endicott College | 40800 | 63200 | 0.3544 | 3,176 | 1215 | 0.7229 | |
| 145 | Marquette University | 41300 | 75100 | 0.4502 | 8,045 | 1309 | 0.8134 | |
| 146 | Fairfield University | 41500 | 77900 | 0.467 | 5,391 | 1350 | 0.3329 | |
| 147 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 42200 | 42200 | 0 | 12,382 | 1242 | 0.8842 | |
| 148 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | 42400 | 42400 | 0 | 14,019 | 1159 | 0.7781 | |
| 149 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 42500 | 52100 | 0.1843 | 46,815 | 1339 | 0.6057 | |
| 149 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 42500 | 54900 | 0.2261 | 20,418 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 151 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 42600 | 55100 | 0.227 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 151 | University at Buffalo | 42600 | 46800 | 0.0897 | 20,360 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 153 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43400 | 68600 | 0.3675 | 3,677 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 154 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 43500 | 50300 | 0.1352 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 154 | University of California-Riverside | 43500 | 66400 | 0.3448 | 22,599 | 1199 | 0.7685 | |
| 154 | University of Florida | 43500 | 45600 | 0.046 | 36,567 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 157 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43800 | 57100 | 0.2315 | 23,351 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 158 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2748 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 159 | Duquesne University | 45300 | 70500 | 0.3575 | 5,371 | 1269 | 0.8356 | |
| 160 | Saint Louis University | 46000 | 74500 | 0.3826 | 10,436 | 1260 | 0.7504 | |
| 161 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 47200 | 85700 | 0.449 | 5,743 | 1438 | 0.6343 | |
| 161 | University of Delaware | 47200 | 53200 | 0.1127 | 19,119 | 1303 | 0.6356 | |
| 163 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 56200 | 0.1476 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 164 | University of California-Merced | 48500 | 52300 | 0.0726 | 8,372 | 1070 | 0.9152 | |
| 165 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49000 | 85800 | 0.4288 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 166 | George Mason University | 49200 | 49200 | 0 | 28,331 | 1268 | 0.8748 | |
| 167 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50400 | 81000 | 0.3776 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 168 | Binghamton University | 50600 | 52800 | 0.0417 | 14,669 | 1417 | 0.3861 | |
| 169 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 50900 | 84200 | 0.3956 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 170 | Drexel University | 51100 | 82600 | 0.3812 | 13,169 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 171 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 51700 | 51700 | 0 | 33,572 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 172 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 16,199 | 1214 | 0.783 | |
| 173 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 54000 | 59200 | 0.0879 | 24,457 | 1256 | 0.7847 | |
| 174 | University of California-Irvine | 55000 | 64800 | 0.1512 | 30,204 | 1333 | 0.2878 | |
| 175 | Miami University-Oxford | 56100 | 56100 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 176 | University of California-Santa Cruz | 56200 | 66500 | 0.1549 | 17,940 | 1281 | 0.6557 | |
| 177 | Santa Clara University | 56500 | 84800 | 0.3339 | 6,577 | 1427 | 0.48 | |
| 178 | Hawaii Pacific University | 58700 | 60900 | 0.0362 | 3,533 | 1120 | 0.8587 | |
| 179 | Clemson University | 61400 | 63700 | 0.0346 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 180 | The Catholic University of America | 82500 | 82500 | 0 | 3,177 | 1204 | 0.8278 |
School data is from 2022–2023 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
Join thousands of students and parents learning about finding the right college, admissions secrets, scholarships, financial aid, and more.