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 | Johns Hopkins University | 2700 | 92000 | 0.9704 | 6,356 | 1543 | 0.0644 | |
| 2 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 3 | Harvard University | 5900 | 95600 | 0.9384 | 8,844 | 1535 | 0.0365 | |
| 4 | California Institute of Technology | 7400 | 91800 | 0.9194 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 5 | Vanderbilt University | 7700 | 96200 | 0.9195 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 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 | University of Pennsylvania | 9200 | 92900 | 0.9009 | 11,478 | 1536 | 0.054 | |
| 8 | Washington University in St Louis | 9200 | 102300 | 0.9104 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 10 | Bucknell University | 9600 | 91800 | 0.8959 | 3,920 | 1396 | 0.2893 | |
| 11 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 12 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 10600 | 26000 | 0.5929 | 22,033 | 1321 | 0.3132 | |
| 13 | Duke University | 10900 | 93600 | 0.8838 | 6,523 | 1527 | 0.0571 | |
| 14 | Marshall University | 11100 | 33400 | 0.6675 | 9,146 | 1065 | 0.9573 | |
| 15 | Cornell University | 11500 | 93100 | 0.8767 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 16 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 17 | Boston University | 12300 | 92800 | 0.8676 | 18,805 | 1475 | 0.1111 | |
| 18 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 19 | University of South Florida | 12900 | 17100 | 0.2454 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 20 | The University of Texas at Dallas | 13500 | 19400 | 0.304 | 21,858 | 1283 | 0.6513 | |
| 20 | University of Delaware | 13500 | 34500 | 0.6079 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 22 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 23 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 47300 | 0.7099 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 24 | Brown University | 13900 | 94000 | 0.8521 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 25 | University of California-Merced | 14000 | 41900 | 0.666 | 8,372 | 1070 | 0.9053 | |
| 26 | Union College | 14100 | 92400 | 0.8473 | 2,065 | 1393 | 0.4392 | |
| 27 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 28 | Northwestern University | 14600 | 88300 | 0.8348 | 9,399 | 1527 | 0.0769 | |
| 29 | Case Western Reserve University | 14700 | 91300 | 0.8394 | 6,528 | 1475 | 0.3654 | |
| 30 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71700 | 0.794 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 31 | Florida Gulf Coast University | 14900 | 22500 | 0.3374 | 14,463 | 1125 | 0.6344 | |
| 32 | Lehigh University | 15400 | 89600 | 0.8286 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 33 | Alabama State University | 15500 | 24300 | 0.3632 | 3,521 | 945 | 0.9755 | |
| 34 | Kansas State University | 15800 | 26100 | 0.3962 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 34 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 15800 | 38500 | 0.5888 | 37,140 | 1406 | 0.4237 | |
| 36 | University of California-Riverside | 15900 | 36500 | 0.564 | 22,600 | 1199 | 0.7639 | |
| 37 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 38 | North Carolina State University | 16400 | 28500 | 0.425 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 39 | Wayne State University | 16500 | 32900 | 0.4982 | 16,012 | 1174 | 0.8116 | |
| 39 | West Virginia University | 16500 | 40900 | 0.5963 | 18,206 | 1125 | 0.89 | |
| 41 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 16600 | 64800 | 0.7438 | 20,885 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 42 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 17500 | 29900 | 0.4169 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 42 | University of Louisville | 17500 | 29100 | 0.399 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 44 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 17600 | 26600 | 0.3387 | 7,505 | 1073 | 0.9633 | |
| 45 | University of Miami | 17700 | 95700 | 0.8149 | 13,250 | 1406 | 0.189 | |
| 45 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 17700 | 17700 | 0 | 18,288 | 1090 | 0.9068 | |
| 47 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 18200 | 18200 | 0 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 48 | University of Vermont | 18300 | 37800 | 0.5164 | 12,276 | 1379 | 0.653 | |
| 49 | University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 18700 | 24700 | 0.2425 | 9,351 | 1195 | 0.8234 | |
| 50 | University of Central Oklahoma | 19100 | 22700 | 0.1586 | 10,777 | 1075 | 0.7812 | |
| 51 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,650 | 950 | 0.9315 | |
| 52 | University of Mississippi | 19400 | 27000 | 0.2814 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 52 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 19400 | 36900 | 0.4748 | 24,449 | 1256 | 0.7847 | |
| 54 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 19700 | 78700 | 0.7498 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 55 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 56 | University of Rochester | 20100 | 93100 | 0.7843 | 6,580 | 1462 | 0.4008 | |
| 57 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 20700 | 30600 | 0.326 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 58 | University of Memphis | 20900 | 29600 | 0.2942 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 59 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 59 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 21400 | 35300 | 0.3934 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 61 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 62 | Grand Valley State University | 22100 | 35900 | 0.3849 | 19,002 | 1084 | 0.8302 | |
| 63 | University of Illinois Chicago | 22200 | 30100 | 0.2629 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 64 | Florida State University | 22500 | 32400 | 0.306 | 32,720 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 65 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 22600 | 26900 | 0.1591 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 66 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 22900 | 69800 | 0.6723 | 3,135 | 1307 | 0.5493 | |
| 67 | Indiana Institute of Technology | 23000 | 48800 | 0.5288 | 1,650 | 1055 | 0.7039 | |
| 67 | San Jose State University | 23000 | 41100 | 0.4405 | 28,008 | 1124 | 0.8461 | |
| 69 | Florida International University | 23700 | 23700 | 0 | 45,193 | 1175 | 0.5466 | |
| 69 | University of Kentucky | 23700 | 36400 | 0.3483 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 69 | University of South Dakota | 23700 | 26000 | 0.0876 | 7,619 | 1120 | 0.9878 | |
| 72 | Walla Walla University | 25600 | 51700 | 0.5046 | 1,313 | 1113 | 0.5077 | |
| 73 | Messiah University | 26000 | 54300 | 0.5209 | 2,618 | 1241 | 0.7897 | |
| 74 | University of Mount Union | 26400 | 50900 | 0.4812 | 2,207 | 1089 | 0.782 | |
| 75 | Regis College | 26500 | 70700 | 0.6252 | 987 | 965 | 0.6978 | |
| 75 | Trine University | 26500 | 56100 | 0.5276 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 77 | University of Arkansas | 26600 | 28900 | 0.079 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 78 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 26700 | 41500 | 0.3564 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 79 | University of Arizona | 27100 | 38100 | 0.2888 | 44,848 | 1233 | 0.8614 | |
| 80 | Rowan University | 27400 | 41300 | 0.3369 | 16,100 | 1219 | 0.7766 | |
| 81 | Syracuse University | 27800 | 83100 | 0.6653 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 82 | Wichita State University | 27900 | 39800 | 0.3007 | 13,313 | 1073 | 0.9395 | |
| 83 | Dartmouth College | 28100 | 96000 | 0.7074 | 4,637 | 1521 | 0.054 | |
| 84 | George Fox University | 28300 | 69400 | 0.5925 | 3,354 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 85 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28500 | 32300 | 0.1176 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 85 | University of Hartford | 28500 | 70100 | 0.5933 | 4,223 | 1224 | 0.9575 | |
| 87 | University of North Texas | 28900 | 37400 | 0.2271 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 88 | Michigan Technological University | 29000 | 34700 | 0.1643 | 6,013 | 1256 | 0.9243 | |
| 89 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 29300 | 34000 | 0.1383 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 90 | Gannon University | 29500 | 52900 | 0.4427 | 2,768 | 1133 | 0.7416 | |
| 91 | Montana State University | 29600 | 31900 | 0.072 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 92 | University of Toledo | 29700 | 42000 | 0.2926 | 11,013 | 1229 | 0.9202 | |
| 93 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30300 | 78100 | 0.6118 | 14,267 | 1381 | 0.6693 | |
| 94 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 30500 | 38500 | 0.2078 | 7,890 | 1110 | 0.2056 | |
| 95 | Alfred University | 30600 | 67100 | 0.5438 | 1,442 | 1239 | 0.7384 | |
| 96 | George Mason University | 30700 | 35700 | 0.1399 | 28,334 | 1268 | 0.8748 | |
| 97 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 30900 | 33200 | 0.0687 | 14,504 | 1149 | 0.7637 | |
| 98 | University of North Dakota | 31000 | 33700 | 0.0824 | 11,033 | 1150 | 0.769 | |
| 99 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 100 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1416 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 101 | Rockhurst University | 32000 | 62500 | 0.4872 | 2,303 | 1124 | 0.6959 | |
| 101 | The College of New Jersey | 32000 | 45400 | 0.2949 | 7,435 | 1248 | 0.6229 | |
| 103 | Lawrence Technological University | 32300 | 71900 | 0.5507 | 2,579 | 1159 | 0.559 | |
| 103 | Marquette University | 32300 | 66500 | 0.5142 | 8,045 | 1309 | 0.8134 | |
| 103 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32300 | 35100 | 0.0799 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 106 | University of Rhode Island | 32900 | 46400 | 0.2907 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 107 | California Baptist University | 33400 | 65600 | 0.4908 | 8,417 | 1070 | 0.8488 | |
| 108 | Harding University | 33500 | 47800 | 0.2987 | 3,536 | 1184 | 0.7052 | |
| 109 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5881 | 11,677 | 1430 | 0.4709 | |
| 110 | LeTourneau University | 33900 | 54800 | 0.3817 | 3,187 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 111 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 34200 | 70200 | 0.5131 | 2,704 | 1277 | 0.5893 | |
| 112 | Valparaiso University | 34900 | 62700 | 0.4428 | 2,123 | 1189 | 0.8943 | |
| 113 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 113 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3775 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8304 | |
| 115 | New York Institute of Technology | 35400 | 83600 | 0.5769 | 3,646 | 1298 | 0.8102 | |
| 115 | Temple University | 35400 | 56400 | 0.3724 | 21,457 | 1135 | 0.8041 | |
| 117 | University of the Pacific | 35600 | 71500 | 0.5024 | 3,249 | 1298 | 0.7132 | |
| 118 | Mississippi State University | 36200 | 50500 | 0.283 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 119 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 36500 | 47500 | 0.2317 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 120 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 36600 | 40000 | 0.085 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 121 | University of Connecticut | 37200 | 53600 | 0.3062 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 122 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 37400 | 66300 | 0.436 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 123 | University of Nevada-Reno | 38000 | 45800 | 0.1704 | 19,117 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 124 | Hofstra University | 38200 | 76900 | 0.5032 | 6,581 | 1328 | 0.6808 | |
| 125 | Western New England University | 38700 | 69200 | 0.4409 | 2,616 | 1199 | 0.8348 | |
| 126 | Stony Brook University | 39700 | 53000 | 0.2506 | 18,263 | 1410 | 0.4904 | |
| 127 | University of Maine | 39900 | 45200 | 0.1173 | 9,601 | 1205 | 0.9664 | |
| 128 | Endicott College | 40300 | 64200 | 0.3722 | 3,194 | 1275 | 0.7121 | |
| 129 | Johnson & Wales University-Providence | 40400 | 66000 | 0.3874 | 3,908 | 1050 | 0.8841 | |
| 129 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 129 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | 40400 | 42500 | 0.0495 | 13,921 | 1119 | 0.7468 | |
| 132 | Washington State University | 40600 | 56300 | 0.28 | 21,455 | 1125 | 0.8664 | |
| 133 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 40700 | 53600 | 0.2408 | 46,815 | 1378 | 0.6057 | |
| 133 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 40700 | 52100 | 0.2189 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 135 | Loyola University Chicago | 41000 | 70600 | 0.4192 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 136 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 41200 | 42300 | 0.026 | 11,959 | 1260 | 0.8818 | |
| 137 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 41500 | 83200 | 0.5012 | 2,315 | 1404 | 0.7686 | |
| 137 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55200 | 0.2481 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 139 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 42400 | 42400 | 0 | 14,449 | 1195 | 0.784 | |
| 140 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 42600 | 56200 | 0.2421 | 11,355 | 1222 | 0.8816 | |
| 141 | University of Florida | 43100 | 45700 | 0.057 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 142 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43300 | 68600 | 0.3686 | 3,666 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 143 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43800 | 57100 | 0.2328 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 144 | University at Buffalo | 43900 | 46700 | 0.06 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 145 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2752 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 146 | Duquesne University | 45200 | 70500 | 0.3586 | 5,371 | 1274 | 0.8356 | |
| 147 | Widener University | 45700 | 79400 | 0.4246 | 2,975 | 1184 | 0.7093 | |
| 148 | University of California-San Diego | 45900 | 74200 | 0.3813 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2671 | |
| 149 | Fairfield University | 46000 | 84300 | 0.4542 | 5,391 | 1350 | 0.3329 | |
| 149 | Saint Louis University | 46000 | 80900 | 0.4312 | 10,413 | 1305 | 0.7504 | |
| 151 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 152 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47100 | 59700 | 0.2122 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 152 | University of Colorado Boulder | 47100 | 57700 | 0.1838 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 154 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 67900 | 0.2945 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 155 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 48000 | 55800 | 0.1398 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 156 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48400 | 91400 | 0.4706 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 157 | Drexel University | 48600 | 83900 | 0.4208 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 158 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49500 | 85800 | 0.4229 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 159 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49700 | 59400 | 0.1633 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 160 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50300 | 83600 | 0.3982 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 161 | Binghamton University | 50500 | 52800 | 0.0432 | 14,669 | 1415 | 0.3861 | |
| 162 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 50800 | 84700 | 0.4003 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 163 | University of Iowa | 50900 | 53200 | 0.0429 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 164 | University of Utah | 51400 | 53700 | 0.0425 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 165 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 51600 | 52800 | 0.0227 | 21,210 | 1148 | 0.9262 | |
| 166 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 52900 | 61200 | 0.1353 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 167 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 53200 | 61000 | 0.1291 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 168 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 53300 | 53300 | 0 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 169 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 53600 | 62800 | 0.1465 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 170 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 170 | Santa Clara University | 57400 | 85400 | 0.3279 | 6,577 | 1427 | 0.48 | |
| 172 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 61000 | 63200 | 0.0348 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 173 | Clemson University | 61400 | 63700 | 0.0358 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 174 | Hawaii Pacific University | 63500 | 65800 | 0.0346 | 3,533 | 1120 | 0.8587 | |
| 175 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 63700 | 63700 | 0 | 10,200 | 1325 | 0.6507 | |
| 176 | University of California-Davis | 69800 | 69800 | 0 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 177 | University of California-Berkeley | 70800 | 76100 | 0.0697 | 33,070 | 1407 | 0.1098 | |
| 178 | University of California-Irvine | 72000 | 75600 | 0.0476 | 30,204 | 1333 | 0.2857 | |
| 179 | University of California-Santa Cruz | 82400 | 82400 | 0 | 17,940 | 1281 | 0.6579 | |
| 180 | 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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