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 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 4800 | 40700 | 0.8811 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 3 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 4 | Harvard University | 5900 | 95600 | 0.9384 | 8,844 | 1535 | 0.0365 | |
| 5 | California Institute of Technology | 7400 | 91800 | 0.9194 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 6 | Vanderbilt University | 7700 | 96200 | 0.9195 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 7 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,535 | 1542 | 0.0455 | |
| 8 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0399 | |
| 9 | University of Pennsylvania | 9200 | 92900 | 0.9009 | 11,478 | 1536 | 0.054 | |
| 9 | Washington University in St Louis | 9200 | 102300 | 0.9104 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 11 | Bucknell University | 9600 | 91800 | 0.8959 | 3,920 | 1396 | 0.2893 | |
| 12 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 13 | University of California-Davis | 10200 | 38100 | 0.7328 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 14 | Duke University | 10900 | 93600 | 0.8838 | 6,523 | 1527 | 0.0571 | |
| 15 | Cornell University | 11500 | 93100 | 0.8767 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 15 | University of California-San Diego | 11500 | 39700 | 0.7102 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2671 | |
| 17 | The University of Texas at Dallas | 11600 | 19400 | 0.4019 | 21,858 | 1283 | 0.6513 | |
| 18 | Marshall University | 11800 | 36600 | 0.6773 | 9,146 | 1065 | 0.9573 | |
| 19 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 19 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 12000 | 38800 | 0.6912 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 21 | Boston University | 12300 | 92800 | 0.8676 | 18,805 | 1475 | 0.1111 | |
| 22 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 23 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 24 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 50700 | 0.7294 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 25 | Brown University | 13900 | 94000 | 0.8521 | 7,910 | 1535 | 0.0539 | |
| 26 | University of California-Merced | 14000 | 41900 | 0.666 | 8,372 | 1070 | 0.9053 | |
| 27 | Union College | 14100 | 92400 | 0.8473 | 2,065 | 1393 | 0.4392 | |
| 28 | Alabama State University | 14200 | 31300 | 0.5476 | 3,521 | 945 | 0.9755 | |
| 29 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 30 | Northwestern University | 14600 | 88300 | 0.8348 | 9,399 | 1527 | 0.0769 | |
| 31 | Case Western Reserve University | 14700 | 91300 | 0.8394 | 6,528 | 1475 | 0.3654 | |
| 32 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71700 | 0.794 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 33 | Florida Gulf Coast University | 14900 | 22500 | 0.3374 | 14,463 | 1125 | 0.6344 | |
| 34 | Lehigh University | 15400 | 89600 | 0.8286 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 35 | University of Central Oklahoma | 15500 | 28700 | 0.46 | 10,777 | 1075 | 0.7812 | |
| 36 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 15800 | 38500 | 0.5888 | 37,140 | 1406 | 0.4237 | |
| 37 | University of California-Riverside | 15900 | 36500 | 0.564 | 22,600 | 1199 | 0.7639 | |
| 38 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 39 | University of California-Los Angeles | 16300 | 36700 | 0.5554 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 39 | University of Florida | 16300 | 22500 | 0.2755 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 41 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 16600 | 64800 | 0.7438 | 20,885 | 1420 | 0.1534 | |
| 42 | West Virginia University | 17000 | 40900 | 0.5841 | 18,206 | 1125 | 0.89 | |
| 43 | University of Memphis | 17500 | 26400 | 0.3378 | 15,770 | 1075 | 0.7203 | |
| 44 | University of Miami | 17700 | 95700 | 0.8149 | 13,250 | 1406 | 0.189 | |
| 44 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | 17700 | 17700 | 0 | 18,288 | 1090 | 0.9068 | |
| 46 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 17900 | 37700 | 0.5256 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 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 Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | 18900 | 31400 | 0.3981 | 13,921 | 1119 | 0.7468 | |
| 51 | Jackson State University | 19300 | 28000 | 0.3102 | 4,650 | 950 | 0.9315 | |
| 52 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19400 | 29900 | 0.3535 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 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 | |
| 55 | University of Arizona | 19600 | 30900 | 0.3663 | 44,848 | 1233 | 0.8614 | |
| 56 | University of Colorado Boulder | 19900 | 31900 | 0.3767 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 57 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 58 | University of Rochester | 20100 | 93100 | 0.7843 | 6,580 | 1462 | 0.4008 | |
| 58 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 20100 | 45200 | 0.5559 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 60 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 20300 | 29300 | 0.3067 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 61 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 20700 | 39200 | 0.4722 | 11,355 | 1222 | 0.8816 | |
| 62 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 63 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 64 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 21800 | 37300 | 0.4156 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 65 | Grand Valley State University | 22100 | 35900 | 0.3849 | 19,002 | 1084 | 0.8302 | |
| 66 | Montana State University | 22300 | 27100 | 0.1769 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 67 | Florida State University | 22500 | 32400 | 0.306 | 32,720 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 68 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 22600 | 26900 | 0.1591 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 69 | University of South Dakota | 22700 | 26000 | 0.1261 | 7,619 | 1120 | 0.9878 | |
| 70 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 22900 | 69800 | 0.6723 | 3,135 | 1307 | 0.5493 | |
| 71 | Indiana Institute of Technology | 23000 | 48800 | 0.5288 | 1,650 | 1055 | 0.7039 | |
| 71 | San Jose State University | 23000 | 41100 | 0.4405 | 28,008 | 1124 | 0.8461 | |
| 73 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 24100 | 39300 | 0.3873 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 74 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 24400 | 30600 | 0.2026 | 10,200 | 1325 | 0.6507 | |
| 75 | University at Buffalo | 24700 | 34000 | 0.2736 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 76 | Walla Walla University | 25600 | 51700 | 0.5046 | 1,313 | 1113 | 0.5077 | |
| 77 | University of North Dakota | 25800 | 28600 | 0.0973 | 11,033 | 1150 | 0.769 | |
| 78 | Messiah University | 26000 | 54300 | 0.5209 | 2,618 | 1241 | 0.7897 | |
| 79 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,263 | 1410 | 0.4904 | |
| 80 | University of Mount Union | 26400 | 50900 | 0.4812 | 2,207 | 1089 | 0.782 | |
| 81 | Regis College | 26500 | 70700 | 0.6252 | 987 | 965 | 0.6978 | |
| 81 | Trine University | 26500 | 56100 | 0.5276 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 83 | University of Arkansas | 26600 | 28900 | 0.079 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 84 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 26700 | 41500 | 0.3564 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 85 | Kansas State University | 27000 | 31400 | 0.1405 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 86 | Wright State University-Main Campus | 27300 | 36500 | 0.2522 | 7,505 | 1073 | 0.9633 | |
| 87 | Syracuse University | 27800 | 83100 | 0.6653 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 88 | Wichita State University | 27900 | 39800 | 0.3007 | 13,313 | 1073 | 0.9395 | |
| 89 | Dartmouth College | 28100 | 96000 | 0.7074 | 4,637 | 1521 | 0.054 | |
| 90 | George Fox University | 28300 | 69400 | 0.5925 | 3,354 | 1193 | 0.9351 | |
| 91 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28500 | 32300 | 0.1176 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 91 | University of Hartford | 28500 | 70100 | 0.5933 | 4,223 | 1224 | 0.9575 | |
| 93 | University of Iowa | 28800 | 31100 | 0.0733 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 94 | University of North Texas | 28900 | 37400 | 0.2271 | 34,458 | 1114 | 0.7223 | |
| 95 | Clemson University | 29100 | 37100 | 0.2176 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 96 | University of Connecticut | 29200 | 37200 | 0.2151 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 97 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 29300 | 34000 | 0.1383 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 98 | Gannon University | 29500 | 52900 | 0.4427 | 2,768 | 1133 | 0.7416 | |
| 99 | University of Toledo | 29700 | 42000 | 0.2926 | 11,013 | 1229 | 0.9202 | |
| 100 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30300 | 78100 | 0.6118 | 14,267 | 1381 | 0.6693 | |
| 101 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 30500 | 38500 | 0.2078 | 7,890 | 1110 | 0.2056 | |
| 102 | Alfred University | 30600 | 67100 | 0.5438 | 1,442 | 1239 | 0.7384 | |
| 103 | George Mason University | 30700 | 35700 | 0.1399 | 28,334 | 1268 | 0.8748 | |
| 104 | Indiana University-Indianapolis | 30900 | 33200 | 0.0687 | 14,504 | 1149 | 0.7637 | |
| 105 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1416 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 105 | University of Louisville | 31500 | 42000 | 0.2498 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 107 | Rockhurst University | 32000 | 62500 | 0.4872 | 2,303 | 1124 | 0.6959 | |
| 107 | The College of New Jersey | 32000 | 45400 | 0.2949 | 7,435 | 1248 | 0.6229 | |
| 109 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 32100 | 36700 | 0.1249 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 110 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 32200 | 43100 | 0.2531 | 22,033 | 1321 | 0.3132 | |
| 111 | Lawrence Technological University | 32300 | 71900 | 0.5507 | 2,579 | 1159 | 0.559 | |
| 111 | Marquette University | 32300 | 66500 | 0.5142 | 8,045 | 1309 | 0.8134 | |
| 111 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32300 | 35100 | 0.0799 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 114 | North Carolina State University | 32700 | 54800 | 0.4031 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 115 | University of Rhode Island | 32900 | 46400 | 0.2907 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 116 | California Baptist University | 33400 | 65600 | 0.4908 | 8,417 | 1070 | 0.8488 | |
| 117 | Harding University | 33500 | 47800 | 0.2987 | 3,536 | 1184 | 0.7052 | |
| 118 | George Washington University | 33700 | 81800 | 0.5881 | 11,677 | 1430 | 0.4709 | |
| 119 | LeTourneau University | 33900 | 54800 | 0.3817 | 3,187 | 1178 | 0.3801 | |
| 120 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 34200 | 70200 | 0.5131 | 2,704 | 1277 | 0.5893 | |
| 121 | Valparaiso University | 34900 | 62700 | 0.4428 | 2,123 | 1189 | 0.8943 | |
| 122 | University of South Florida | 35000 | 35000 | 0 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 123 | Stevenson University | 35300 | 59900 | 0.4105 | 3,106 | 1100 | 0.7891 | |
| 123 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3775 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8304 | |
| 125 | New York Institute of Technology | 35400 | 83600 | 0.5769 | 3,646 | 1298 | 0.8102 | |
| 125 | Temple University | 35400 | 56400 | 0.3724 | 21,457 | 1135 | 0.8041 | |
| 127 | University of the Pacific | 35600 | 71500 | 0.5024 | 3,249 | 1298 | 0.7132 | |
| 128 | Mississippi State University | 36200 | 50500 | 0.283 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 129 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 36500 | 47500 | 0.2317 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 129 | Florida International University | 36500 | 36800 | 0.0081 | 45,193 | 1175 | 0.5466 | |
| 131 | University of Nevada-Reno | 38000 | 45800 | 0.1704 | 19,117 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 132 | Hofstra University | 38200 | 76900 | 0.5032 | 6,581 | 1328 | 0.6808 | |
| 132 | University of Illinois Chicago | 38200 | 50600 | 0.2451 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 134 | Western New England University | 38700 | 69200 | 0.4409 | 2,616 | 1199 | 0.8348 | |
| 135 | University of Maine | 39900 | 45200 | 0.1173 | 9,601 | 1205 | 0.9664 | |
| 136 | Endicott College | 40300 | 64200 | 0.3722 | 3,194 | 1275 | 0.7121 | |
| 137 | Johnson & Wales University-Providence | 40400 | 66000 | 0.3874 | 3,908 | 1050 | 0.8841 | |
| 137 | Wayne State University | 40400 | 46200 | 0.1256 | 16,012 | 1174 | 0.8116 | |
| 139 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 40600 | 52100 | 0.2205 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 139 | Washington State University | 40600 | 56300 | 0.28 | 21,455 | 1125 | 0.8664 | |
| 141 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 40700 | 53600 | 0.2408 | 46,815 | 1378 | 0.6057 | |
| 142 | Loyola University Chicago | 41000 | 70600 | 0.4192 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 143 | University of Alabama at Birmingham | 41200 | 42300 | 0.026 | 11,959 | 1260 | 0.8818 | |
| 144 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 41500 | 83200 | 0.5012 | 2,315 | 1404 | 0.7686 | |
| 144 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55200 | 0.2481 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 146 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 41900 | 53200 | 0.2124 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 147 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 42400 | 42400 | 0 | 14,449 | 1195 | 0.784 | |
| 148 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43300 | 68600 | 0.3686 | 3,666 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 149 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43800 | 57100 | 0.2328 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 150 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2752 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 151 | Duquesne University | 45200 | 70500 | 0.3586 | 5,371 | 1274 | 0.8356 | |
| 152 | Widener University | 45700 | 79400 | 0.4246 | 2,975 | 1184 | 0.7093 | |
| 153 | Fairfield University | 46000 | 84300 | 0.4542 | 5,391 | 1350 | 0.3329 | |
| 153 | Saint Louis University | 46000 | 80900 | 0.4312 | 10,413 | 1305 | 0.7504 | |
| 155 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 156 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47100 | 59700 | 0.2122 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 157 | Wentworth Institute of Technology | 47900 | 67900 | 0.2945 | 3,965 | 1229 | 0.9121 | |
| 158 | The University of Texas at Arlington | 48000 | 55800 | 0.1398 | 32,545 | 1129 | 0.799 | |
| 159 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48400 | 91400 | 0.4706 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 159 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 61300 | 0.211 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 161 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48500 | 51200 | 0.0543 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 162 | Drexel University | 48600 | 83900 | 0.4208 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 163 | University of Kentucky | 49000 | 58000 | 0.1559 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 164 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49500 | 85800 | 0.4229 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 165 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49700 | 59400 | 0.1633 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 166 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50300 | 83600 | 0.3982 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 167 | Binghamton University | 50500 | 52800 | 0.0432 | 14,669 | 1415 | 0.3861 | |
| 168 | University of Utah | 51400 | 53700 | 0.0425 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 169 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 51600 | 52800 | 0.0227 | 21,210 | 1148 | 0.9262 | |
| 170 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 53300 | 53300 | 0 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 171 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 16,100 | 1219 | 0.7766 | |
| 172 | Miami University-Oxford | 57400 | 57400 | 0 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 172 | Santa Clara University | 57400 | 85400 | 0.3279 | 6,577 | 1427 | 0.48 | |
| 174 | Michigan Technological University | 59300 | 59300 | 0 | 6,013 | 1256 | 0.9243 | |
| 175 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 61000 | 63200 | 0.0348 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 176 | Hawaii Pacific University | 63500 | 65800 | 0.0346 | 3,533 | 1120 | 0.8587 | |
| 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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