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 | 1319 | 0.206 | |
| 1 | United States Military Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,507 | 1335 | 0.1161 | |
| 1 | United States Naval Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,474 | 1305 | 0.0927 | |
| 4 | Johns Hopkins University | 2700 | 92000 | 0.9704 | 6,354 | 1554 | 0.0611 | |
| 5 | Princeton University | 3900 | 82600 | 0.9528 | 5,916 | 1528 | 0.0442 | |
| 6 | University of Chicago | 4100 | 95000 | 0.9571 | 7,519 | 1535 | 0.0456 | |
| 7 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,667 | 1507 | 0.0475 | |
| 8 | Harvard University | 5900 | 95600 | 0.9384 | 6,738 | 1500 | 0.0418 | |
| 9 | Vanderbilt University | 7800 | 96200 | 0.9185 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 10 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 34,354 | 1374 | 0.6862 | |
| 11 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,561 | 1542 | 0.0456 | |
| 12 | California Institute of Technology | 8300 | 91800 | 0.9096 | 971 | 1564 | 0.0379 | |
| 12 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0386 | |
| 14 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9000 | 90900 | 0.9006 | 7,728 | 1528 | 0.1107 | |
| 15 | Bowdoin College | 9500 | 89900 | 0.8945 | 1,841 | 1499 | 0.0681 | |
| 16 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,807 | 1528 | 0.0801 | |
| 17 | University of California-Davis | 10200 | 38100 | 0.7328 | 31,695 | 1290 | 0.4435 | |
| 18 | Washington University in St Louis | 10700 | 102300 | 0.8957 | 8,153 | 1512 | 0.1192 | |
| 19 | University of Notre Dame | 10800 | 86200 | 0.8752 | 8,950 | 1497 | 0.0938 | |
| 20 | Bucknell University | 11200 | 95700 | 0.8834 | 3,928 | 1275 | 0.322 | |
| 21 | University of Tulsa | 11400 | 62900 | 0.8184 | 2,852 | 1328 | 0.615 | |
| 22 | Cornell University | 11500 | 93100 | 0.8767 | 16,138 | 1528 | 0.0838 | |
| 22 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 11500 | 29100 | 0.6053 | 40,996 | 1399 | 0.4175 | |
| 24 | Lafayette College | 11700 | 85800 | 0.8641 | 2,675 | 1415 | 0.3116 | |
| 25 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 40,366 | 1224 | 0.7577 | |
| 25 | University of Pennsylvania | 12000 | 92900 | 0.8708 | 9,989 | 1535 | 0.0492 | |
| 25 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 12000 | 38800 | 0.6912 | 17,848 | 1470 | 0.1565 | |
| 28 | California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt | 12200 | 24900 | 0.5092 | 5,677 | 985 | 0.9301 | |
| 29 | New Mexico State University-Main Campus | 12800 | 26500 | 0.5164 | 13,039 | 1020 | 0.894 | |
| 29 | North Carolina A & T State University | 12800 | 17900 | 0.2857 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.5125 | |
| 31 | University of Arizona | 12900 | 30900 | 0.5835 | 43,294 | 1186 | 0.8351 | |
| 31 | University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point | 12900 | 24700 | 0.478 | 7,753 | 1140 | 0.9245 | |
| 33 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 34 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 57800 | 0.7626 | 39,193 | 1418 | 0.4081 | |
| 35 | Brown University | 13900 | 94000 | 0.8521 | 7,951 | 1500 | 0.0634 | |
| 36 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 12,118 | 1070 | 0.7164 | |
| 37 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 14500 | 26500 | 0.4515 | 23,003 | 1164 | 0.7367 | |
| 38 | Northwestern University | 14600 | 88300 | 0.8348 | 9,060 | 1533 | 0.0769 | |
| 39 | Case Western Reserve University | 14700 | 91300 | 0.8394 | 6,657 | 1484 | 0.3778 | |
| 40 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71700 | 0.794 | 7,346 | 1542 | 0.038 | |
| 41 | Northeastern University | 15000 | 89900 | 0.8331 | 22,456 | 1481 | 0.0562 | |
| 42 | University of California-Irvine | 15100 | 38000 | 0.603 | 30,260 | 1333 | 0.2895 | |
| 43 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 15300 | 25600 | 0.4016 | 10,396 | 1125 | 0.7162 | |
| 44 | Western Michigan University | 15400 | 31200 | 0.5059 | 13,714 | 1089 | 0.9121 | |
| 45 | Lehigh University | 15500 | 89600 | 0.8275 | 5,986 | 1436 | 0.2896 | |
| 45 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 15500 | 25800 | 0.3992 | 5,386 | 995 | 0.9092 | |
| 47 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 15800 | 38500 | 0.5888 | 38,572 | 1455 | 0.3659 | |
| 48 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,056 | 1135 | 0.4543 | |
| 49 | The University of Texas at Austin | 16500 | 28000 | 0.4111 | 44,314 | 1356 | 0.2222 | |
| 49 | University of Maine | 16500 | 29300 | 0.4371 | 9,182 | 1195 | 0.9562 | |
| 49 | Wayne State University | 16500 | 32900 | 0.4982 | 16,390 | 1183 | 0.8359 | |
| 52 | West Virginia University | 16800 | 40900 | 0.589 | 18,206 | 1120 | 0.8514 | |
| 53 | Cal Poly Maritime Academy | 17500 | 34000 | 0.4858 | 804 | 1110 | 0.9501 | |
| 54 | Prairie View A & M University | 17600 | 25400 | 0.3071 | 9,022 | 960 | 0.7836 | |
| 55 | University of Miami | 17700 | 95700 | 0.8149 | 13,241 | 1408 | 0.1761 | |
| 56 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 17900 | 35300 | 0.4926 | 1,829 | 1149 | 0.945 | |
| 57 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 18100 | 28600 | 0.3669 | 3,991 | 1010 | 0.9654 | |
| 58 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 34,021 | 1195 | 0.6906 | |
| 58 | University of Mississippi | 18300 | 45000 | 0.5938 | 22,939 | 1172 | 0.9738 | |
| 60 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 18800 | 31000 | 0.394 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 61 | McNeese State University | 18900 | 27400 | 0.3102 | 5,668 | 1060 | 0.7827 | |
| 62 | University of Rhode Island | 19200 | 33900 | 0.4337 | 14,466 | 1197 | 0.7456 | |
| 63 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 19300 | 29900 | 0.3538 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5732 | |
| 64 | University of Colorado Boulder | 19800 | 31900 | 0.3784 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7809 | |
| 65 | Kutztown University of Pennsylvania | 19900 | 29100 | 0.3162 | 6,229 | 1174 | 0.8942 | |
| 65 | Youngstown State University | 19900 | 34000 | 0.4147 | 9,687 | 1120 | 0.9145 | |
| 67 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,768 | 1499 | 0.1119 | |
| 68 | University of Rochester | 20100 | 93100 | 0.7843 | 6,096 | 1448 | 0.4191 | |
| 68 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 20100 | 45200 | 0.5559 | 31,536 | 1366 | 0.5457 | |
| 70 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20400 | 23200 | 0.1207 | 20,786 | 1225 | 0.8689 | |
| 71 | University of Maryland-College Park | 20900 | 27300 | 0.2346 | 31,875 | 1456 | 0.4503 | |
| 72 | Washington State University | 21100 | 36200 | 0.417 | 21,400 | 1131 | 0.861 | |
| 73 | Louisiana Tech University | 21300 | 26100 | 0.1841 | 11,071 | 1189 | 0.9073 | |
| 74 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,031 | 1497 | 0.1082 | |
| 75 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 21800 | 37300 | 0.4156 | 26,490 | 1183 | 0.8863 | |
| 75 | Marian University | 21800 | 59800 | 0.635 | 2,378 | 1085 | 0.9546 | |
| 77 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 22200 | 33600 | 0.339 | 21,469 | 1167 | 0.9061 | |
| 78 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 22300 | 69800 | 0.6809 | 3,190 | 1317 | 0.6187 | |
| 79 | Florida State University | 22400 | 32400 | 0.3091 | 34,271 | 1369 | 0.2383 | |
| 79 | New York University | 22400 | 91800 | 0.7556 | 29,471 | 1520 | 0.0906 | |
| 81 | The University of Alabama | 22600 | 31000 | 0.2708 | 35,621 | 1238 | 0.7117 | |
| 82 | San Jose State University | 22900 | 41100 | 0.4429 | 29,890 | 1135 | 0.8039 | |
| 83 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 23100 | 28400 | 0.1863 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 84 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 23600 | 24900 | 0.0522 | 31,845 | 1298 | 0.5651 | |
| 85 | University of Kansas | 24200 | 37600 | 0.3583 | 22,544 | 1176 | 0.9258 | |
| 86 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 27500 | 0.1165 | 16,405 | 1284 | 0.74 | |
| 87 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 24400 | 30600 | 0.2026 | 9,827 | 1329 | 0.6737 | |
| 88 | Tennessee Technological University | 24900 | 33700 | 0.2612 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 89 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 25200 | 31100 | 0.1896 | 19,787 | 1197 | 0.8807 | |
| 90 | University of Dayton | 25300 | 64200 | 0.606 | 7,252 | 1319 | 0.6659 | |
| 91 | Christian Brothers University | 25800 | 57600 | 0.5513 | 1,155 | 1110 | 0.867 | |
| 91 | Michigan State University | 25800 | 28900 | 0.1089 | 41,415 | 1212 | 0.8324 | |
| 91 | University of North Dakota | 25800 | 28600 | 0.0977 | 11,837 | 1189 | 0.8157 | |
| 94 | Iowa State University | 26000 | 42800 | 0.3914 | 26,346 | 1212 | 0.8793 | |
| 95 | Stony Brook University | 26100 | 33200 | 0.2129 | 18,616 | 1410 | 0.4818 | |
| 96 | Dordt University | 26200 | 52500 | 0.5007 | 1,716 | 1205 | 0.6847 | |
| 97 | Tuskegee University | 26300 | 42100 | 0.3757 | 2,660 | 1090 | 0.4868 | |
| 98 | Clarkson University | 26400 | 78000 | 0.6617 | 2,163 | 1283 | 0.825 | |
| 99 | Trine University | 26500 | 56100 | 0.5278 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 99 | University of Southern Mississippi | 26500 | 26500 | 0 | 10,371 | 1181 | 0.926 | |
| 101 | University of Arkansas | 26600 | 28900 | 0.0793 | 29,252 | 1179 | 0.7388 | |
| 102 | University of Idaho | 26700 | 45200 | 0.4089 | 9,656 | 1104 | 0.7476 | |
| 103 | Kansas State University | 27000 | 31400 | 0.1412 | 16,555 | 1163 | 0.875 | |
| 104 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 18,028 | 1059 | 0.7996 | |
| 105 | Villanova University | 27800 | 88800 | 0.6867 | 6,933 | 1466 | 0.2814 | |
| 106 | Syracuse University | 27900 | 83100 | 0.6641 | 16,149 | 1374 | 0.4879 | |
| 107 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28600 | 32300 | 0.1145 | 11,691 | 1074 | 0.7722 | |
| 108 | University of Utah | 28700 | 32000 | 0.1028 | 29,335 | 1222 | 0.9015 | |
| 109 | Clemson University | 29000 | 37100 | 0.2179 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 109 | University of Minnesota Duluth | 29000 | 32000 | 0.095 | 8,706 | 1230 | 0.8906 | |
| 111 | University of Connecticut | 29200 | 39500 | 0.2608 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 112 | Montana State University | 29500 | 31900 | 0.0751 | 15,142 | 1184 | 0.9938 | |
| 113 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30600 | 78100 | 0.608 | 14,267 | 1363 | 0.6693 | |
| 114 | The College of Wooster | 30700 | 82400 | 0.6271 | 1,515 | 1345 | 0.6438 | |
| 114 | University of Toledo | 30700 | 42000 | 0.269 | 10,726 | 1134 | 0.8889 | |
| 116 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 30800 | 38500 | 0.2001 | 7,637 | 1115 | 0.1865 | |
| 116 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 30800 | 36900 | 0.1662 | 5,687 | 1305 | 0.7863 | |
| 118 | West Virginia University Institute of Technology | 30900 | 39900 | 0.2256 | 1,278 | 1025 | 0.3668 | |
| 119 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 31000 | 59100 | 0.4752 | 23,091 | 1354 | 0.382 | |
| 120 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 21,028 | 1450 | 0.1334 | |
| 120 | Lamar University | 31200 | 38300 | 0.1855 | 8,387 | 1040 | 0.8353 | |
| 120 | University of Louisville | 31200 | 42000 | 0.257 | 17,916 | 1134 | 0.7921 | |
| 123 | Rider University | 31400 | 60600 | 0.4816 | 3,052 | 1214 | 0.7741 | |
| 124 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 31500 | 41200 | 0.2357 | 25,312 | 1134 | 0.7395 | |
| 125 | Hampton University | 31600 | 54800 | 0.4233 | 4,046 | 1005 | 0.6358 | |
| 126 | Hendrix College | 32200 | 59300 | 0.4567 | 1,069 | 1287 | 0.7822 | |
| 127 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 32300 | 35100 | 0.0799 | 32,041 | 1324 | 0.4358 | |
| 128 | North Carolina State University | 32700 | 54800 | 0.4033 | 29,340 | 1374 | 0.3954 | |
| 129 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 32900 | 45100 | 0.2705 | 11,087 | 1326 | 0.7397 | |
| 130 | Cleveland State University | 33500 | 37300 | 0.1019 | 9,418 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 131 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 33900 | 36100 | 0.0609 | 34,447 | 1273 | 0.8804 | |
| 132 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | 34000 | 70200 | 0.516 | 2,836 | 1283 | 0.6711 | |
| 133 | University of South Florida | 35000 | 35000 | 0 | 39,093 | 1255 | 0.4071 | |
| 134 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3772 | 8,219 | 1100 | 0.9485 | |
| 134 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 35300 | 56700 | 0.3775 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8296 | |
| 136 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 35900 | 47500 | 0.2444 | 8,513 | 1160 | 0.9261 | |
| 137 | Colorado School of Mines | 36100 | 60100 | 0.3993 | 6,195 | 1399 | 0.6069 | |
| 137 | University of North Carolina Wilmington | 36100 | 36100 | 0 | 16,131 | 1275 | 0.6472 | |
| 139 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 36600 | 40000 | 0.085 | 1,984 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 140 | University of Nevada-Reno | 37300 | 45800 | 0.1857 | 20,204 | 1109 | 0.8313 | |
| 141 | Kettering University | 37600 | 71800 | 0.4763 | 1,212 | 1204 | 0.7867 | |
| 142 | Benedictine College | 37700 | 50800 | 0.2579 | 2,404 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 143 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 37800 | 40100 | 0.0571 | 25,054 | 1225 | 0.7762 | |
| 144 | University of Illinois Chicago | 38200 | 50600 | 0.2451 | 24,260 | 1174 | 0.7576 | |
| 145 | Maine Maritime Academy | 38400 | 49800 | 0.2287 | 977 | 1189 | 0.9615 | |
| 146 | Manhattan University | 38900 | 74100 | 0.4749 | 2,378 | 1174 | 0.8216 | |
| 147 | Mississippi State University | 39100 | 53400 | 0.2675 | 19,093 | 1205 | 0.8363 | |
| 147 | New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology | 39100 | 44400 | 0.1192 | 1,066 | 1197 | 0.4449 | |
| 149 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 39700 | 50000 | 0.2062 | 35,248 | 1289 | 0.6939 | |
| 149 | University of South Alabama | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 9,530 | 1140 | 0.9455 | |
| 151 | California Baptist University | 39900 | 65600 | 0.3917 | 8,707 | 1024 | 0.8139 | |
| 152 | University of Wyoming | 40000 | 45300 | 0.1168 | 8,138 | 1163 | 0.9695 | |
| 153 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,534 | 1399 | 0.0941 | |
| 154 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 40600 | 47500 | 0.1453 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 155 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 40800 | 53600 | 0.2389 | 46,627 | 1366 | 0.492 | |
| 156 | University of New Haven | 41000 | 67300 | 0.3906 | 4,969 | 1219 | 0.5589 | |
| 157 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41600 | 55200 | 0.2463 | 21,388 | 1369 | 0.5945 | |
| 158 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 41700 | 83200 | 0.4988 | 2,160 | 1374 | 0.809 | |
| 159 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 42600 | 56200 | 0.2421 | 10,900 | 1222 | 0.8914 | |
| 160 | University of Florida | 43100 | 45700 | 0.057 | 37,283 | 1406 | 0.2033 | |
| 161 | University at Buffalo | 43300 | 46700 | 0.0728 | 21,192 | 1309 | 0.8059 | |
| 162 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43400 | 68700 | 0.3679 | 4,279 | 1234 | 0.5796 | |
| 163 | Oregon State University | 44900 | 61900 | 0.2752 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 164 | Widener University | 45400 | 79400 | 0.4283 | 2,975 | 1179 | 0.7093 | |
| 165 | University of California-San Diego | 45900 | 77200 | 0.4055 | 35,442 | 1375 | 0.2856 | |
| 166 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46200 | 86300 | 0.4644 | 5,833 | 1440 | 0.6725 | |
| 167 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 47100 | 59700 | 0.2124 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 168 | Drexel University | 47700 | 83900 | 0.4315 | 12,318 | 1354 | 0.699 | |
| 168 | University of Delaware | 47700 | 61300 | 0.2231 | 19,287 | 1302 | 0.6924 | |
| 170 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48300 | 91400 | 0.4717 | 6,839 | 1469 | 0.1446 | |
| 171 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48500 | 51200 | 0.0544 | 43,633 | 1342 | 0.4343 | |
| 172 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 48600 | 48600 | 0 | 6,743 | 1266 | 0.6292 | |
| 173 | University of Kentucky | 49000 | 58000 | 0.1552 | 25,535 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 174 | University of California-Riverside | 49200 | 66000 | 0.2547 | 24,034 | 1199 | 0.8609 | |
| 175 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49500 | 85800 | 0.4229 | 4,206 | 1430 | 0.5068 | |
| 176 | University of Georgia | 49700 | 51600 | 0.0368 | 32,824 | 1348 | 0.3425 | |
| 177 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50300 | 83600 | 0.3982 | 5,461 | 1292 | 0.6189 | |
| 178 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 50800 | 84700 | 0.4003 | 35,358 | 1448 | 0.1642 | |
| 179 | University of Iowa | 52100 | 54400 | 0.0421 | 23,407 | 1203 | 0.799 | |
| 180 | Rowan University | 53600 | 53600 | 0 | 17,157 | 1204 | 0.7654 | |
| 180 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 53600 | 62800 | 0.1465 | 24,019 | 1404 | 0.5989 | |
| 182 | Howard University | 55000 | 66500 | 0.173 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 183 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 55900 | 63800 | 0.1237 | 42,565 | 1339 | 0.7887 | |
| 184 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58200 | 64100 | 0.092 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 185 | Auburn University | 58500 | 58500 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4593 | |
| 186 | Michigan Technological University | 59300 | 59300 | 0 | 6,009 | 1247 | 0.8546 | |
| 186 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 59300 | 61600 | 0.0372 | 25,141 | 1256 | 0.7613 | |
| 188 | Hawaii Pacific University | 63500 | 65800 | 0.0348 | 3,468 | 1200 | 0.8855 | |
| 189 | University of California-Berkeley | 70800 | 76100 | 0.0697 | 33,513 | 1407 | 0.1145 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
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