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 Military Academy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,473 | 1326 | 0.1245 | |
| 2 | Johns Hopkins University | 2700 | 92000 | 0.9704 | 6,356 | 1543 | 0.0644 | |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3800 | 82600 | 0.954 | 5,813 | 1535 | 0.0462 | |
| 4 | Yale University | 5500 | 92200 | 0.94 | 6,814 | 1507 | 0.0387 | |
| 5 | California Institute of Technology | 7500 | 91800 | 0.9183 | 987 | 1557 | 0.0257 | |
| 6 | Vanderbilt University | 7700 | 96200 | 0.9195 | 7,221 | 1527 | 0.0586 | |
| 7 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 32,952 | 1374 | 0.6778 | |
| 8 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 8200 | 90000 | 0.9093 | 4,535 | 1542 | 0.0455 | |
| 9 | Columbia University in the City of New York | 8300 | 97100 | 0.915 | 9,164 | 1535 | 0.0399 | |
| 10 | Carnegie Mellon University | 9000 | 90900 | 0.9007 | 7,377 | 1528 | 0.1166 | |
| 11 | Washington University in St Louis | 9300 | 102300 | 0.9087 | 8,220 | 1513 | 0.1206 | |
| 12 | Bucknell University | 9600 | 91800 | 0.8959 | 3,920 | 1396 | 0.2893 | |
| 13 | Rice University | 9800 | 89100 | 0.8903 | 4,789 | 1535 | 0.08 | |
| 14 | University of Notre Dame | 10700 | 86200 | 0.8763 | 8,880 | 1500 | 0.1127 | |
| 15 | University of Tulsa | 11400 | 62900 | 0.8184 | 2,852 | 1328 | 0.6151 | |
| 16 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 11500 | 29100 | 0.6053 | 40,684 | 1331 | 0.3915 | |
| 17 | Cornell University | 11800 | 93100 | 0.8735 | 16,128 | 1521 | 0.0876 | |
| 18 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | 11900 | 25700 | 0.5363 | 46,815 | 1378 | 0.6057 | |
| 19 | Lafayette College | 12000 | 85800 | 0.8606 | 2,775 | 1427 | 0.3145 | |
| 19 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 21 | The University of Texas at San Antonio | 12200 | 25000 | 0.5113 | 31,127 | 1115 | 0.8679 | |
| 22 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 12500 | 28100 | 0.5551 | 8,553 | 1045 | 0.8688 | |
| 23 | University of South Florida | 12900 | 17100 | 0.2454 | 38,525 | 1239 | 0.4319 | |
| 23 | University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point | 12900 | 24700 | 0.478 | 7,490 | 1140 | 0.918 | |
| 25 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 13200 | 43000 | 0.693 | 23,181 | 1354 | 0.3297 | |
| 26 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 27 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 13700 | 50700 | 0.7294 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 28 | University of Idaho | 14100 | 25800 | 0.4543 | 9,574 | 1119 | 0.7553 | |
| 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 | 14800 | 91300 | 0.8383 | 6,528 | 1475 | 0.3654 | |
| 31 | Stanford University | 14800 | 71700 | 0.794 | 7,904 | 1535 | 0.0361 | |
| 33 | University of St Thomas | 14900 | 50900 | 0.7075 | 3,365 | 1095 | 0.8992 | |
| 34 | Northeastern University | 15000 | 89900 | 0.8331 | 17,432 | 1490 | 0.0522 | |
| 35 | Florida State University | 15600 | 22900 | 0.3184 | 32,720 | 1360 | 0.2422 | |
| 35 | Lehigh University | 15600 | 89600 | 0.8263 | 5,911 | 1436 | 0.2593 | |
| 37 | Western Michigan University | 15700 | 31200 | 0.4963 | 13,027 | 1115 | 0.846 | |
| 38 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 15900 | 38500 | 0.5862 | 37,140 | 1406 | 0.4237 | |
| 39 | University of Maine | 16500 | 29300 | 0.4371 | 9,601 | 1205 | 0.9664 | |
| 39 | Wayne State University | 16500 | 32900 | 0.4982 | 16,012 | 1174 | 0.8116 | |
| 41 | The University of Texas at Austin | 16600 | 28000 | 0.4076 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 42 | University of Massachusetts-Lowell | 16700 | 35700 | 0.5323 | 12,122 | 1283 | 0.8304 | |
| 43 | West Virginia University | 17000 | 40900 | 0.5841 | 18,206 | 1125 | 0.89 | |
| 44 | Texas A&M University-College Station | 17500 | 29900 | 0.4144 | 60,710 | 1278 | 0.5743 | |
| 44 | University of Louisville | 17500 | 29100 | 0.399 | 17,086 | 1148 | 0.7941 | |
| 46 | Prairie View A & M University | 17600 | 25400 | 0.3071 | 8,877 | 975 | 0.7931 | |
| 47 | University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown | 17900 | 35300 | 0.4926 | 1,813 | 1109 | 0.9484 | |
| 48 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 18000 | 39000 | 0.5385 | 37,985 | 1390 | 0.5815 | |
| 49 | The University of Texas Permian Basin | 18200 | 28600 | 0.3634 | 4,218 | 1030 | 0.9489 | |
| 50 | McNeese State University | 18900 | 27400 | 0.3102 | 5,668 | 1060 | 0.7827 | |
| 51 | University of Nevada-Reno | 19200 | 28200 | 0.3189 | 19,117 | 1134 | 0.7371 | |
| 52 | University of Mississippi | 19400 | 27000 | 0.2814 | 21,585 | 1182 | 0.9658 | |
| 53 | University of Arizona | 19600 | 30900 | 0.3663 | 44,848 | 1233 | 0.8614 | |
| 54 | University of Alabama in Huntsville | 19900 | 30500 | 0.3473 | 6,800 | 1293 | 0.6857 | |
| 54 | University of Virginia-Main Campus | 19900 | 78600 | 0.7467 | 17,885 | 1470 | 0.1681 | |
| 56 | Cleveland State University | 20000 | 30900 | 0.3523 | 9,482 | 1069 | 0.913 | |
| 56 | University of Southern California | 20000 | 75900 | 0.7369 | 20,630 | 1492 | 0.0981 | |
| 56 | Youngstown State University | 20000 | 34000 | 0.4118 | 9,400 | 1115 | 0.8445 | |
| 59 | Iowa State University | 20100 | 24200 | 0.1714 | 25,628 | 1207 | 0.8866 | |
| 60 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 20200 | 45200 | 0.5537 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 61 | SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 20300 | 29300 | 0.3067 | 2,381 | 1239 | 0.6328 | |
| 61 | University of Rochester | 20300 | 93100 | 0.7822 | 6,580 | 1462 | 0.4008 | |
| 63 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20600 | 23200 | 0.1121 | 20,444 | 1209 | 0.8499 | |
| 64 | University of Maryland-College Park | 20900 | 27300 | 0.2346 | 31,133 | 1463 | 0.4479 | |
| 65 | Louisiana Tech University | 21400 | 26100 | 0.1802 | 10,881 | 1189 | 0.864 | |
| 66 | Tufts University | 21600 | 98900 | 0.7813 | 7,126 | 1507 | 0.1149 | |
| 67 | University of Illinois Chicago | 22200 | 30100 | 0.2629 | 22,495 | 1252 | 0.7735 | |
| 67 | Virginia Commonwealth University | 22200 | 33600 | 0.339 | 21,210 | 1148 | 0.9262 | |
| 69 | New York University | 22700 | 91800 | 0.7524 | 29,060 | 1520 | 0.0923 | |
| 70 | San Jose State University | 23000 | 41100 | 0.4405 | 28,008 | 1124 | 0.8461 | |
| 71 | Illinois Institute of Technology | 23100 | 69800 | 0.6694 | 3,135 | 1307 | 0.5493 | |
| 72 | University of Kansas | 24200 | 37600 | 0.3561 | 22,085 | 1176 | 0.9348 | |
| 73 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 27500 | 0.1165 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 74 | University at Buffalo | 24700 | 34000 | 0.2736 | 20,359 | 1303 | 0.7418 | |
| 75 | Clarkson University | 25700 | 78000 | 0.6707 | 2,296 | 1302 | 0.7736 | |
| 76 | Michigan State University | 25800 | 28900 | 0.1089 | 41,234 | 1279 | 0.848 | |
| 77 | Christian Brothers University | 26000 | 57600 | 0.5492 | 1,155 | 1110 | 0.867 | |
| 78 | Dordt University | 26200 | 52500 | 0.5007 | 1,716 | 1205 | 0.6847 | |
| 79 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 26300 | 28400 | 0.0741 | 2,216 | 1268 | 0.7987 | |
| 79 | Tuskegee University | 26300 | 42100 | 0.3757 | 2,659 | 1090 | 0.4868 | |
| 81 | Trine University | 26700 | 56100 | 0.5245 | 4,373 | 1159 | 0.8548 | |
| 82 | University of Arkansas | 26800 | 28900 | 0.0729 | 28,859 | 1179 | 0.743 | |
| 83 | Kansas State University | 27000 | 31400 | 0.141 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 84 | University of Minnesota Duluth | 27400 | 32000 | 0.144 | 8,426 | 1235 | 0.8875 | |
| 85 | Rowan University | 27500 | 41300 | 0.3345 | 16,100 | 1219 | 0.7766 | |
| 85 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 87 | Syracuse University | 27700 | 83100 | 0.6665 | 15,957 | 1363 | 0.4592 | |
| 88 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | 27800 | 31100 | 0.1064 | 19,701 | 1214 | 0.8749 | |
| 89 | Villanova University | 27900 | 88800 | 0.6855 | 7,004 | 1457 | 0.2698 | |
| 90 | University of Akron Main Campus | 28600 | 32300 | 0.1145 | 11,160 | 1069 | 0.5967 | |
| 91 | Colorado School of Mines | 28800 | 38100 | 0.2439 | 6,195 | 1399 | 0.6069 | |
| 91 | University of Dayton | 28800 | 64200 | 0.5515 | 7,740 | 1302 | 0.6545 | |
| 93 | Oregon State University | 28900 | 36700 | 0.214 | 31,253 | 1272 | 0.773 | |
| 93 | University of Utah | 28900 | 32000 | 0.097 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 95 | University of South Carolina-Columbia | 29300 | 34000 | 0.1383 | 30,187 | 1292 | 0.6015 | |
| 96 | University of Toledo | 29500 | 32600 | 0.0952 | 11,013 | 1229 | 0.9202 | |
| 97 | Montana State University | 29600 | 31900 | 0.072 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 98 | New Mexico State University-Main Campus | 30400 | 39200 | 0.2248 | 12,507 | 1010 | 0.8897 | |
| 99 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | 30500 | 38500 | 0.2078 | 7,890 | 1110 | 0.2056 | |
| 99 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 30500 | 78100 | 0.6093 | 14,267 | 1381 | 0.6693 | |
| 101 | West Virginia University Institute of Technology | 30900 | 39900 | 0.2256 | 1,278 | 1025 | 0.3668 | |
| 102 | California State University-Long Beach | 31000 | 38900 | 0.2032 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 103 | University of North Dakota | 31100 | 33700 | 0.0772 | 11,033 | 1150 | 0.769 | |
| 104 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 31200 | 48800 | 0.361 | 20,591 | 1435 | 0.1407 | |
| 104 | Lamar University | 31200 | 38300 | 0.1855 | 8,184 | 1050 | 0.8641 | |
| 106 | Hampton University | 31400 | 54800 | 0.427 | 3,728 | 947 | 0.6225 | |
| 107 | California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | 31500 | 41200 | 0.2357 | 25,255 | 1134 | 0.7517 | |
| 107 | North Carolina A & T State University | 31500 | 36700 | 0.1416 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 109 | North Carolina State University | 32900 | 54800 | 0.3999 | 28,422 | 1378 | 0.4174 | |
| 109 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 32900 | 45100 | 0.2705 | 10,767 | 1326 | 0.7243 | |
| 109 | University of Rhode Island | 32900 | 46400 | 0.2907 | 14,376 | 1148 | 0.7216 | |
| 112 | California Baptist University | 33600 | 65600 | 0.4878 | 8,417 | 1070 | 0.8488 | |
| 113 | Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 33900 | 41000 | 0.174 | 22,364 | 1159 | 0.7504 | |
| 114 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 34500 | 34500 | 0 | 10,202 | 1140 | 0.8109 | |
| 115 | Texas Tech University | 35600 | 38900 | 0.0848 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 116 | The University of Texas at Tyler | 36000 | 56700 | 0.3648 | 7,683 | 1120 | 0.9402 | |
| 117 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | 36200 | 56300 | 0.357 | 5,552 | 1305 | 0.7255 | |
| 118 | Mississippi State University | 36400 | 50500 | 0.2795 | 18,567 | 1214 | 0.7764 | |
| 118 | Tennessee Technological University | 36400 | 38500 | 0.0546 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 120 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | 36500 | 47500 | 0.2317 | 65,450 | 1203 | 0.8989 | |
| 120 | Texas A&M University-Kingsville | 36500 | 41600 | 0.1226 | 5,386 | 1050 | 0.9092 | |
| 122 | University of New Haven | 36800 | 67300 | 0.453 | 4,903 | 1164 | 0.6038 | |
| 123 | University of Connecticut | 37300 | 53600 | 0.3043 | 20,056 | 1329 | 0.5239 | |
| 124 | Kettering University | 37500 | 71800 | 0.4776 | 1,212 | 1260 | 0.7867 | |
| 125 | Benedictine College | 37700 | 50800 | 0.2579 | 2,403 | 1241 | 0.9812 | |
| 126 | Washington State University | 38300 | 53900 | 0.2897 | 21,455 | 1125 | 0.8664 | |
| 127 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 38700 | 53100 | 0.2711 | 30,564 | 1302 | 0.416 | |
| 128 | New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology | 39300 | 44400 | 0.115 | 1,066 | 1197 | 0.4449 | |
| 129 | University of South Alabama | 39700 | 39700 | 0 | 9,241 | 1140 | 0.7096 | |
| 130 | University of Wyoming | 40200 | 45300 | 0.1127 | 8,130 | 1179 | 0.9688 | |
| 131 | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 40300 | 44100 | 0.0862 | 13,432 | 1225 | 0.8701 | |
| 132 | Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 40400 | 50000 | 0.1922 | 34,242 | 1273 | 0.7333 | |
| 132 | University of California-Los Angeles | 40400 | 81800 | 0.5061 | 33,475 | 1399 | 0.0897 | |
| 134 | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 41500 | 83200 | 0.5012 | 2,315 | 1404 | 0.7686 | |
| 134 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | 41500 | 55200 | 0.2481 | 25,900 | 1375 | 0.5808 | |
| 136 | University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 42700 | 56200 | 0.2403 | 11,355 | 1222 | 0.8816 | |
| 137 | University of Florida | 43300 | 45700 | 0.0526 | 36,573 | 1399 | 0.242 | |
| 138 | Florida Institute of Technology | 43600 | 68700 | 0.3652 | 3,666 | 1224 | 0.577 | |
| 138 | Manhattan University | 43600 | 74100 | 0.4115 | 2,744 | 1274 | 0.7894 | |
| 140 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 43900 | 57100 | 0.2297 | 23,329 | 1239 | 0.766 | |
| 141 | Widener University | 45800 | 79400 | 0.4233 | 2,975 | 1184 | 0.7093 | |
| 142 | University of California-San Diego | 45900 | 76000 | 0.396 | 34,955 | 1375 | 0.2671 | |
| 143 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 46100 | 86300 | 0.4656 | 5,741 | 1438 | 0.6347 | |
| 144 | University of Colorado Boulder | 47000 | 57700 | 0.1843 | 32,244 | 1351 | 0.7808 | |
| 145 | University of Delaware | 48400 | 61300 | 0.211 | 20,026 | 1294 | 0.706 | |
| 146 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 48600 | 51200 | 0.0508 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 147 | Tulane University of Louisiana | 48700 | 91400 | 0.4673 | 8,192 | 1451 | 0.1398 | |
| 148 | University of Georgia | 48800 | 51600 | 0.0542 | 32,399 | 1382 | 0.377 | |
| 149 | Drexel University | 48900 | 83900 | 0.4172 | 13,309 | 1339 | 0.7944 | |
| 150 | University of Kentucky | 49200 | 58000 | 0.1528 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 151 | University of California-Riverside | 49300 | 66000 | 0.2532 | 22,600 | 1199 | 0.7639 | |
| 152 | Stevens Institute of Technology | 49700 | 85800 | 0.4206 | 4,236 | 1445 | 0.4758 | |
| 153 | Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 50500 | 83600 | 0.3958 | 5,558 | 1292 | 0.6016 | |
| 154 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 51000 | 84700 | 0.398 | 34,454 | 1435 | 0.1564 | |
| 155 | University of Iowa | 51100 | 53200 | 0.0396 | 22,738 | 1208 | 0.8362 | |
| 156 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53100 | 61200 | 0.1324 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 157 | University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 53300 | 53300 | 0 | 33,033 | 1264 | 0.8529 | |
| 157 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | 53300 | 61000 | 0.1262 | 41,303 | 1338 | 0.7975 | |
| 159 | University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 53800 | 62800 | 0.1433 | 23,920 | 1397 | 0.5973 | |
| 160 | University of Missouri-Columbia | 54100 | 59200 | 0.0862 | 24,449 | 1256 | 0.7847 | |
| 161 | The University of Alabama | 55800 | 55800 | 0 | 34,389 | 1284 | 0.7665 | |
| 162 | Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 58200 | 64100 | 0.092 | 42,604 | 1336 | 0.6056 | |
| 163 | Auburn University | 58500 | 58500 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 | |
| 164 | Michigan Technological University | 59300 | 59300 | 0 | 6,013 | 1256 | 0.9243 | |
| 165 | Howard University | 60000 | 66500 | 0.0978 | 11,519 | 1208 | 0.4134 | |
| 166 | Clemson University | 61500 | 63700 | 0.0331 | 23,401 | 1343 | 0.3834 | |
| 167 | New Jersey Institute of Technology | 63700 | 63700 | 0 | 10,200 | 1325 | 0.6507 | |
| 168 | University of California-Davis | 69800 | 69800 | 0 | 32,273 | 1290 | 0.4183 | |
| 169 | University of California-Berkeley | 70800 | 76100 | 0.0697 | 33,070 | 1407 | 0.1098 | |
| 170 | University of California-Irvine | 72000 | 75600 | 0.0476 | 30,204 | 1333 | 0.2857 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (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.