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 | Brigham Young University | 8000 | 22000 | 0.6362 | 32,952 | 1374 | 0.6778 | |
| 2 | University of Houston | 12000 | 28400 | 0.5781 | 39,257 | 1249 | 0.7392 | |
| 3 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | 12400 | 29200 | 0.5745 | 38,040 | 1418 | 0.452 | |
| 4 | Eastern Illinois University | 12600 | 24300 | 0.4813 | 6,785 | 985 | 0.6535 | |
| 5 | North Carolina A & T State University | 12800 | 17900 | 0.2857 | 12,497 | 1075 | 0.499 | |
| 6 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 13600 | 34600 | 0.6076 | 8,945 | 1099 | 0.975 | |
| 7 | Delta State University | 14000 | 23200 | 0.3971 | 1,876 | 1040 | 1 | |
| 8 | Northern Illinois University | 14300 | 28800 | 0.5048 | 11,348 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 9 | Stephen F Austin State University | 14700 | 23400 | 0.3714 | 9,129 | 1075 | 0.9399 | |
| 10 | Wayne State College | 15100 | 20300 | 0.2561 | 3,902 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | Chadron State College | 15200 | 25000 | 0.3926 | 1,690 | 0 | 0 | |
| 12 | University of Maryland Eastern Shore | 15300 | 26900 | 0.4309 | 2,476 | 930 | 0.9641 | |
| 13 | Kansas State University | 15800 | 26100 | 0.3945 | 15,650 | 1164 | 0.8169 | |
| 14 | Mississippi University for Women | 16000 | 21400 | 0.2527 | 1,962 | 1055 | 0.9031 | |
| 14 | Southeastern Louisiana University | 16000 | 40000 | 0.6004 | 13,192 | 1075 | 0.9931 | |
| 16 | California State University-Long Beach | 16100 | 25800 | 0.3761 | 36,082 | 1135 | 0.4627 | |
| 17 | California State University-Sacramento | 16200 | 27600 | 0.4134 | 28,820 | 1035 | 0.9399 | |
| 18 | Indiana University of Pennsylvania | 16400 | 28200 | 0.4179 | 7,353 | 1085 | 0.9077 | |
| 19 | Morgan State University | 17600 | 28500 | 0.3823 | 9,027 | 965 | 0.8223 | |
| 20 | Texas Tech University | 18300 | 27100 | 0.3253 | 32,580 | 1200 | 0.7265 | |
| 21 | Carson-Newman University | 19500 | 51900 | 0.6245 | 1,596 | 1110 | 0.9045 | |
| 22 | Olivet Nazarene University | 19600 | 61600 | 0.6823 | 2,711 | 1104 | 0.5586 | |
| 23 | University of Northern Iowa | 19900 | 24000 | 0.1709 | 7,711 | 1129 | 0.9274 | |
| 24 | Iowa State University | 20100 | 24200 | 0.1714 | 25,628 | 1207 | 0.8866 | |
| 25 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 20200 | 45200 | 0.5537 | 31,035 | 1366 | 0.5478 | |
| 26 | Ohio University-Main Campus | 20600 | 23200 | 0.1121 | 20,444 | 1209 | 0.8499 | |
| 26 | University of Montevallo | 20600 | 30300 | 0.3202 | 2,642 | 1124 | 0.5385 | |
| 28 | Purdue University-Main Campus | 20700 | 30600 | 0.3258 | 44,819 | 1327 | 0.4987 | |
| 29 | Central Washington University | 23400 | 27900 | 0.1615 | 10,317 | 1045 | 0.9062 | |
| 30 | Miami University-Oxford | 24300 | 27500 | 0.1165 | 16,816 | 1299 | 0.754 | |
| 31 | Tennessee Technological University | 25100 | 33700 | 0.2557 | 9,187 | 1163 | 0.7613 | |
| 32 | Illinois State University | 25200 | 36400 | 0.3067 | 19,107 | 1120 | 0.8815 | |
| 32 | The University of Tennessee-Martin | 25200 | 31500 | 0.2001 | 6,809 | 1110 | 0.882 | |
| 34 | Minnesota State University, Mankato | 25900 | 28000 | 0.0751 | 13,433 | 1145 | 0.8844 | |
| 35 | University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff | 26000 | 34900 | 0.2549 | 1,817 | 905 | 0.4118 | |
| 36 | Southeast Missouri State University | 26500 | 28600 | 0.0735 | 7,926 | 945 | 0.7352 | |
| 37 | Henderson State University | 26900 | 27200 | 0.011 | 1,461 | 990 | 0.8192 | |
| 38 | California State University-Northridge | 27000 | 36500 | 0.2602 | 32,756 | 1005 | 0.9345 | |
| 39 | Fort Valley State University | 27300 | 45200 | 0.3959 | 2,699 | 1025 | 0.6587 | |
| 40 | University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 27500 | 43800 | 0.3725 | 17,450 | 1044 | 0.9518 | |
| 41 | Freed-Hardeman University | 27700 | 35900 | 0.2284 | 1,873 | 1120 | 0.5968 | |
| 41 | Norfolk State University | 27700 | 40100 | 0.309 | 5,410 | 935 | 0.8777 | |
| 43 | Alabama A & M University | 28200 | 37700 | 0.2512 | 6,370 | 915 | 0.5795 | |
| 44 | Southern University and A & M College | 28600 | 32900 | 0.1309 | 6,713 | 930 | 0.3512 | |
| 45 | Jacksonville State University | 29100 | 38200 | 0.2381 | 8,663 | 1069 | 0.7769 | |
| 45 | Pittsburg State University | 29100 | 36200 | 0.1959 | 4,472 | 1055 | 0.8942 | |
| 47 | Montana State University | 29600 | 31900 | 0.072 | 15,046 | 1184 | 0.8214 | |
| 48 | North Carolina Central University | 30300 | 40000 | 0.2424 | 6,595 | 1060 | 0.8696 | |
| 49 | Oklahoma Baptist University | 30500 | 54700 | 0.4411 | 1,427 | 1025 | 0.4941 | |
| 50 | South Carolina State University | 30800 | 41600 | 0.2596 | 2,950 | 930 | 0.8262 | |
| 51 | Baylor University | 31900 | 70300 | 0.546 | 14,915 | 1321 | 0.5128 | |
| 52 | Bridgewater College | 32100 | 40200 | 0.2017 | 1,407 | 1174 | 0.9172 | |
| 53 | Liberty University | 33200 | 44600 | 0.2556 | 52,961 | 1174 | 0.9898 | |
| 54 | Harding University | 33700 | 47800 | 0.2951 | 3,536 | 1184 | 0.7052 | |
| 55 | Meredith College | 34000 | 64200 | 0.4706 | 1,206 | 1237 | 0.7418 | |
| 56 | Texas Southern University | 34500 | 42500 | 0.1883 | 6,844 | 915 | 0.9691 | |
| 57 | California Baptist University | 35300 | 65600 | 0.4618 | 8,417 | 1070 | 0.8488 | |
| 58 | University of Central Arkansas | 38100 | 40200 | 0.0523 | 8,268 | 1110 | 0.8949 | |
| 59 | University of Wyoming | 40200 | 45300 | 0.1127 | 8,130 | 1179 | 0.9688 | |
| 60 | Union University | 43900 | 66000 | 0.3347 | 1,934 | 1242 | 0.6041 | |
| 61 | University of Kentucky | 49200 | 58000 | 0.1528 | 25,534 | 1193 | 0.9294 | |
| 62 | The University of Texas at Austin | 49800 | 59400 | 0.1617 | 43,165 | 1356 | 0.2664 | |
| 63 | University of Utah | 51600 | 53700 | 0.0392 | 28,064 | 1237 | 0.8598 | |
| 64 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 53100 | 61200 | 0.1324 | 26,221 | 1204 | 0.8854 | |
| 65 | The University of Alabama | 55800 | 55800 | 0 | 34,389 | 1284 | 0.7665 | |
| 66 | Auburn University | 58500 | 58500 | 0 | 27,907 | 1324 | 0.4592 |
School data is from 2023–2024 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
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