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 | Washington and Lee University | 4100 | 87100 | 0.9531 | 1,886 | 1488 | 0.1397 | |
| 2 | Swarthmore College | 6500 | 88900 | 0.9269 | 1,623 | 1520 | 0.0746 | |
| 3 | College of Staten Island CUNY | 8000 | 33400 | 0.7614 | 10,049 | 1005 | 0.9234 | |
| 4 | St Olaf College | 9400 | 75600 | 0.8754 | 3,124 | 1378 | 0.4832 | |
| 5 | Valdosta State University | 10500 | 24800 | 0.5776 | 7,206 | 1015 | 0.7214 | |
| 6 | Lafayette College | 11800 | 85800 | 0.863 | 2,775 | 1427 | 0.3145 | |
| 7 | Carleton College | 12300 | 74000 | 0.8334 | 2,128 | 1492 | 0.2041 | |
| 7 | Northern Illinois University | 12300 | 29000 | 0.5744 | 11,349 | 1070 | 0.6979 | |
| 9 | Denison University | 13500 | 69300 | 0.8057 | 2,406 | 1383 | 0.1693 | |
| 10 | Governors State University | 14100 | 35200 | 0.6002 | 2,573 | 774 | 0.4827 | |
| 11 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | 14500 | 41100 | 0.6478 | 8,975 | 1045 | 0.9721 | |
| 12 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 15400 | 28100 | 0.452 | 8,553 | 1054 | 0.8688 | |
| 13 | Albion College | 15600 | 72600 | 0.785 | 1,308 | 1065 | 0.807 | |
| 14 | Oakland University | 16100 | 28000 | 0.4256 | 12,587 | 1050 | 0.8784 | |
| 15 | The University of Montana-Western | 17000 | 25600 | 0.3356 | 1,440 | 990 | 0.995 | |
| 16 | Lewis-Clark State College | 17600 | 24400 | 0.2786 | 3,793 | 1010 | 0.9407 | |
| 17 | Keene State College | 17800 | 31900 | 0.4435 | 2,744 | 1020 | 0.9033 | |
| 18 | Centre College | 17900 | 70100 | 0.7449 | 1,356 | 1330 | 0.5553 | |
| 19 | The College of Idaho | 20100 | 49100 | 0.5904 | 1,049 | 1170 | 0.4722 | |
| 20 | Piedmont University | 20200 | 47200 | 0.572 | 1,159 | 1130 | 0.9328 | |
| 21 | Southern Oregon University | 21200 | 32600 | 0.35 | 4,964 | 1125 | 0.9007 | |
| 22 | Guilford College | 21900 | 57400 | 0.6184 | 1,160 | 1025 | 0.8376 | |
| 23 | Lycoming College | 22000 | 65800 | 0.666 | 807 | 1189 | 0.7407 | |
| 24 | Lake Forest College | 22100 | 76700 | 0.7115 | 1,814 | 1323 | 0.5681 | |
| 25 | Nebraska Wesleyan University | 22200 | 56400 | 0.6068 | 1,463 | 1195 | 0.7982 | |
| 26 | Robert Morris University | 23200 | 58000 | 0.5998 | 3,769 | 1180 | 0.9057 | |
| 27 | University of Illinois Springfield | 23800 | 39800 | 0.4011 | 2,342 | 1140 | 0.8437 | |
| 28 | Wells College | 23900 | 54500 | 0.5609 | 357 | 1084 | 0.6965 | |
| 29 | Augustana College | 24800 | 72800 | 0.6594 | 2,522 | 1163 | 0.6277 | |
| 30 | Rockford University | 24900 | 59000 | 0.5771 | 968 | 1045 | 0.5704 | |
| 31 | The University of Olivet | 25300 | 54000 | 0.5315 | 938 | 1055 | 0.9711 | |
| 32 | Webster University | 27000 | 54300 | 0.5024 | 2,091 | 1105 | 0.9594 | |
| 33 | Lewis & Clark College | 27300 | 84100 | 0.6756 | 2,139 | 1319 | 0.7849 | |
| 34 | Cornell College | 27500 | 74800 | 0.6328 | 1,085 | 1243 | 0.8066 | |
| 35 | Western Connecticut State University | 28600 | 35800 | 0.2013 | 3,542 | 1130 | 0.8136 | |
| 36 | Rochester Institute of Technology | 28700 | 78100 | 0.6326 | 14,267 | 1363 | 0.6693 | |
| 37 | Knox College | 28900 | 61000 | 0.5269 | 1,136 | 1287 | 0.7079 | |
| 38 | Wofford College | 30800 | 73200 | 0.5794 | 1,817 | 1305 | 0.5194 | |
| 39 | Transylvania University | 31100 | 64800 | 0.52 | 1,006 | 1277 | 0.8655 | |
| 40 | Saint Michael's College | 31800 | 68400 | 0.5348 | 1,120 | 1240 | 0.8451 | |
| 41 | Ursinus College | 33200 | 83700 | 0.6031 | 1,502 | 1303 | 0.9177 | |
| 42 | Taylor University | 34000 | 57600 | 0.4097 | 2,503 | 1235 | 0.7353 | |
| 43 | Roger Williams University | 35700 | 63700 | 0.4401 | 4,050 | 1225 | 0.8778 | |
| 44 | Loyola University Chicago | 37500 | 67600 | 0.4455 | 12,538 | 1303 | 0.816 | |
| 45 | University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | 39000 | 48900 | 0.2024 | 5,731 | 1174 | 0.9064 | |
| 46 | Pace University | 39700 | 74100 | 0.464 | 8,038 | 1274 | 0.7592 | |
| 47 | Bard College at Simon's Rock | 40600 | 84200 | 0.5181 | 313 | 1278 | 0.9738 | |
| 48 | University of Puget Sound | 40700 | 85800 | 0.5259 | 1,594 | 1292 | 0.7225 | |
| 49 | Fairfield University | 41500 | 77900 | 0.467 | 5,391 | 1350 | 0.3329 | |
| 50 | High Point University | 45700 | 70500 | 0.3518 | 5,006 | 1209 | 0.7683 | |
| 51 | Spelman College | 47400 | 49600 | 0.0445 | 2,712 | 1218 | 0.2487 |
School data is from 2022–2023 (top 500 results shown) for schools with at least 100 undergraduate students.
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