All US colleges by cost, value & outcomes
This index covers 167 major US colleges (102 public, 65 private nonprofit) across 45 states. For each school you'll find the average net price (what families actually pay after aid), the graduation rate, median earnings 10 years after entry, and a transparent ROI signal (earnings ÷ net price). All figures come from the official College Scorecard. Use the rankings to find the cheapest, highest-earning or best-value schools.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Data as of June 2026.
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California
19 schools
Massachusetts14 schools
New York11 schools
Texas11 schools
Pennsylvania8 schools
Virginia8 schools
Florida7 schools
North Carolina7 schools
Georgia6 schools
Illinois5 schools
Arizona4 schools
Colorado4 schools
Indiana4 schools
New Jersey4 schools
Ohio4 schools
Utah4 schools
Connecticut3 schools
Michigan3 schools
Minnesota3 schools
Alabama2 schools
Iowa2 schools
Louisiana2 schools
Maryland2 schools
Mississippi2 schools
Missouri2 schools
Oklahoma2 schools
Oregon2 schools
Rhode Island2 schools
South Carolina2 schools
Tennessee2 schools
Washington2 schools
Arkansas1 school
Delaware1 school
District of Columbia1 school
Idaho1 school
Kansas1 school
Kentucky1 school
Maine1 school
Nebraska1 school
Nevada1 school
New Hampshire1 school
New Mexico1 school
Vermont1 school
West Virginia1 school
Wisconsin1 school
Quick rankings
Every school in one table
| School | State | Net price/yr | Median earnings (10yr) | Grad rate | ROI signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appalachian State University | NC | $16,836 | $51,836 | 74.5% | 3.1× |
| Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | $14,967 | $62,668 | 68.0% | 4.2× |
| Auburn University | AL | $24,323 | $65,337 | 82.0% | 2.7× |
| Babson College | MA | $40,514 | $123,938 | 93.1% | 3.1× |
| Barnard College | NY | $28,800 | $80,516 | 93.0% | 2.8× |
| Bentley University | MA | $37,930 | $120,959 | 86.8% | 3.2× |
| Boise State University | ID | $21,610 | $51,658 | 60.2% | 2.4× |
| Boston College | MA | $41,704 | $103,937 | 90.8% | 2.5× |
| Boston University | MA | $24,402 | $83,238 | 88.7% | 3.4× |
| Brigham Young University | UT | $15,564 | $75,790 | 81.0% | 4.9× |
| Brown University | RI | $25,184 | $93,487 | 95.7% | 3.7× |
| Bucknell University | PA | $40,766 | $93,807 | 86.3% | 2.3× |
| California Institute of Technology | CA | $16,075 | $128,566 | 94.4% | 8.0× |
| California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | CA | $16,665 | $90,768 | 86.4% | 5.4× |
| California State University-Fullerton | CA | $6,555 | $62,951 | 70.2% | 9.6× |
| California State University-Long Beach | CA | $10,440 | $64,403 | 68.9% | 6.2× |
| Carleton College | MN | $25,407 | $75,525 | 89.6% | 3.0× |
| Carnegie Mellon University | PA | $31,944 | $114,862 | 94.1% | 3.6× |
| Clemson University | SC | $22,253 | $71,513 | 86.6% | 3.2× |
| Colby College | ME | $17,180 | $80,490 | 88.8% | 4.7× |
| Colgate University | NY | $28,786 | $85,139 | 91.2% | 3.0× |
| College of the Holy Cross | MA | $38,782 | $90,543 | 87.3% | 2.3× |
| Colorado College | CO | $33,375 | $65,222 | 87.7% | 2.0× |
| Colorado School of Mines | CO | $28,690 | $97,335 | 81.7% | 3.4× |
| Colorado State University-Fort Collins | CO | $21,279 | $60,543 | 66.5% | 2.8× |
| Columbia University in the City of New York | NY | $21,590 | $102,491 | 96.1% | 4.7× |
| Cornell University | NY | $28,690 | $104,043 | 95.4% | 3.6× |
| Dartmouth College | NH | $29,519 | $97,434 | 95.5% | 3.3× |
| Denison University | OH | $40,007 | $67,753 | 78.9% | 1.7× |
| Duke University | NC | $29,612 | $97,800 | 96.8% | 3.3× |
| East Carolina University | NC | $15,739 | $55,146 | 62.6% | 3.5× |
| Emory University | GA | $22,585 | $80,137 | 91.1% | 3.5× |
| Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University | FL | $13,739 | $44,349 | 53.3% | 3.2× |
| Florida International University | FL | $9,288 | $60,249 | 74.4% | 6.5× |
| Florida State University | FL | $11,297 | $61,675 | 85.6% | 5.5× |
| George Mason University | VA | $17,915 | $76,343 | 67.8% | 4.3× |
| Georgetown University | DC | $40,815 | $103,494 | 94.8% | 2.5× |
| Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | GA | $12,116 | $102,772 | 94.0% | 8.5× |
| Georgia State University | GA | $15,931 | $47,384 | 53.1% | 3.0× |
| Grand Canyon University | AZ | $22,472 | $42,186 | 43.5% | 1.9× |
| Grand Valley State University | MI | $16,317 | $56,118 | 67.0% | 3.4× |
| Hamilton College | NY | $28,985 | $78,411 | 90.6% | 2.7× |
| Harvard University | MA | $19,066 | $101,817 | 97.6% | 5.3× |
| Harvey Mudd College | CA | $35,924 | $138,687 | 91.9% | 3.9× |
| Illinois State University | IL | $19,398 | $62,117 | 64.5% | 3.2× |
| Indiana University-Bloomington | IN | $16,264 | $63,742 | 80.2% | 3.9× |
| Iowa State University | IA | $18,589 | $63,386 | 75.3% | 3.4× |
| James Madison University | VA | $23,322 | $69,954 | 79.7% | 3.0× |
| Johns Hopkins University | MD | $18,809 | $87,555 | 93.8% | 4.7× |
| Kennesaw State University | GA | $15,048 | $57,552 | 52.2% | 3.8× |
| Kent State University at Kent | OH | $20,787 | $45,388 | 63.7% | 2.2× |
| Lehigh University | PA | $36,931 | $105,584 | 87.9% | 2.9× |
| Liberty University | VA | $29,357 | $44,813 | 65.3% | 1.5× |
| Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | LA | $19,151 | $61,251 | 68.8% | 3.2× |
| Macalester College | MN | $32,149 | $63,878 | 87.1% | 2.0× |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MA | $20,111 | $143,372 | 96.4% | 7.1× |
| Michigan State University | MI | $19,680 | $67,253 | 80.7% | 3.4× |
| Middlebury College | VT | $31,483 | $76,310 | 91.4% | 2.4× |
| Mississippi State University | MS | $17,595 | $51,513 | 66.7% | 2.9× |
| Montclair State University | NJ | $15,566 | $61,415 | 64.7% | 3.9× |
| New York University | NY | $37,050 | $82,509 | 87.6% | 2.2× |
| North Carolina State University at Raleigh | NC | $17,303 | $68,758 | 84.8% | 4.0× |
| Northeastern University | MA | $30,915 | $92,538 | 90.5% | 3.0× |
| Northern Arizona University | AZ | $14,158 | $54,384 | 61.3% | 3.8× |
| Northwestern University | IL | $29,167 | $89,363 | 95.1% | 3.1× |
| Ohio State University-Main Campus | OH | $17,339 | $60,409 | 87.7% | 3.5× |
| Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | OK | $17,447 | $57,413 | 68.2% | 3.3× |
| Old Dominion University | VA | $14,638 | $54,914 | 46.3% | 3.8× |
| Oregon State University | OR | $19,604 | $64,010 | 70.1% | 3.3× |
| Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | PA | $32,875 | $63,435 | 86.1% | 1.9× |
| Princeton University | NJ | $6,128 | $110,066 | 97.6% | 18.0× |
| Purdue University-Main Campus | IN | $14,600 | $72,424 | 83.1% | 5.0× |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | NY | $36,228 | $102,051 | 83.6% | 2.8× |
| Rhode Island School of Design | RI | $50,507 | $68,140 | 88.8% | 1.3× |
| Rice University | TX | $13,370 | $89,718 | 94.6% | 6.7× |
| Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | IN | $42,513 | $101,253 | 78.2% | 2.4× |
| Rutgers University-New Brunswick | NJ | $24,406 | $74,479 | 83.6% | 3.1× |
| Sam Houston State University | TX | $16,404 | $54,211 | 54.8% | 3.3× |
| San Diego State University | CA | $15,364 | $64,909 | 76.4% | 4.2× |
| San Francisco State University | CA | $12,278 | $68,077 | 50.4% | 5.5× |
| San Jose State University | CA | $13,760 | $78,988 | 69.2% | 5.7× |
| Santa Clara University | CA | $50,062 | $109,183 | 87.9% | 2.2× |
| Skidmore College | NY | $32,297 | $69,363 | 82.6% | 2.1× |
| Smith College | MA | $27,579 | $64,027 | 89.0% | 2.3× |
| Spelman College | GA | $38,967 | $59,993 | 78.5% | 1.5× |
| Stanford University | CA | $13,807 | $124,080 | 91.9% | 9.0× |
| Stevens Institute of Technology | NJ | $41,346 | $108,772 | 86.9% | 2.6× |
| Stony Brook University | NY | $18,784 | $74,502 | 75.6% | 4.0× |
| Temple University | PA | $28,198 | $63,727 | 75.0% | 2.3× |
| Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | $21,315 | $72,097 | 83.9% | 3.4× |
| Texas State University | TX | $16,805 | $56,906 | 55.3% | 3.4× |
| Texas Tech University | TX | $19,070 | $62,454 | 68.7% | 3.3× |
| The University of Alabama | AL | $22,420 | $59,221 | 73.4% | 2.6× |
| The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | TN | $18,976 | $60,249 | 73.9% | 3.2× |
| The University of Texas at Austin | TX | $19,857 | $75,121 | 88.9% | 3.8× |
| The University of Texas at Dallas | TX | $18,267 | $68,227 | 75.7% | 3.7× |
| The University of Texas at San Antonio | TX | $10,836 | $57,131 | 52.6% | 5.3× |
| Trinity University | TX | $23,464 | $71,668 | 84.0% | 3.1× |
| Tufts University | MA | $39,998 | $83,214 | 93.5% | 2.1× |
| Tulane University of Louisiana | LA | $39,949 | $63,268 | 86.1% | 1.6× |
| University at Buffalo | NY | $20,995 | $70,814 | 75.2% | 3.4× |
| University of Arizona | AZ | $16,674 | $59,979 | 67.5% | 3.6× |
| University of Arkansas | AR | $18,209 | $58,191 | 70.5% | 3.2× |
| University of California-Berkeley | CA | $13,481 | $92,446 | 92.8% | 6.9× |
| University of California-Davis | CA | $14,741 | $80,838 | 85.7% | 5.5× |
| University of California-Irvine | CA | $14,251 | $80,735 | 86.9% | 5.7× |
| University of California-Los Angeles | CA | $12,548 | $82,511 | 92.6% | 6.6× |
| University of California-Riverside | CA | $14,304 | $67,699 | 76.0% | 4.7× |
| University of California-San Diego | CA | $12,470 | $84,943 | 86.1% | 6.8× |
| University of California-Santa Barbara | CA | $16,109 | $74,915 | 83.0% | 4.7× |
| University of California-Santa Cruz | CA | $17,890 | $68,396 | 75.1% | 3.8× |
| University of Central Florida | FL | $10,411 | $58,308 | 78.0% | 5.6× |
| University of Chicago | IL | $14,860 | $91,885 | 95.9% | 6.2× |
| University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | OH | $25,648 | $54,810 | 75.0% | 2.1× |
| University of Colorado Boulder | CO | $25,346 | $69,738 | 74.2% | 2.8× |
| University of Connecticut | CT | $25,097 | $73,997 | 83.3% | 2.9× |
| University of Delaware | DE | $17,799 | $72,950 | 80.5% | 4.1× |
| University of Florida | FL | $6,541 | $71,588 | 91.1% | 10.9× |
| University of Georgia | GA | $13,936 | $68,726 | 89.7% | 4.9× |
| University of Houston | TX | $14,276 | $62,377 | 64.6% | 4.4× |
| University of Illinois Chicago | IL | $10,974 | $68,740 | 61.6% | 6.3× |
| University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | IL | $14,355 | $81,054 | 85.1% | 5.6× |
| University of Iowa | IA | $22,531 | $64,762 | 74.6% | 2.9× |
| University of Kansas | KS | $18,059 | $61,945 | 68.8% | 3.4× |
| University of Kentucky | KY | $18,851 | $59,025 | 71.4% | 3.1× |
| University of Maryland-College Park | MD | $15,678 | $82,860 | 88.6% | 5.3× |
| University of Massachusetts-Amherst | MA | $22,383 | $71,631 | 83.3% | 3.2× |
| University of Miami | FL | $37,244 | $75,328 | 83.7% | 2.0× |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | MI | $13,138 | $83,648 | 93.2% | 6.4× |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | MN | $16,778 | $69,020 | 85.3% | 4.1× |
| University of Mississippi | MS | $13,314 | $50,994 | 71.7% | 3.8× |
| University of Missouri-Columbia | MO | $20,268 | $63,403 | 74.9% | 3.1× |
| University of Nebraska-Lincoln | NE | $17,747 | $56,887 | 67.0% | 3.2× |
| University of Nevada-Las Vegas | NV | $10,359 | $55,037 | 50.5% | 5.3× |
| University of New Mexico-Main Campus | NM | $15,489 | $44,792 | 54.7% | 2.9× |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | NC | $11,655 | $72,200 | 91.2% | 6.2× |
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | NC | $15,435 | $57,289 | 69.0% | 3.7× |
| University of North Texas | TX | $15,649 | $57,010 | 60.7% | 3.6× |
| University of Notre Dame | IN | $26,780 | $99,980 | 95.2% | 3.7× |
| University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | OK | $15,300 | $63,126 | 75.3% | 4.1× |
| University of Oregon | OR | $22,182 | $61,324 | 71.7% | 2.8× |
| University of Pennsylvania | PA | $28,699 | $111,371 | 96.5% | 3.9× |
| University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | PA | $30,434 | $66,125 | 85.5% | 2.2× |
| University of Richmond | VA | $31,309 | $76,178 | 85.2% | 2.4× |
| University of South Carolina-Columbia | SC | $22,811 | $62,177 | 78.8% | 2.7× |
| University of South Florida | FL | $9,812 | $57,743 | 76.8% | 5.9× |
| University of Southern California | CA | $32,740 | $92,498 | 91.8% | 2.8× |
| University of Utah | UT | $16,200 | $67,170 | 65.0% | 4.1× |
| University of Virginia-Main Campus | VA | $21,565 | $86,863 | 95.6% | 4.0× |
| University of Washington-Seattle Campus | WA | $14,091 | $78,466 | 85.2% | 5.6× |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | WI | $17,354 | $73,792 | 89.5% | 4.3× |
| Utah State University | UT | $14,936 | $54,022 | 59.1% | 3.6× |
| Utah Valley University | UT | $6,376 | $55,486 | 45.1% | 8.7× |
| Vanderbilt University | TN | $15,846 | $91,565 | 93.5% | 5.8× |
| Vassar College | NY | $39,343 | $71,366 | 91.1% | 1.8× |
| Villanova University | PA | $43,756 | $100,423 | 91.9% | 2.3× |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | VA | $23,433 | $58,128 | 63.2% | 2.5× |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | VA | $24,953 | $81,698 | 86.2% | 3.3× |
| Wake Forest University | NC | $28,719 | $78,158 | 89.1% | 2.7× |
| Washington State University | WA | $14,971 | $68,905 | 60.5% | 4.6× |
| Washington University in St Louis | MO | $21,786 | $86,182 | 94.3% | 4.0× |
| Wellesley College | MA | $25,496 | $84,803 | 91.5% | 3.3× |
| Wesleyan University | CT | $30,177 | $73,897 | 92.6% | 2.4× |
| West Virginia University | WV | $15,634 | $55,939 | 64.7% | 3.6× |
| Williams College | MA | $17,716 | $88,665 | 93.6% | 5.0× |
| Worcester Polytechnic Institute | MA | $43,071 | $103,470 | 89.7% | 2.4× |
| Yale University | CT | $23,777 | $100,533 | 95.7% | 4.2× |
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Data as of June 2026.
Data: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Public domain (U.S. Government work)), snapshot June 2026. ROI signal = median 10-year earnings ÷ average annual net price (see methodology). Estimates — verify before relying on them.
Last updated: 2026-06-20