2022/23 Academic Year
College applicants and their families face not just a big life choice and the challenge of being accepted to schools, they face a complicated maze of information on how much their college career will cost. This report will allow you to know the true costs of colleges, so that you can finance a college degree and set up a successful post-graduate life.
- Apply to colleges which you know you can afford
- Plan financially and save and borrow the right amount to fund costs across all years of the program
- Once accepted, better understand the financial context of your financial aid offer and the scope for any negotiations with the college on their proposed cost
This report also provides some of the basics on how the prices you will pay for colleges are set as well as objective cost data about popular schools for students residing in your state. These numbers are based on reported figures by the colleges themselves with projections to account for future price changes.
The information will not indicate exactly how much each student will pay your college. But it will give a broadly accurate and readily understandable general idea, allowing you to compare colleges in financial terms and to plan for a successful college journey.
How college costs work
- Advertised college tuition prices are often far higher than what the typical student pays. Many colleges offer significant discounts to this headline tuition depending on an applicant’s
- family financial income & assets
- demographics
- academic record
- and decisions made by the college’s admissions or enrollment offices
- Comparing college costs on an apples-to-apples basis is difficult and time consuming. College net price calculators are often outdated and don’t reflect true costs.
- When an applicant is accepted to a college, they will receive a financial aid award letter highlighting what their costs will be if they enroll. These awards all differ by student.
- Cost information provided by colleges and other sources often deduct loans from the cost, unlike most other consumer purchases you make
- Most state colleges and universities have essentially two pricing processes, one for in-state and one for out-of-state students.
- Applying early increases your chances of getting into a given college but also increases your cost by lowering, often significantly, the amount of financial aid you will be offered.
Contents
- Average costs for popular in- and out-of-state schools
- Community Colleges
- College pricing and the Expected Family Contribution
- Ways to reduce college costs
- Scenarios showing projected costs by college for 7 representative families with different incomes and financial profiles
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $15,000 in annual income (<$10,000 in financial assets and home equity of <$40,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $40,000 in annual income ($10,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $50,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $60,000 in annual income ($20,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $90,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $90,000 in annual income ($200,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $120,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $150,000 in annual income ($250,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $150,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $200,000 in annual income ($500,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $200,000)
- Scenario: Students with families with an average of $300,000 in annual income ($950,000 in financial assets and home equity of approximately $350,000)
- Online or Distance Schools
- Glossary
In-state colleges, by average cost
The average net cost found here represents a projected average amount entering freshmen will pay for tuition, room & board, fees, books & other course materials. Net costs are not reduced by loans, which represent an obligation and are not a price reduction. The analogy here is buying a house or condo, where the cost is not reduced because you take out a mortgage to finance the purchase.
College | City | Full-time students | Admissions % | SAT ACT blended 25th percentile | % students paying discounted tuition | Average annual net cost |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Academy of Art | San Francisco | 3,758 | 100 | 33 | 41,000 | |
Alameda | Alameda | 1,062 | 100 | 0 | 13,500 | |
Allan Hancock | Santa Maria | 3,594 | 100 | 0 | 13,000 | |
American River | Sacramento | 6,116 | 100 | 2 | 13,500 | |
Antelope Valley | Lancaster | 4,130 | 100 | 0 | 7,000 | |
Art Center of Design | Pasadena | 1,793 | 71 | 49 | 56,000 | |
Azusa Pacific | Azusa | 4,411 | 67 | 1,020 | 97 | 29,500 |
Bakersfield | Bakersfield | 7,678 | 100 | 7 | 12,500 | |
Barstow CC | Barstow | 1,250 | 100 | 15 | 12,000 | |
Biola | La Mirada | 3,772 | 70 | 1,070 | 99 | 35,500 |
Butte | Oroville | 4,816 | 100 | 17 | 12,000 | |
Cabrillo | Aptos | 3,721 | 100 | 7 | 14,500 | |
California Baptist | Riverside | 7,333 | 78 | 980 | 97 | 27,000 |
Cal Arts | Oakland | 1,401 | 85 | 85 | 46,000 | |
California Lutheran | Thousand Oaks | 2,971 | 71 | 1,060 | 98 | 34,500 |
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo | 19,685 | 28 | 1,240 | 37 | 28,000 |
Cal State-Bakersfield | Bakersfield | 8,452 | 81 | 69 | 18,500 | |
Stanislaus State | Turlock | 8,262 | 89 | 58 | 13,500 | |
San Bernardino State | San Bernardino | 16,549 | 69 | 900 | 65 | 13,000 |
Cal Poly Pomona | Pomona | 23,596 | 55 | 1,010 | 40 | 22,000 |
Chico State | Chico | 15,000 | 72 | 980 | 39 | 18,500 |
Cal State-Dominguez Hills | Carson | 12,103 | 77 | 70 | 13,000 | |
Fresno State | Fresno | 18,901 | 58 | 930 | 56 | 12,000 |
Fullerton State | Fullerton | 28,820 | 53 | 1,020 | 38 | 23,000 |
Cal State-East Bay | Hayward | 10,635 | 76 | 55 | 18,000 | |
Long Beach State | Long Beach | 28,752 | 39 | 1,030 | 45 | 18,000 |
Cal State-LA | Los Angeles | 19,729 | 48 | 890 | 76 | 13,500 |
Northridge State | Northridge | 29,320 | 59 | 910 | 59 | 15,000 |
Sacramento State | Sacramento | 24,105 | 82 | 930 | 53 | 17,000 |
Berkeley | Berkeley | 29,991 | 16 | 1,320 | 51 | 31,000 |
UC Davis | Davis | 30,171 | 39 | 1,160 | 56 | 25,000 |
Cal-Irvine | Irvine | 29,797 | 27 | 1,160 | 45 | 25,500 |
UCLA | Los Angeles | 30,969 | 12 | 1,290 | 46 | 26,000 |
Cal-Riverside | Riverside | 21,652 | 57 | 1,120 | 67 | 19,000 |
Cal-San Diego | La Jolla | 29,966 | 31 | 1,240 | 46 | 24,000 |
Cal-Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara | 22,846 | 30 | 1,230 | 52 | 27,000 |
Cal-Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz | 16,994 | 51 | 1,190 | 57 | 29,000 |
College of the Canyons | Santa Clarita | 6,040 | 100 | 17 | 15,500 | |
Cerritos | Norwalk | 7,152 | 100 | 0 | 13,000 | |
Chabot | Hayward | 3,805 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
Chaffey | Rancho Cucamonga | 6,211 | 100 | 6 | 14,500 | |
Chapman | Orange | 7,046 | 56 | 1,190 | 85 | 52,500 |
Concordia-Irvine | Irvine | 1,594 | 71 | 990 | 100 | 30,500 |
Citrus | Glendora | 5,329 | 100 | 0 | 11,000 | |
City College of San Fran | San Francisco | 7,598 | 100 | 37 | 16,500 | |
Claremont McKenna | Claremont | 1,340 | 10 | 1,360 | 45 | 54,500 |
Coastline CC | Fountain Valley | 1,267 | 100 | 22 | 14,500 | |
Compton | Compton | 1,409 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
Contra Costa | San Pablo | 1,846 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
Cosumnes River | Sacramento | 3,853 | 100 | 16 | 13,500 | |
Crafton Hills | Yucaipa | 2,072 | 100 | 3 | 21,000 | |
Cuesta | San Luis Obispo | 3,166 | 100 | 42 | 15,500 | |
Cuyamaca | El Cajon | 1,979 | 100 | 0 | 11,000 | |
Cypress | Cypress | 5,568 | 100 | 1 | 13,500 | |
De Anza | Cupertino | 9,318 | 100 | 7 | 16,500 | |
College of the Desert | Palm Desert | 4,890 | 100 | 25 | 13,500 | |
Diablo Valley | Pleasant Hill | 7,287 | 100 | 0 | 16,500 | |
Dominican Cal | San Rafael | 1,239 | 91 | 1,020 | 100 | 38,500 |
East Los Angeles | Monterey Park | 6,813 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
El Camino CC District | Torrance | 8,240 | 100 | 5 | 14,000 | |
Evergreen Valley | San Jose | 2,894 | 100 | 11 | 14,000 | |
FIDM-LA | Los Angeles | 1,984 | 36 | 46 | 44,500 | |
Foothill | Los Altos Hills | 4,169 | 100 | 5 | 16,000 | |
Fresno City College | Fresno | 7,792 | 100 | 27 | 8,500 | |
Fresno Pacific | Fresno | 2,442 | 66 | 920 | 100 | 20,500 |
Fullerton | Fullerton | 8,470 | 100 | 0 | 11,500 | |
Gavilan | Gilroy | 1,942 | 100 | 0 | 13,500 | |
Glendale CC | Glendale | 6,682 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
Golden West | Huntington Beach | 4,070 | 100 | 2 | 13,500 | |
Grossmont | El Cajon | 5,905 | 100 | 0 | 11,500 | |
Hartnell | Salinas | 3,628 | 100 | 3 | 14,000 | |
Humboldt State | Arcata | 6,087 | 92 | 960 | 53 | 19,500 |
Imperial Valley | Imperial | 4,085 | 100 | 0 | 9,000 | |
Irvine Valley | Irvine | 4,630 | 100 | 8 | 15,000 | |
Reedley | Reedley | 3,207 | 100 | 8 | 6,500 | |
La Verne | La Verne | 3,353 | 55 | 1,030 | 97 | 33,500 |
Laney | Oakland | 2,547 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
La Sierra | Riverside | 1,476 | 55 | 900 | 99 | 27,500 |
Long Beach City College | Long Beach | 9,431 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
LA Harbor | Wilmington | 2,369 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
LA Pierce | Woodland Hills | 5,154 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
LA Southwest | Los Angeles | 1,186 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
LA Trade | Los Angeles | 2,489 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
LA Valley | Valley Glen | 3,743 | 100 | 0 | 13,000 | |
Los Angeles City | Los Angeles | 3,264 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
Los Angeles Mission | Sylmar | 1,896 | 100 | 0 | 14,500 | |
Los Medanos | Pittsburg | 3,172 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
Loyola Marymount | Los Angeles | 6,548 | 44 | 1,230 | 90 | 53,500 |
Marin | Kentfield | 1,215 | 100 | 9 | 19,500 | |
Mendocino | Ukiah | 992 | 100 | 6 | 12,500 | |
Merced | Merced | 4,823 | 100 | 0 | 9,000 | |
Merritt | Oakland | 1,546 | 100 | 0 | 15,500 | |
MiraCosta | Oceanside | 4,830 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
Mission | Santa Clara | 1,688 | 100 | 33 | 14,500 | |
Modesto Junior | Modesto | 5,591 | 100 | 8 | 12,500 | |
Monterey Peninsula | Monterey | 2,339 | 100 | 0 | 17,500 | |
Moorpark | Moorpark | 5,269 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
Mt San Antonio | Walnut | 10,394 | 100 | 1 | 15,000 | |
Mt Saint Mary's | Los Angeles | 1,745 | 90 | 780 | 100 | 38,000 |
Mt San Jacinto CC | San Jacinto | 5,467 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
Napa Valley | Napa | 2,121 | 100 | 9 | 15,500 | |
National U | La Jolla | 2,856 | 89 | 750 | 33 | 29,500 |
Occidental | Los Angeles | 1,962 | 37 | 1,300 | 72 | 48,500 |
Ohlone | Fremont | 3,304 | 100 | 3 | 14,500 | |
Orange Coast | Costa Mesa | 7,833 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
Otis | Los Angeles | 1,109 | 78 | 1,070 | 89 | 53,000 |
Oxnard | Oxnard | 2,030 | 100 | 0 | 12,500 | |
Pacific | Stockton | 3,536 | 66 | 1,120 | 96 | 38,000 |
Palomar | San Marcos | 7,870 | 100 | 11 | 14,500 | |
Pasadena City College | Pasadena | 10,010 | 100 | 1 | 14,000 | |
Pepperdine | Malibu | 3,320 | 32 | 1,240 | 91 | 53,000 |
Pitzer | Claremont | 1,062 | 14 | 43 | 60,000 | |
Point Loma Nazarene | San Diego | 2,611 | 74 | 1,150 | 89 | 37,000 |
Pomona | Claremont | 1,617 | 7 | 1,390 | 51 | 41,500 |
Porterville | Porterville | 1,861 | 100 | 5 | 11,500 | |
Santa Ana | Santa Ana | 5,110 | 100 | 3 | 14,000 | |
Univ of Redlands | Redlands | 2,597 | 76 | 1,070 | 98 | 33,500 |
College of the Redwoods | Eureka | 1,740 | 100 | 8 | 10,500 | |
Rio Hondo | Whittier | 5,103 | 100 | 13 | 11,500 | |
Riverside City | Riverside | 6,091 | 100 | 7 | 16,000 | |
Sacramento City | Sacramento | 5,335 | 100 | 2 | 13,500 | |
Saddleback | Mission Viejo | 5,638 | 100 | 1 | 17,000 | |
San Diego City | San Diego | 2,817 | 100 | 0 | 12,500 | |
San Diego Mesa | San Diego | 5,224 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
San Diego Miramar | San Diego | 2,751 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
San Diego State | San Diego | 27,638 | 34 | 1,100 | 20 | 27,000 |
San Diego | San Diego | 5,761 | 49 | 1,200 | 80 | 44,500 |
San Francisco State | San Francisco | 21,687 | 67 | 940 | 44 | 21,000 |
Univ of San Francisco | San Francisco | 6,296 | 64 | 1,130 | 91 | 42,000 |
San Joaquin Delta | Stockton | 8,564 | 100 | 0 | 13,500 | |
William Jessup | Rocklin | 1,078 | 65 | 950 | 90 | 29,000 |
San Jose City | San Jose | 2,154 | 100 | 11 | 14,500 | |
San Jose State | San Jose | 23,593 | 64 | 1,010 | 41 | 22,500 |
San Mateo | San Mateo | 2,193 | 100 | 41 | 14,000 | |
Santa Barbara City | Santa Barbara | 6,555 | 100 | 1 | 14,000 | |
Santa Clara | Santa Clara | 5,586 | 49 | 780 | 63 | 56,500 |
Santa Monica | Santa Monica | 10,987 | 100 | 10 | 12,000 | |
Santa Rosa Junior | Santa Rosa | 5,904 | 100 | 47 | 15,500 | |
Scripps | Claremont | 1,082 | 32 | 1,330 | 55 | 60,000 |
College of the Sequoias | Visalia | 5,489 | 100 | 0 | 10,500 | |
Shasta | Redding | 3,555 | 100 | 5 | 6,500 | |
Sierra | Rocklin | 6,984 | 100 | 6 | 11,000 | |
Skyline | San Bruno | 2,452 | 100 | 56 | 15,500 | |
San Bernardino Valley | San Bernardino | 4,749 | 100 | 0 | 7,500 | |
Saint Mary's | Moraga | 2,495 | 81 | 1,060 | 99 | 39,000 |
Solano CC | Fairfield | 2,690 | 100 | 0 | 15,000 | |
Sonoma State | Rohnert Park | 7,416 | 91 | 960 | 38 | 21,500 |
Vanguard | Costa Mesa | 1,687 | 49 | 740 | 100 | 21,500 |
Southwestern | Chula Vista | 7,406 | 100 | 1 | 14,000 | |
USC | Los Angeles | 19,622 | 11 | 1,350 | 65 | 52,000 |
Taft | Taft | 1,334 | 100 | 35 | 7,500 | |
Ventura | Ventura | 3,964 | 100 | 0 | 12,000 | |
Victor Valley | Victorville | 4,090 | 100 | 1 | 12,000 | |
Berkeley City | Berkeley | 1,466 | 100 | 0 | 16,000 | |
West LA College | Culver City | 2,446 | 100 | 0 | 14,000 | |
West Valley | Saratoga | 2,510 | 100 | 43 | 14,000 | |
Westmont | Santa Barbara | 1,312 | 65 | 1,100 | 99 | 32,500 |
Whittier | Whittier | 1,748 | 57 | 760 | 98 | 33,000 |
Yuba | Marysville | 2,300 | 100 | 1 | 13,000 | |
Arizona Global Campus | Clinton | 26,914 | 100 | 25 | 20,000 | |
Stanford | Stanford | 6,996 | 4 | 1,420 | 56 | 43,000 |
Brandman | Orange | 1,388 | 89 | 67 | 24,500 | |
Las Positas | Livermore | 2,956 | 100 | 0 | 16,000 | |
San Marcos State | San Marcos | 12,155 | 62 | 940 | 43 | 17,000 |
Santiago Canyon | Orange | 3,202 | 100 | 2 | 15,000 | |
Cal State-Monterey Bay | Seaside | 6,055 | 75 | 940 | 47 | 16,000 |
Cal State-Channel Islands | Camarillo | 5,958 | 86 | 48 | 20,500 | |
West Coast-Los Angeles | Los Angeles | 2,021 | 100 | 6 | 40,000 | |
Folsom Lake | Folsom | 2,609 | 100 | 1 | 15,000 | |
Cal-Merced | Merced | 8,080 | 72 | 990 | 80 | 15,500 |
West Hills-Lemoore | Lemoore | 1,520 | 100 | 10 | 12,500 | |
Trident International | Cypress | 1,447 | 49 | 60 | 13,000 | |
West Coast-Orange County | Anaheim | 2,324 | 100 | 12 | 40,000 | |
West Coast-Ontario | Ontario | 1,925 | 100 | 5 | 39,500 | |
Unitek | Fremont | 2,147 | 100 | 0 | 48,000 | |
Moreno Valley | Moreno Valley | 2,417 | 100 | 47 | 15,000 | |
Norco | Norco | 2,314 | 100 | 0 | 17,500 |
Notes on figures
- Net cost is a consumer-centric metric comparable to what cost means in business transactions outside of higher education. It represents a student’s cost of attending college including: tuition, room & board, fees and estimates of supplies less institutional aid of all kinds (including need-based and merit), and less federal and state/local aid. Loans and other repayable amounts are excluded and do not reduce the cost. Room and board uses on-campus costs; for students attending nonresidential institutions, the college’s own estimate of such off-campus costs is used. Total average net cost for all students allocates in- and out-of-state costs in proportion to attendance. Net cost differs from the Net Price figure self-reported by colleges to the NCES because it is comprehensive and covers all students, including the approximately 40% not covered by Net Price calculations.
- CC = Community College
- Number of undergraduates represent all enrolled full-time students as of 2018/19.
- % of Applicants admitted from 2019/20.
- The SAT score is intended to give a very rough idea of the academic level of entering students. This number shows the 25thpercentile of enrolled students out of 100% and adds together the verbal and math SAT and ACT scores using the ACT/SAT concordance formula developed by ACT and the College Board. The maximum possible score is 1600.
- The “% of students receiving discounts” is the 2018/19 figure showing what % of enrolled students are receiving price discounts from their colleges. This % does not include aid from the government, such as Pell grants, or other federal or state aid. It also does not include students borrowing to pay for college.
- These comments all apply to tables later in this report except where noted.