Best College Tuition List

See our college tuition list to help you choose the best college. College rankings are shown for the top national universities, with tuition and fees noted.

College Tuition List Rankings Best National Universities

Here is a college tuition list for the best national universities in the US, as ranked by U.S. News and World Report for 2024. Some of these excellent schools also offer great financial aid packages too!

University	2024 Tuition and Fees	Type	State
Princeton University	$59,710	Private	NJ
Massachusetts Institute of Technology M.I.T.	$60,156	Private	MA
Harvard University	$59,076	Private	MA
Stanford University	$62,484	Private	CA
Yale University	$64,700	Private	CT
University of Pennsylvania	$66,104	Private	PA
California Institute of Technology (CalTech)	$63,255	Private	CA
Duke University	$66,172	Private	NC
Brown University	$68,230	Private	RI
Johns Hopkins University	$63,340	Private	MD
Northwestern University	$65,997	Private	IL
Columbia University	$65,524	Private	NY
Cornell University	$66,014	Private	NY
University of Chicago	$65,619	Private	IL
University of California, Berkeley	$48,465* or $15,891	Public	CA
UCLA	$46,752* or $13,752	Public	CA
Rice University	$58,128	Private	TX
Dartmouth College	$65,511	Private	NH
Vanderbilt University	$63,946	Private	TN
University of Notre Dame	$62,693	Private	IN
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor	$57,273* or $17,786	Public	MI

*Out-of-state tuition and fees. In-state tuition and fees are signifantly less for state residents.

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Financial Aid at Best Colleges

Harvard University, rated one of the best national universities in the USA

Many of the top private universities have large endowment funds, and are able to offer significant financial aid packages. In fact, for these large private universities, about half of the students have some sort of financial aid package.

How much? Most financial aid packages will be based upon financial need, as most students who are accepted are top students who qualify based upon merit. So if the tuition and fees cost about $60,000 per year, other expenses like room and board will bring the total cost up to about $80,000 per year. But those making more than $100,000 might only pay $50,000, while those with lower incomes might pay $0 (full ride scholarship) to only $10,000 per year.

Of course, remember that only 5 - 20% of applicants are accepted (think 5% for those universities at the top of the list).

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Example Financial Aid Offer

Here is an example award package from a private university, based upon an annual cost of attendance of $84,850. This includes: Books and Supplies $1200, Board Plan $7,500, Dorm Room $8,000, Fees $600, Incidental Expenses $1350, Travel expenses $1,000 and Tuition $65,200.

The award package was divided into the fall and spring semesters, for a total of $65,000. The largest portion of the award was an institutional grant from the university, however the student was also awarded some work-study program funds and federal subsidized loan. These should be accepted, as work-study provides great experience, and the federal subsidized loan is and interest-free loan while in college, and can help the student build a good credit history.

This left only $19,850 that the student was expected to pay for the year, which was a very good offer. This can be compared to other college acceptances and financial aid offers for the student, as other colleges and universities might have lower cost of attendance but also a less generous financial aid offer.

Fund	Status	Fall	Spring	Total
Federal Work-Study Program	Offered	$1,000	$1,000	$2,000
Direct Subsidized Loan	Offered	$1,500	$1,500	$3,000
Institution Grant	Offered	$27,500	$27,500	$55,000
Total		$32,500	$32,500	$65,000

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How to Get Accepted at Top University

While there are no guarantees, see the 10 steps to improve your college admission chances.

I also think you should consider what you want in life and for your career, if you even know that. Is it your parent who wants you to become a doctor, or is it your dream? Have you volunteered to work at a hospital and shadowed a doctor to decide if you might like it? I've known several people who went to medical school, went over $300,00 in debt, and then decided they hated being a medical doctor!

Another student, who originally wanted to be a doctor, due to financial considerations went to a community college first. She planned to be a pre-med biology major, but she also had some interest in business so she took an accounting class - and loved it! She switched her major from pre-med to accounting, went on to get an accounting degree from a great state university, and is now a partner in one of the large public accounting firms. Had she attended any of the universities on this list, that major and career path wouldn't have been an option! 

So if your grades and test scores are high, and your dream is to get into one of these top universities, then go for it. But you also have other options to consider too, such as other private colleges, state universities, and starting at a community college. 

Remember, there are many private and public colleges and universities to choose from, so you will want to apply at multiple schools, and have a back-up school in case you don't get admitted.

We know a student with perfect SAT scores and GPA 4.6 get a full-ride scholarship to Harvard University, and a student with similar credentials that got rejected by all of the schools that he applied to. He ended up going to community college for one year and took a lot of units, and combined with his AP classes, was able to enter UCLA, one of the top schools on this list, in his second year of college as a junior. He even graduated a year ahead of his former classmates. So you never know what might happen - learn to be flexible!

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More College Financial Aid Advice

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