San Diego State Comparisons

7/10 Overall Rating
4 Year
San Diego, CA
4.7 3 reviews

#10 Best Public Universities in California

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Curious how San Diego State University stacks up against other colleges? Compare San Diego State to any three other US colleges using the College Simply compare tool, or compare with some of the pre-selected schools below.

Frequently Compared

These similar colleges are most often compared with San Diego State University by students and parents using CollegeSimply.

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Compare San Diego State University and University of San Diego

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Compare University of California San Diego and San Diego State University

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Compare University of California Riverside and San Diego State University

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Compare California State University Fullerton and San Diego State University

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Compare California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo and San Diego State University

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Compare University of California Santa Cruz and San Diego State University

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Compare San Diego State University and San Francisco State University

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Compare California State University Long Beach and San Diego State University

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Compare Arizona State University and San Diego State University

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Compare University of California Santa Barbara and San Diego State University

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Compare University of Arizona and San Diego State University

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Compare San Diego State University and University of California Merced

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Compare San Diego State University and San Jose State University

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Compare University of California Irvine and San Diego State University

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Compare University of California Los Angeles and San Diego State University

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Compare Point Loma Nazarene University and San Diego State University

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Compare Chapman University and San Diego State University

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Compare San Diego State University and University of Southern California

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Compare Pepperdine University and San Diego State University

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Compare University of California Davis and San Diego State University

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Compare California State University Chico and San Diego State University

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Compare Loyola Marymount University and San Diego State University

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Compare San Diego State University and University of Oregon

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Compare San Diego State University and Santa Clara University

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Compare with California Public Colleges

Compare with California Public Colleges for San Diego State University
College	In-state tuition	Acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	$6,475 higher in-state tuition	27% lower acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Irvine Irvine, CA	$6,994 higher in-state tuition	7% lower acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Berkeley Berkeley, CA	$7,619 higher in-state tuition	25% lower acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA	$7,686 higher in-state tuition	3% lower acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Davis Davis, CA	$8,046 higher in-state tuition	6% higher acceptance rate	Compare
San Jose State University San Jose, CA	$318 lower in-state tuition	49% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State University Long Beach Long Beach, CA	$1,378 lower in-state tuition	10% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of California San Diego La Jolla, CA	$8,030 higher in-state tuition	9% lower acceptance rate	Compare
San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	$778 lower in-state tuition	60% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA	$4,868 higher in-state tuition	5% lower acceptance rate	Compare
California State University Fullerton Fullerton, CA	$1,258 lower in-state tuition	55% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State University Sacramento Sacramento, CA	$710 lower in-state tuition	58% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Riverside Riverside, CA	$6,878 higher in-state tuition	40% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State University Chico Chico, CA	$256 lower in-state tuition	57% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA	$7,277 higher in-state tuition	30% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA	$104 lower in-state tuition	57% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of California Merced Merced, CA	$6,895 higher in-state tuition	55% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State University San Marcos San Marcos, CA	$646 lower in-state tuition	59% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State Polytechnic University Humboldt Arcata, CA	$478 lower in-state tuition	62% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State Polytechnic University Pomona Pomona, CA	$948 lower in-state tuition	39% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California State University Monterey Bay Seaside, CA	$949 lower in-state tuition	61% higher acceptance rate	Compare

Compare with California Private Colleges

Compare with California Private Colleges for San Diego State University
College	In-state tuition	Acceptance rate	Compare
University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA	$51,764 higher in-state tuition	26% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA	$35,730 higher in-state tuition	52% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA	$37,522 higher in-state tuition	48% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of Redlands Redlands, CA	$52,150 higher in-state tuition	47% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of La Verne La Verne, CA	$40,742 higher in-state tuition	35% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Whittier College Whittier, CA	$42,622 higher in-state tuition	45% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Biola University La Mirada, CA	$40,256 higher in-state tuition	38% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Concordia University Irvine Irvine, CA	$34,752 higher in-state tuition	30% higher acceptance rate	Compare
California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, CA	$43,832 higher in-state tuition	40% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Saint Mary's College of California Moraga, CA	$49,075 higher in-state tuition	51% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Fresno Pacific University Fresno, CA	$27,932 higher in-state tuition	28% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Otis College of Art and Design Los Angeles, CA	$47,760 higher in-state tuition	46% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Dominican University of California San Rafael, CA	$43,433 higher in-state tuition	47% higher acceptance rate	Compare
John Paul the Great Catholic University Escondido, CA	$21,537 higher in-state tuition	44% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Thomas Aquinas College Santa Paula, CA	$21,472 higher in-state tuition	47% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Southern California Institute of Architecture Los Angeles, CA	$47,434 higher in-state tuition	41% higher acceptance rate	Compare

Compare with Regional Public Colleges

Compare with Regional Public Colleges for San Diego State University
College	In-state tuition	Acceptance rate	Compare
Arizona State University Tempe, AZ	$3,495 higher in-state tuition	54% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of Nevada Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV	$1,020 higher in-state tuition	60% higher acceptance rate	Compare

Compare with Regional Private Colleges

Compare with Regional Private Colleges for San Diego State University
College	In-state tuition	Acceptance rate	Compare
Prescott College Prescott, AZ	$26,957 higher in-state tuition	59% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Prescott Prescott, AZ	$35,421 higher in-state tuition	41% higher acceptance rate	Compare

Compare with National Colleges

Compare with National Colleges for San Diego State University
College	In-state tuition	Acceptance rate	Compare
University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	$4,774 higher in-state tuition	57% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI	$3,458 higher in-state tuition	51% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX	$3,124 higher in-state tuition	37% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Appalachian State University Boone, NC	$1,149 lower in-state tuition	54% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Colorado State University Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO	$4,645 higher in-state tuition	53% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of South Florida Tampa, FL	$2,318 lower in-state tuition	7% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA	$4,022 higher in-state tuition	54% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Utah State University Logan, UT	$500 higher in-state tuition	56% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Ohio University Main Campus Athens, OH	$5,430 higher in-state tuition	49% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	$3,374 higher in-state tuition	57% higher acceptance rate	Compare
Rowan University Glassboro, NJ	$7,846 higher in-state tuition	42% higher acceptance rate	Compare
University of Nevada Reno Reno, NV	$850 higher in-state tuition	38% higher acceptance rate	Compare

Data source: NCES / IPEDS https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=122409.

Last updated: August 2026