United States Public Colleges Ranked by Lowest In State Tution

Cheapest Public Colleges in the United States by In State Tution

Below is a college cost ranking of the 656 public colleges in the United States with the lowest in state tution. What is the cheapest college in the United States? Athens State University tops the list with a tuition and fee total of $0. Note these costs do not include room and board or living expenses.

Affordable doesn't simply mean finding a school with a low published price. It's important to research the typical financial aid package offered by a school, the average net price actually paid and most importantly the quality of education you receive for your tuition dollar. Sometimes a school which appears cheap based on list price can be a poor relative value if it can't award competitive financial aid or doesn't offer a quality education. The list below is a ranking on published in state tution with no consideration of actual average price paid or academic quality of the school. Please see the CollegeSimply Best Value Colleges in the United States list for a ranking which considers school quality and average net price.

All price data are reprinted from the U.S. Department of Education's 2022-2022 IPEDS Survey and reflect reported costs for the 2021/2022 academic year.

List of United States Public Colleges Ranked by Lowest In State Tution
School Tuition In State
University of Missouri Columbia

Columbia, MO

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,130
University of California Merced

Merced, CA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,167
University of California Riverside

Riverside, CA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,170
Central Michigan University

Mount Pleasant, MI

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,190
University of California Irvine

Irvine, CA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,237
Penn State Wilkes Barre

Lehman, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,258
Lake Superior State University

Sault Ste Marie, MI

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,266
Missouri University of Science and Technology

Rolla, MO

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,278
University of Minnesota Morris

Morris, MN

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,288
Wayne State University

Detroit, MI

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,297
University of Minnesota Duluth

Duluth, MN

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,318
University of Illinois at Chicago

Chicago, IL

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,338
Penn State New Kensington

Upper Burrell, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380
Penn State Beaver

Monaca, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380
Penn State Dubois

Dubois, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380
Penn State Fayette  Eberly Campus

Uniontown, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380
Penn State Greater Allegheny

McKeesport, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380
Penn State Mont Alto

Mont Alto, PA

add to list | Calculate my chances 

$14,380