Most Affordable 2026
Lowest net price and student debt
How this ranking is calculated
Ranks schools purely on cost — how much students actually pay after financial aid and how much debt they carry upon graduating.
Source measurement years vary and may precede the ranking edition. The update date records the published dataset, not when every outcome was measured.
See exact overall weights and a worked exampleWhat drives the score
- Average net price (tuition and fees minus grants and scholarships)
- Median federal student loan debt at graduation
- Percentage of students receiving Pell Grants (a proxy for access)
Data sources
- Federal financial aid and institutional cost reporting
- Government student loan outcome data
Net price is averaged across all aid recipients and will vary significantly based on individual family income. Use this ranking as a starting point, then check each school's net price calculator for a personalized estimate.
Top 100 affordable results
Sorted by College Index's affordable score. The displayed list index rescales the leading score to 100; equal rounded scores may have different sequential ranks.
Berea College
Berea, KY
Uta Mesivta of Kiryas Joel
Monroe, NY
Atlantic University
Guaynabo, PR
University of Puerto Rico-Aguadilla
Aguadilla, PR
College of the Ozarks
Point Lookout, MO
University of Puerto Rico
Bayamon, PR
United Talmudical Seminary
Brooklyn, NY
University of Puerto Rico-Arecibo
Arecibo, PR
University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras
San Juan, PR
University of Puerto Rico at Cayey
Cayey, PR
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Fajardo
Fajardo, PR
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Aguadilla
Aguadilla, PR
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Ponce
Mercedita, PR
University of Puerto Rico at Ponce
Ponce, PR
CUNY Brooklyn College
Brooklyn, NY
CUNY Hunter College
New York, NY
CUNY Queens College
Queens, NY
CUNY Lehman College
Bronx, NY
CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice
New York, NY
CUNY Bernard M Baruch College
New York, NY
University of Puerto Rico-Humacao
Humacao, PR
CUNY New York City College of Technology
Brooklyn, NY
CUNY York College
Jamaica, NY
University of Puerto Rico-Carolina
Carolina, PR
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Bayamon
Bayamon, PR
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
Yeshivath Viznitz
Monsey, NY
CUNY City College
New York, NY
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-San German
San German, PR
CUNY Medgar Evers College
Brooklyn, NY
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Arecibo
Arecibo, PR
California State University-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Edinburg, TX
Dalton State College
Dalton, GA
Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Metro
San Juan, PR
Texas A & M International University
Laredo, TX
California State University-Stanislaus
Turlock, CA
California State University-San Bernardino
San Bernardino, CA
California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA
College of Staten Island CUNY
Staten Island, NY
Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Gurabo Campus
Gurabo, PR
University of Florida-Online
Gainesville, FL
California State University-Northridge
Northridge, CA
Texas A&M University-Central Texas
Killeen, TX
California State University-Fresno
Fresno, CA
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Cupey Campus
San Juan, PR
Western Governors University
Salt Lake City, UT
Southern Utah University
Cedar City, UT
California State University-Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA
Indiana University-Kokomo
Kokomo, IN
Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Carolina Campus
Carolina, PR
Rice University
Houston, TX
Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus
Portales, NM
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR
California State University-Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA
Brigham Young University-Hawaii
Laie, HI
Edward Waters University
Jacksonville, FL
University of Maine at Presque Isle
Presque Isle, ME
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
New Mexico Highlands University
Las Vegas, NM
California State University-Long Beach
Long Beach, CA
California State University-Sacramento
Sacramento, CA
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
Tifton, GA
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT
University of Hawaii-West Oahu
Kapolei, HI
University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
Tacoma, WA
California State University-Channel Islands
Camarillo, CA
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
California State University-Monterey Bay
Seaside, CA
University of the Virgin Islands
Charlotte Amalie, VI
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
Farmingdale State College
Farmingdale, NY
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Lubbock, TX
Florida Polytechnic University
Lakeland, FL
University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
University of North Florida
Jacksonville, FL
Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Durant, OK
Thomas Edison State University
Trenton, NJ
SUNY Old Westbury
Old Westbury, NY
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD
University of Guam
Mangilao, GU
CUNY Graduate School and University Center
New York, NY
University of California-Davis
Davis, CA
Florida International University
Miami, FL
California State University-East Bay
Hayward, CA
University of Washington-Bothell Campus
Bothell, WA
University of West Florida
Pensacola, FL
Gordon State College
Barnesville, GA
University of Virginia's College at Wise
Wise, VA
University of North Texas at Dallas
Dallas, TX
New Mexico State University-Main Campus
Las Cruces, NM
Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, FL
Mississippi University for Women
Columbus, MS
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Syracuse, NY
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA
Indiana University-East
Richmond, IN
East Central University
Ada, OK
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
Pomona, CA
University of California-San Diego
La Jolla, CA
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