Average Public College Tuition by State 2026: Statistics, Charts & Rankings
The state ranking uses 2025-26 academic year average published in-state tuition and required fees at public four-year institutions. Values are enrollment-weighted and reported in current dollars.
The metric is a sticker-price measure. It does not include grant aid, housing and food, books, transportation, other expenses, or net price after aid.
Public Four-Year Tuition Statistics
Amounts reflect average published in-state tuition and required fees for full-time undergraduate students at public four-year institutions.
Highest Public Four-Year In-State Tuition Averages
Top 15 jurisdictions by 2025-26 current-dollar tuition and required fees.
The chart is a visual summary of the highest values. The 51-row table carries the full ranking.
Chart analysis
- Vermont leads the ranking at $18,090.
- New Hampshire and New Jersey also sit near the $18,000 mark.
- The 15th-ranked jurisdiction, Colorado, is $13,710.
- The gap between rank 1 and rank 15 is $4,380.
Full State Ranking: Public Four-Year In-State Tuition and Fees
Rank is ordered from highest to lowest 2025-26 current-dollar tuition and required fees. The five-year column uses inflation-adjusted values from the 2025-dollar series.
| Rank | State | Code | Region | 2025-26 Tuition | 2024-25 Tuition | 1-Year Change | 5-Year Real Change | Source Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vermont | VT | Northeast | $18,090 | $17,650 | 2.5% | -17.9% | 2025-26 |
| 2 | New Hampshire | NH | Northeast | $18,000 | $17,480 | 3.0% | -14.8% | 2025-26 |
| 3 | New Jersey | NJ | Northeast | $17,960 | $17,060 | 5.3% | 0.1% | 2025-26 |
| 4 | Connecticut | CT | Northeast | $17,360 | $17,200 | 0.9% | -1.9% | 2025-26 |
| 5 | Pennsylvania | PA | Northeast | $16,950 | $16,310 | 3.9% | -9.3% | 2025-26 |
| 6 | Michigan | MI | Midwest | $16,700 | $16,000 | 4.4% | -4.0% | 2025-26 |
| 7 | Delaware | DE | South | $16,470 | $15,680 | 5.1% | -2.6% | 2025-26 |
| 8 | Rhode Island | RI | Northeast | $16,120 | $15,620 | 3.2% | -5.7% | 2025-26 |
| 9 | Virginia | VA | South | $16,090 | $15,650 | 2.8% | -6.7% | 2025-26 |
| 10 | Massachusetts | MA | Northeast | $15,900 | $15,290 | 4.0% | -8.6% | 2025-26 |
| 11 | Illinois | IL | Midwest | $15,680 | $15,330 | 2.2% | -12.8% | 2025-26 |
| 12 | Oregon | OR | West | $14,840 | $14,190 | 4.6% | 0.1% | 2025-26 |
| 13 | Minnesota | MN | Midwest | $14,730 | $13,890 | 6.1% | -1.6% | 2025-26 |
| 14 | Ohio | OH | Midwest | $13,840 | $13,460 | 2.9% | -4.9% | 2025-26 |
| 15 | Colorado | CO | West | $13,710 | $13,200 | 3.9% | -4.0% | 2025-26 |
| 16 | South Carolina | SC | South | $13,270 | $13,190 | 0.6% | -18.6% | 2025-26 |
| 17 | Arizona | AZ | West | $13,150 | $12,870 | 2.2% | -10.5% | 2025-26 |
| 18 | Missouri | MO | Midwest | $13,090 | $12,480 | 4.9% | 12.8% | 2025-26 |
| 19 | Maine | ME | Northeast | $12,790 | $12,320 | 3.9% | -4.8% | 2025-26 |
| 20 | Alabama | AL | South | $12,540 | $12,200 | 2.8% | -8.4% | 2025-26 |
| 21 | Kentucky | KY | South | $12,460 | $12,040 | 3.5% | -9.1% | 2025-26 |
| 22 | Washington | WA | West | $12,260 | $11,870 | 3.3% | -7.6% | 2025-26 |
| 23 | California | CA | West | $11,950 | $11,340 | 5.4% | -3.2% | 2025-26 |
| 24 | Tennessee | TN | South | $11,740 | $11,360 | 3.3% | -9.7% | 2025-26 |
| 25 | Maryland | MD | South | $11,480 | $11,120 | 3.2% | -9.0% | 2025-26 |
| 26 | Hawaii | HI | West | $11,460 | $11,240 | 1.9% | -16.3% | 2025-26 |
| 27 | Texas | TX | South | $11,260 | $11,250 | 0.0% | -16.4% | 2025-26 |
| 28 | Iowa | IA | Midwest | $11,180 | $10,870 | 2.9% | -4.1% | 2025-26 |
| 29 | North Dakota | ND | Midwest | $11,080 | $10,490 | 5.6% | -7.7% | 2025-26 |
| 30 | Louisiana | LA | South | $10,730 | $10,290 | 4.3% | -13.1% | 2025-26 |
| 31 | Indiana | IN | Midwest | $10,650 | $10,650 | 0.0% | -12.8% | 2025-26 |
| 32 | Wisconsin | WI | Midwest | $10,600 | $10,130 | 4.6% | -6.3% | 2025-26 |
| 33 | Kansas | KS | Midwest | $10,580 | $10,340 | 2.4% | -8.3% | 2025-26 |
| 34 | Arkansas | AR | South | $10,500 | $10,100 | 4.0% | -7.0% | 2025-26 |
| 35 | Oklahoma | OK | South | $10,250 | $10,050 | 2.0% | -8.6% | 2025-26 |
| 36 | Mississippi | MS | South | $10,110 | $9,720 | 4.0% | -6.2% | 2025-26 |
| 37 | West Virginia | WV | South | $10,000 | $9,580 | 4.3% | -6.1% | 2025-26 |
| 38 | Nebraska | NE | Midwest | $9,980 | $9,510 | 4.9% | -11.6% | 2025-26 |
| 39 | Nevada | NV | West | $9,880 | $9,340 | 5.9% | -3.9% | 2025-26 |
| 40 | Alaska | AK | West | $9,680 | $9,420 | 2.7% | -9.6% | 2025-26 |
| 41 | South Dakota | SD | Midwest | $9,390 | $9,160 | 2.5% | -17.4% | 2025-26 |
| 42 | New Mexico | NM | West | $9,270 | $9,180 | 0.9% | -8.1% | 2025-26 |
| 43 | Idaho | ID | West | $9,170 | $8,860 | 3.5% | -7.7% | 2025-26 |
| 44 | Montana | MT | West | $8,780 | $8,250 | 6.4% | -2.1% | 2025-26 |
| 45 | New York | NY | Northeast | $8,740 | $8,720 | 0.2% | -17.1% | 2025-26 |
| 46 | District of Columbia | DC | South | $8,640 | $8,640 | 0.0% | -19.6% | 2025-26 |
| 47 | Georgia | GA | South | $8,540 | $8,530 | 0.1% | -22.6% | 2025-26 |
| 48 | Utah | UT | West | $8,170 | $8,010 | 2.1% | -9.0% | 2025-26 |
| 49 | North Carolina | NC | South | $7,540 | $7,480 | 0.8% | -16.6% | 2025-26 |
| 50 | Wyoming | WY | West | $7,430 | $6,960 | 6.9% | 3.2% | 2025-26 |
| 51 | Florida | FL | South | $6,360 | $6,360 | 0.0% | -19.7% | 2025-26 |
Table analysis
- Vermont ranks first at $18,090.
- Florida ranks last at $6,360.
- The full top-to-bottom spread is $11,740.
- 9 jurisdictions report averages of at least $16,000.
- 4 jurisdictions report averages under $8,500.
- Wyoming has the largest one-year nominal increase at 6.9%.
- Missouri has the largest five-year inflation-adjusted increase at 12.8%.
- Georgia has the deepest five-year inflation-adjusted decline at -22.6%.
- The national figure is enrollment-weighted and should not be read as a simple average of the 51 rows.
Regional Tuition Distribution
Regional figures use simple calculations across the jurisdictions in each Census-style region.
Average Tuition by Region
Simple regional averages from 2025-26 state-level tuition and fee values.
The Northeast has the highest simple regional average. Regional values are not cost-adjusted.
Chart analysis
- Northeast has the highest simple average at $15,770.
- West has the lowest simple average at $10,750.
- The regional average gap is $5,020.
- The South includes the lowest state value, Florida at $6,360.
| Region | Jurisdictions | Average | Median | Highest | Lowest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northeast | 9 | $15,770 | $16,950 | Vermont ($18,090) | New York ($8,740) |
| Midwest | 12 | $12,290 | $11,130 | Michigan ($16,700) | South Dakota ($9,390) |
| South | 17 | $11,060 | $10,730 | Delaware ($16,470) | Florida ($6,360) |
| West | 13 | $10,750 | $9,880 | Oregon ($14,840) | Wyoming ($7,430) |
Table analysis
- The Northeast median is $16,950, higher than its simple average because New York is much lower than the rest of the region.
- The South covers 17 jurisdictions, the largest regional group in the table.
- The West has a median of $9,880, below the national enrollment-weighted average.
- Regional rows are simple summaries and do not replace state-level institutional weighting.
Tuition Bands by State Count
Band counts group jurisdictions by rounded 2025-26 current-dollar tuition and required fees.
| Tuition Band | Count | Jurisdictions |
|---|---|---|
| Under $8,500 | 4 | FL, WY, NC, UT |
| $8,500-$10,999 | 18 | GA, DC, NY, MT, ID, NM, SD, AK, NV, NE, WV, MS, OK, AR, KS, WI, IN, LA |
| $11,000-$12,999 | 11 | ND, IA, TX, HI, MD, TN, CA, WA, KY, AL, ME |
| $13,000-$15,999 | 9 | MO, AZ, SC, CO, OH, MN, OR, IL, MA |
| $16,000 or higher | 9 | VA, RI, DE, MI, PA, CT, NJ, NH, VT |
Table analysis
- The largest band is $8,500-$10,999 with 18 jurisdictions.
- The top band, $16,000 or higher, contains 9 jurisdictions.
- The bottom band contains 4 jurisdictions.
- Band counts use rounded current-dollar tuition values.
Tuition Data Notes
The ranking isolates published tuition and required fees for public four-year institutions.
Sticker price, not net price
Published tuition and required fees do not account for grants, scholarships, tax benefits, or institutional discounts.
Tuition, not full cost
The measure excludes housing and food, books, supplies, transportation, and personal expenses.
Enrollment-weighted source value
State averages reflect full-time enrollment weighting in the source table, so larger institutions affect the state average more than smaller institutions.
Current dollars for rank
The main rank uses 2025-26 current dollars. The five-year change column uses the inflation-adjusted series from the same table.
Region and price level caution
Regional summaries do not apply a cost-of-living adjustment and should not be read as purchasing-power comparisons.
Public four-year scope
Public two-year colleges, public flagship-only prices, private nonprofit institutions, and out-of-state prices are different measures.
Source and Methodology
The main table uses the College Board current-dollar 2025-26 public four-year in-state tuition and fees series. The one-year change is the source table’s nominal current-dollar change from 2024-25 to 2025-26. The five-year change is the source table’s 2020-21 to 2025-26 inflation-adjusted change from the 2025-dollar series.
The U.S. value shown in the statistics cards is the report’s national enrollment-weighted average of $11,950. Regional summaries are simple calculations across jurisdiction values and are not the same as the national enrollment-weighted figure.
The ranking measures published in-state tuition and required fees only. It should not be treated as a full cost of attendance ranking, an affordability ranking, a quality ranking, or a net price ranking. Values are not adjusted for regional price differences, grant aid, family income, living costs, or program mix.