2024 Average Tuition, Fees, and Living Costs in Illinois State

The average tuition & fees of Illinois colleges is $10,308 for Illinois residents and $13,566 for students from other States. University of Chicago has the highest (most expensive) tuition & fees of $66,939 and Pacific College of Health and Science has the lowest tuition & fees (cheapest) of $7,508.

For graduate programs, University of Chicago has the highest (most expensive) graduate tuition & fees of $66,939 and Columbia College Chicago has the lowest graduate tuition & fees (cheapest) of $32,520 in Illinois.

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2024 Costs of Attendance (COA)

The average COA of Illinois 4-year colleges in 2024 is $30,997 for Illinois residents and $36,135 for students from other states. The COA includes tuition & fees, books & supplies, room & board, and other living expenses, but it excludes health insurance fee and uncommon expenses.

Table

Table. 2024 Average Costs of Attendance for Illinois Colleges (4-Years)
	Undergraduate		Graduate
	In-State	Out-of-State	In-State	Out-of-State
Tuition & Fees	$14,067	$19,205	$12,981	$18,738
Books & Supplies	$1,100		$1,100
Room & Board	$15,831		$15,831
COA	$30,997	$36,135	$29,912	$35,668

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Illinois Best Colleges

University of Chicago

Northwestern University

Principia College

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Illinois Institute of Technology

University of Illinois Chicago

Wheaton College

Illinois State University

Illinois Wesleyan University

Lewis University

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Undergraduate Tuition & Fees

In Illinois, 229 schools offer undergraduate programs. The average undergraduate tuition & fees of Illinois colleges is $10,308 for Illinois residents and $13,566 for out-of-state students for the academic year 2023-2024.

The Illinois tuition & fees have risen -0.86% from last year (4 years colleges). The following table and chart describe the 2024 undergraduate tuition & fees trends over last 5 years in 4-years and 2-4 years (community colleges) colleges.

Table

Table. 2024 Average Undergraduate Tuition & Fees for Illinois Universities and Colleges
	Public Schools				Private Schools
	4 Years or High		2-4 Years		4 Years or High	2-4 Years
	In-State	Out-of-State	In-State	Out-of-State	4 Years or High	2-4 Years
2020	$12,958	$20,307	$8,951	$11,258	$27,504	$15,004
2021	$13,073	$18,860	$9,146	$11,580	$28,246	$14,816
2022	$13,309	$19,278	$9,399	$11,934	$28,501	$14,842
2023	$13,340	$19,371	$9,558	$12,071	$29,190	$15,644
2024	$14,067	$19,205	$9,838	$12,223	$29,117	$16,154

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Expensive Illinois Colleges (Highest Undergraduate Tuition)

University of Chicago	$66,939
Northwestern University	$65,997
Illinois Wesleyan University	$55,704
Knox College	$55,587
School of the Art Institute of Chicago	$54,530

Inexpensive Illinois Colleges (Lowest Undergraduate Tuition)

Pacific College of Health and Science	$7,508
American Islamic College	$7,650
Columbia College - Elgin	$8,304
Columbia College - Freeport	$8,304
Columbia College - Lake County	$8,304

Based on out-of-state tuition rates of 4 years (or high) colleges

Graduate Program Tuition & Fees

89 Illinois colleges offer graduate programs. The average graduate program tuition fees of Illinois colleges is $12,981 for Illinois residents and $18,738 for students from other States. The graduate tuition & fees rose 99.44% from last year.

The following table and chart describe the 2024 graduate tuition & fees and show last 5 years' tuition change.

Table

Table. 2024 Average Graduate Tuition & Fees for Illinois Universities and Colleges
	Public Schools		Private Schools
	In-State	Out-of-State	Private Schools
2020	$11,602	$18,159	$19,874
2021	$11,772	$18,148	$20,158
2022	$11,929	$18,541	$20,228
2023	$11,983	$18,843	$20,556
2024	$12,981	$18,738	$19,758

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Expensive Graduate Schools in Illinois

University of Chicago	$66,543
Northwestern University	$53,871
Midwestern University-Downers Grove	$48,857
School of the Art Institute of Chicago	$44,634
Adler University	$43,455

Inexpensive Graduate Schools in Illinois

Columbia College Chicago	$2,464
American Islamic College	$4,650
Rasmussen University-Illinois	$4,726
Hebrew Theological College	$5,550
VanderCook College of Music	$7,995

Based on out-of-state tuition rates of 4 years (or high) colleges

2024 Books & Supplies Costs

The average books & supplies costs of Illinois colleges in 2024 is $1,100. The books & supplies costs rose 101.00% from last year. Next table and chart describes the 2024 books & supplies costs and costs changes over last 5 years

Table

Table. 2024 Average Books & Supplies Costs for Illinois Universities and Colleges
	Books & Supplies
2020	$1,108
2021	$1,113
2022	$1,090
2023	$1,089
2024	$1,100

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2024 Average Living Costs

The average living costs of Illinois colleges in 2024 is $15,831 when a student lives on campus such as dormitory and college apartment and $16,171 living off campus. 68 schools have on-campus living facilities in Illinois State. The on-campus living costs rose 104.92% and off-campus costs rose 107.22% from last year. Next table and chart describes the 2024 living costs and compares to last 5 years.

Table

Table. 2024 Average Living Costs for Illinois Universities and Colleges
	On-Campus	Off-Campus
2020	$13,707	$13,387
2021	$14,046	$13,956
2022	$14,398	$14,271
2023	$15,088	$15,082
2024	$15,831	$16,171

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Most Searched Illinois Colleges (last 30 days)

Undergraduate

Trinity Christian College Private, four-years | Palos Heights
Richland Community College Public, 2-4 years | Decatur
Triton College Public, 2-4 years | River Grove
Rock Valley College Public, 2-4 years | Rockford
Rockford University Private, four-years | Rockford
Dominican University Private, four-years | River Forest
Morrison Institute of Technology Private, 2-4 years | Morrison
Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing Private, four-years | Peoria
Mr John's School of Cosmetology Esthetics & Nails-Decatur Private, 2-4 years | Decatur
St. John's College-Department of Nursing Private, four-years | Springfield

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Graduate

Spoon River College Public, 2-4 years | Canton
Oehrlein School of Cosmetology Private, Less than 2-years | East Peoria
Educators of Beauty College of Cosmetology-Sterling Private, Less than 2-years | Sterling
Parkland College Public, 2-4 years | Champaign
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Public, four-years | Edwardsville
Principia College Private, four-years | Elsah
Taylor Business Institute Private, 2-4 years | Chicago
Quincy University Private, four-years | Quincy
South Suburban College Public, 2-4 years | South Holland
The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago Private, four-years | Chicago

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Online Schools

Spoon River College Public, 2-4 years | Canton
Oehrlein School of Cosmetology Private, Less than 2-years | East Peoria
Educators of Beauty College of Cosmetology-Sterling Private, Less than 2-years | Sterling
Parkland College Public, 2-4 years | Champaign
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Public, four-years | Edwardsville
Principia College Private, four-years | Elsah
Taylor Business Institute Private, 2-4 years | Chicago
Quincy University Private, four-years | Quincy
South Suburban College Public, 2-4 years | South Holland
The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago Private, four-years | Chicago

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Technical Colleges

Trinity Christian College Private, four-years | Palos Heights
Richland Community College Public, 2-4 years | Decatur
Triton College Public, 2-4 years | River Grove
Rock Valley College Public, 2-4 years | Rockford
Rockford University Private, four-years | Rockford
Dominican University Private, four-years | River Forest
Morrison Institute of Technology Private, 2-4 years | Morrison
Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing Private, four-years | Peoria
Mr John's School of Cosmetology Esthetics & Nails-Decatur Private, 2-4 years | Decatur
St. John's College-Department of Nursing Private, four-years | Springfield

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