For California, the 2024 average undergraduate tuition & fees is $3,071 for California residents and $21,330 for out-of-state students. For graduate programs, the average tuition & fees is $10,762 for California residents and $24,084 for out-of-state students.

Laurus College has the highest undergraduate tuition & fees of $83,400 and Trinity School of Health and Allied Sciences has the lowest tuition & fees of $930 among California. For graduate programs, Claremont McKenna College has the highest graduate tuition & fees of $68,525 and Grace Mission University has the lowest graduate tuition & fees of $2,640 among California.

You can narrow California colleges down into public schools and private schools to check tuition and other college costs in deep.

Costs of Attendance (COA)

The average COA of California in 2024 is $23,462 for state residents and $41,721 for out-of-state students including tuition, fees, books, supplies, room & board (on-campus), and other living expenses.

Table. 2024 Average Costs of Attendance for California
UndergraduateGraduate
In-StateOut-of-StateIn-StateOut-of-State
Tuition & Fees$3,071$21,330$10,762$24,084
Books & Supplies$1,237$1,237
Room & Board$15,061$15,061
Other Expenses$4,093$4,093
COA$23,462$41,721$31,153$44,475

Undergraduate Tuition & Fees

The 2024 average undergraduate tuition & fees of California is $3,071 for state residents and $21,330 for out-of-state students.

The following table describes the changes of average tuition & fees for California over last 5 years as well as recent year average tuition & fees.

Table. 2024 Average Undergraduate Tuition & Fees Changes for California (2020-2024)
In-StateOut-of-State
TuitionFeesTuitionFees
2019-2020$2,687$517$18,582$656
2020-2021$2,736$518$18,919$660
2021-2022$2,693$523$19,144$703
2022-2023$2,699$540$19,534$742
2023-2024$3,071-$21,286$44

Graduate Programs Tuition & Fees

The average graduate program tuition & fees of California in 2024 is $10,762 for state residents and $24,084 for out-of-state students.

The following table describes the changes of average graduate tuition & fees for California over last 5 years.

Table. 2024 Average Graduate Tuition & Fees Changes for California (2020-2024)
In-StateOut-of-State
TuitionFeesTuitionFees
2019-2020$9,513$1,849$20,781$1,021
2020-2021$9,672$1,876$21,420$985
2021-2022$9,654$1,880$21,823$1,025
2022-2023$9,715$1,842$22,100$1,058
2023-2024$8,766$1,996$22,928$1,157

Tuition Per Credit Hour (Part-time Students and Over Credits)

The undergraduate average cost per credit hour of California in 2024 is $49 for state residents and $727 for out-of-state students.

The graduate average cost per credit hour is - for state residents and $860 for out-of-state students.

The following table describes the changes of tuition per credit hour over last 5 years.

Table. 2024 Average Cost Per Credit Hour for California (2020-2024)
UndergraduateGraduate
In-StateOut-of-StateIn-StateOut-of-State
2019-2020$542$635 $874$808
2020-2021$542$643 $890$823
2021-2022$548$655 $953$878
2022-2023$556$671 $902$831
2023-2024$49$727 -$860

California Living Costs

The average living costs of California in 2024 is $19,154 when a student lives on campus such as dormitory and school's apartment and $23,998 living off campus including room, board, and other living expenses.

The following table describes the changes of average living costs over last 5 years for California.

Table. 2024 Average Living Costs for California (2020-2024)
On-CampusOff-Campus
Room&BoardOther ExpensesRoom&BoardOther Expenses
2019-2020 $13,114$3,574 $13,953$4,842
2020-2021 $13,338$3,373 $14,976$4,721
2021-2022 $13,607$3,340 $15,695$4,754
2022-2023 $14,176$3,496 $16,598$4,967
2023-2024 $15,061$4,093 $18,340$5,658