The 10 most expensive colleges in America

The cost of attaining a higher education – and the burdensome debt that many take on to afford it – has long been a subject of concern in the United States.

Seventy-one percent of currently and previously enrolled American university students, with student loans, say that they’ve delayed other life events – including buying a home – due to the financial pressure caused by their debt, according to the Lumina Foundation-Gallup State of Higher Education 2024 study.

The same study revealed that more than half of all people without university degrees cited the cost of attending college as a barrier to obtaining further education. Nearly a third of current college students who have debated pausing their education point to the expense of attending school as a reason.

Despite mounting concerns, there has been little progress made in reducing university costs. In 2023, the Supreme Court struck down the Biden administration’s plans to forgive up to $20,000 in student loan debt for qualifying borrowers – a provision that would’ve erased up to $400 billion in loans.

Though many college students have access to grants and scholarships that reduce the cost of tuition, the average cost of attending universities – particularly private universities – continues to increase. This is especially true when factoring in the cost of extraneous expenses like housing and textbooks.

Self – a financial technology company which assists people in building credit – recently calculated the cost of attending more than 200 universities. The analysis reviewed the cost of tuition, books, groceries and other expenses at the top four universities in each state.

Continue reading to see which American colleges and universities are the most expensive.

10th Most Expensive: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MIT is the 10th most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $441,948.

9th Most Expensive: Yale University

Yale is the ninth most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $451,516.

8th Most Expensive: George Washington University

George Washington University is the eighth most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $454,377.

7th Most Expensive: University of Chicago

UChicago is the seventh most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $455,257.

6th Most Expensive: University of Southern California

USC is the sixth most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $457,650.

5th Most Expensive: California Institute of Technology

CalTech is the fifth most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $458,330.

4th Most Expensive: Harvard University

Harvard is the fourth most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $472,027.

3rd Most Expensive: Georgetown University

Georgetown is the third most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $472,817.

2nd Most Expensive: New York University

NYU is the second most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $497,402.

Most Expensive: Columbia University

Columbia is the most expensive college in the United States, with the average cost of a four-year degree and living expenses totaling $514,442.