How much does college cost now?

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How much does college cost now?
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Here’s how the cost of college tuition has changed—and how parents are paying for it.

It’s never too early to start planning for your children’s or grandchildren’s college expenses. Understanding the costs of college, ways to pay and financial aid sources can help—especially since the costs shown below are likely to rise.

The first section is “What is the yearly cost of college?” The introduction reads, “Tuition is by far the biggest source of cost differences among the school types, so factor that into your planning, especially if the student in your life dreams of attending an out-of-state or private school.” A bar chart titled “Average costs for academic year 2022-23” shows the costs of three types of schools: Public (in-state), Private nonprofit and Private for-profit. For each type of school, there are three costs detailed: On campus; Off campus, living with family; and Off campus, not living with family. The data for Public (in-state) is: On campus: $27,146; Off campus, living with family: $15,708; and Off campus, not living with family: $27,756. The data for Private nonprofit is: On campus: $58,628; Off campus, living with family: $46,280; and Off campus, not living with family: $57,519. The data for Private for-profit is: On campus: $33,574; Off campus, living with family: $23,885; and Off campus, not living with family: $34.071. A callout on the chart says “Living at home with parents saves money—often more than $10,000 per year.” The source of the chart is “U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Student Financial Aid component and Institutional Characteristics component, Winter 2022–23 (provisional data) and Fall 2022 (provisional data). See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, table 330.40.”

The second section is “Parents typically pay about half these costs.” The introduction reads, “When you consider all the contributions parents make—income, savings and borrowing—parents shoulder 48% of college costs.” There is a pie chart titled “How a typical family pays for college.” The sections of the pie are: Parents’ income and savings: 37%; Scholarships and grants: 27%; Student borrowing: 12%; Student income and savings : 11%; Parent borrowing: 11%; Relatives and friends: 2%. The source of the chart is “How America Pays for College 2024, Sallie Mae, August 6, 2024.”

The third section is “Grants and scholarships help.” The introduction reads, “Aid is often lower for students from families with higher incomes, making planning and saving even more important.” A bar char shows the “Average amount of grant and scholarship aid from all sources by family income level.” There are five bars: For up to $30,000 in family income, aid is $13,591; For $30,001–$48,000 in family income, aid is $13,289; For $48,001–$75,000 in family income, aid is $10,314; For $75,001–$110,000 in family income, aid is $6,086; For $110,001 or more in family income, aid is $3,504. The source of the chart is “U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Student Financial Aid component, Winter 2022–23 (provisional data). See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, table 331.30.” In this section, there is also a standalone statistic, which reads, “Still, more than 1.7 million scholarships are awarded every year, many based on merit rather than income level.” The source for the statistic is: “Hanson, Melanie. “Scholarship Statistics,” EducationData.org, January 14, 2024, https://educationdata.org/scholarship-statistics).”

The fourth section is “College costs over the past 10 years.” The introduction reads, “The rising cost of higher education is a common topic of conversation, but after accounting for inflation, the costs for some institutions have actually declined recently. This chart shows tuition and fees for a ten-year space ending in the 2022-23 academic year.” There is a bar chart that shows the “Costs of four-year institutions.” There are three callouts: “At $40,713 per year, private nonprofit four-year institutions are more expensive than ten years ago ($37,603).” “Costs of private for-profit four-year colleges dropped from $21,113 in 2012–13 to $18,241 a decade later.” “Public four-year costs (in-state) were relatively steady before dropping in recent years. In 2023–24, the cost was $9,834.” The source of the chart is “U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Student Financial Aid component, Winter 2022–23 (provisional data). See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, table 331.30.”

The fifth section is “How much money do two-year schools save you?” The introduction reads, “Starting at a two-year school is one way to cut college costs, especially for students who want more time to explore their options before committing to a four-year school. And some students may discover they need only a two-year degree to enter their chosen field.” A bar chart titled “Costs of two-year colleges” shows the costs of three types of schools: Public (in-state), Private nonprofit and Private for-profit. For each type of school, there are three costs detailed: On campus; Off campus, living with family; and Off campus, not living with family. The data for Public (in-state) is: On campus: $16,641; Off campus, living with family: $10,199; and Off campus, not living with family: $20,910. The data for Private nonprofit is: On campus: $36,026; Off campus, living with family: $25,200; and Off campus, not living with family: $36,426. The data for Private for-profit is: On campus: $26,640; Off campus, living with family: $22,208; and Off campus, not living with family: $32,352. A call out reads, “$10,505: The cost savings per year between a public four-year and two-year college if your student lives on campus.” The source for this chart is “U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Student Financial Aid component and Institutional Characteristics component, Winter 2022–23 (provisional data) and Fall 2022 (provisional data). See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, table 330.40.”

The sixth section is “Despite the high costs, four-year degrees still offer excellent returns.” The introduction reads, “Even after accounting for the costs of a degree and the income foregone while earning it, a bachelor’s degree offers an annual rate of return on investment between 8% and 13%, depending on major.” The chart is called “Rate of annual return by major.” The data reads: “Engineering or computer science: 13% and up; Business, health, math or science: 10% to 13%; Biology, agriculture or social science: 8% to 9%; Education, humanities and arts: Less than 8%.” The source of this chart is “Zhang, Liang et al., “Degrees of Return: Estimating Internal Rates of Return for College Majors Using Quantile Regression,” American Educational Research Journal, March 11, 2024.”

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