The sticker price at the 30 most expensive colleges and universities in the U.S. will increase by 4.5%, on average, for the 2025–2026 academic year, according to a new report from The College Investor, a provider of news and analysis about money and education.
Elite institutions will charge students upward of $69,000 for tuition alone. Room, board, fees and other expenses, which vary among institutions, will add thousands of dollars to the annual cost.
The report notes that not everyone will pay the full cost of an education at one of these schools. Some will pay full price, others nothing thanks to grants and aid, and most will pay somewhere in between.
The College Investors ranking is based on the listed tuition price of each college for the 2025–2026 academic year. In cases where the final pricing was not available, researchers used the 2024–2025 tuition price.
See the gallery for the 20 most expensive colleges and universities.
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