Cost of college

What It Means

The cost of college is what a student pays for a year of school, counting tuition and fees plus housing, food, books, supplies, transportation and personal costs. College Board calls the full amount a student budgetBudgetA plan for a set period, usually a month, that lists the money you expect to receive and how you'll spend or save it. See more. Its "Trends in College Pricing and Student Aid 2025" puts the 2025-26 average budget at $30,990 for an in-state student at a public four-year college, of which $11,950 is tuition and fees. Grants and scholarshipsScholarshipsMoney for school that a student doesn't repay, usually awarded for grades, skills or abilities by a college, employer, community group or state. See more bring the amount a family actually pays below the published price.

How People Say It at Work

• "The sticker price scared us until the aid letter came."
• "In-state saves us a lot."
• "Room and board is almost as much as tuition."

The Breakdown

College Board averages for 2025-26

The budget column adds housing, food, books, transportation and other costs to tuition.

Worked example. An in-state student at a public four-year college, with an example $5,000 a year in grants, starts from the $30,990 average budget. That leaves $25,990 a year, or $103,960 across four years, to cover from savings, earnings and loans.

What moves the number

• Public or private, and in-state or out-of-state. Out-of-state students at public four-year colleges have an average budget about $20,000 higher than in-state students.
• The state. In-state tuition and fees at public four-year colleges ran from $6,360 in Florida to $18,090 in Vermont in 2025-26.
• Aid. College Board estimates first-time full-time students at private nonprofit four-year colleges paid $16,910 in net tuition and fees on average in 2025-26, well below the $45,000 published price.

Good to Know

Published prices change every year. College Board's in-state tuition and fees at public four-year colleges rose $340 (2.9%) for 2025-26, and private nonprofit four-year tuition rose $1,750 (4.0%), both before inflationInflationA general rise in the prices of goods and services over time, so the same amount of money buys less than it did before. See more. Its Trends report comes out each fall, so look for a newer edition before you plan around these figures. Federal aid starts with the FAFSAFAFSAThe Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the U.S. Department of Education form a student files each year to apply for federal aid for college or career school. See more, and each college's financial aid office can tell you its own cost of attendance and how outside scholarships affect your package.

Related Terms and Categories

• 529 plan

  A state-sponsored, tax-advantaged account for education costs, where growth is free of federal income tax when spent on qualified expenses.

• FAFSA

  The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the U.S. Department of Education form a student files each year to apply for federal aid for college or career school.

• Scholarships

  Money for school that a student doesn't repay, usually awarded for grades, skills or abilities by a college, employer, community group or state.

• Federal student loan

  A student loan made by the U.S. Department of Education, with a fixed rate set by law and federal repayment plans and protections.

• Student loan

  Money borrowed to pay for college or career school, repaid with interest after you leave school; it comes from the federal government or a private lender.

• Cost of raising a child

  What a family spends on a child from birth through age 17; USDA's last estimate, for a child born in 2015, was $233,610 for a middle-income married couple.

Pay, rates and costs