The most expensive colleges in 2025 are again setting records for the price of tuition. The sticker price of some of these colleges is extreme, with over half of the list exceeding $70,000 per year in tuition alone.
College is one of the few good and services where you know that people are paying $0 to attend, and you know that people are paying full price – and most people are paying somewhere in between.
Even though the colleges in the list below have a high sticker price, that doesn’t mean you personally will pay that price if you decide to apply and attend.
Most Expensive Colleges List
Here is the list of the top 30 most expensive colleges and universities in the United States based on their published tuition for a single year:
More Information About The Most Expensive College List
| College | Tuition Cost |
|---|---|
| 1. Vassar College | $73,275 |
| 2. University of Southern California | $73,260 |
| 3. Colgate College | $73,206 |
| 4. Amherst College | $73,140 |
| 5. Colorado College | $73,038 |
| 6. Wesleyan College | $72,438 |
| 7. Boston College | $72,180 |
| 8. Tulane | $71,997 |
| 9. Kenyon College | $71,870 |
| 10. Claremont McKenna | $71,700 |
| 11. Brown | $71,700 |
| 12. Carleton College | $71,607 |
| 13. Cornell | $71,266 |
| 14. Columbia | $71,170 |
| 15. Macalester | $70,632 |
| 16. Franklin & Marshall | $70,556 |
| 17. Duke | $70,265 |
| 18. Middlebury College | $70,120 |
| 19. Yale | $69,900 |
| 20. Boston University | $69,870 |
| 21. Haverford College | $69,844 |
| 22. Wellesley College | $69,800 |
| 23. George Washington University | $69,780 |
| 24. Sarah Lawrence College | $69,608 |
| 25. Colby College | $69,600 |
| 26. Dartmouth | $69,207 |
| 27. Tufts University | $69,146 |
| 28. Pepperdine | $69,130 |
| 29. Reed College | $69,040 |
| 30. University of Rochester | $69,030 |
It’s easy to notice that all of these colleges and universities are charging students over $69,000 per year to attend. Compared to 2024, we saw prices at these schools rise 4.5% on average. We also saw some big shifts in the list, with Vassar taking the top spot as the most expensive college tuition in America for 2025.
That equates to over $270,000 for an undergraduate degree, assuming that the student is paying full price. These numbers don’t include room, board, and other expenses like textbooks. Given the current value of a bachelor’s degree is roughly $40,000 to $80,000 depending on major, that’s problematic.
Our study only focuses on tuition price because that’s the simplest to compare “apples to apples”. Other costs, like room and board, are variable since students could live at home. That’s why you may see some schools’ total “cost of attendance” being higher – but that includes more than tuition (and may not be accurate anyway).
All-in-all, students attending these schools and paying full price could see a total cost of attendance in excess of $100,000 per year. And remember, the price will usually rise each year as well.
Here’s a more detailed look at each school.
1. Vassar College
Tuition Cost: $73,275
Vassar is an independent liberal arts college located in New York that was founded in 1861. It started as a women’s college, but it opened its doors to men in 1969.
Vassar College is a relatively small school, with just 2,500 students spread across 51 different majors.
Vassar saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.6% last year.
2. University of Southern California
Tuition Cost: $73,260
The University of Southern California, or USC, is well known both for its academic programs and for its football team, which dominates the fields each year. Go to this school if you’re interested in film and photography, as USC’s programs for both are well-ranked and regarded as the best in their respective industries.They also have one of the largest sports programs of schools on this list.
Their current undergraduate enrollment is roughly 20,700 students, making them one of the largest colleges on this list.
USC saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.8% last year.
3. Colgate University
Tuition Cost: $73,206
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college located in New York. It was founded in 1819, and is consistently ranked as one of the most selective colleges in the United States. The college offers 56 undergraduate majors.
There are currently about 3,200 undergraduate students enrolled.
Colgate saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.75% last year.
4. Amherst College
Tuition Cost: $73,140
Amherst College was founded in 1821, and is exclusively an undergraduate liberal arts college. This highly selective college has 42 majors in an open curriculum – where students can essentially design their own interdisciplinary major.
There are currently about 1,900 students enrolled.
Amherst saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.75% last year.
5. Colorado College
Tuition Cost: $73,038
Colorado College is a private liberal arts college that was founded in 1874. Despite its price tag, it’s considered a highly selective college, with just about 11% of applicants admitted. The college has roughly 80 majors and minors, with economics being of the largest enrollment.
The college has about 2,000 undergraduate students.
Colorado College saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
6. Wesleyan University
Tuition Cost: $72,438
Wesleyan is a private liberal arts college located in Connecticut. It was founded in 1831 as a men’s college, but by 1970 it was co-educational. Undergraduate students have the option of 45 different major concentrations.
Wesleyan University has roughly 2,800 undergraduate students.
Wesleyan saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
7. Boston College
Tuition Cost: $72,180
Boston College was founded in 1863 in Boston, MA. Today, it has an undergraduate, graduate, and professional school centered around its liberal arts programs. Boston College is one of the larger schools on this list, with an enrollment of 15,000 students across 50 fields of student. They also have one of the larger sports program compared to other schools on this list.
Boston College saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
8. Tulane University
Tuition Cost: $71,997
Tulane (officially Tulane University of Louisiana) is a private university located in New Orleans. It was founded in 1834, and is organized into 10 schools focused on individual subjects, such as liberal arts, sciences, and more.
The school has 8,600 undergraduate students.
Tulane saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.8% last year.
9. Kenyon College
Tuition Cost: $71,870
Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college located in Ohio. It’s one of the oldest colleges in Ohio, founded in 1824. This school is consistently ranked on lists like US News Best Liberal Arts Colleges.
The college only has about 1,885 undergraduate students, but still boasts roughly 50 majors.
Kenyon saw its tuition rise by roughly 0.95% last year.
10. Claremont McKenna College
Tuition Cost: $71,700
Claremont McKenna College is a political science and business management college first and foremost, though it also has a very strong liberal arts department. Therefore, this could be a great university to attend if you are interested in any of these areas. In addition, Claremont McKenna College has 11 distinct research centers, so it’s ideal if a future of professional research sounds right for you.
Claremont McKenna saw its tuition rise by almost 5.5% last year.
11. Brown University
Tuition Cost: $71,700
Brown University is a private Ivy League University that located in Rhode Island. It’s one of the oldest colleges in the United States, founded in 1764. The college is known for having some of the oldest math and engineering programs in the country.
This school has roughly 7,000 undergraduate students, enrolled across 80 different programs.
Brown saw its tuition rise by almost 4.5% last year.
12. Carleton College
Tuition Cost: $71,607
Carleton College is a private liberal arts college located in Minnesota. It was founded in 1866 and has 33 different major programs, as well as a program that allows students to design their own major.
The college has 2,100 undergraduate students.
Carleton saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.6% last year.
13. Cornell University
Tuition Cost: $71,266
Cornell is a private Ivy-League university based in Ithaca, New York that was founded in 1865. The school is organized into seven undergraduate colleges and seven graduate colleges. The programs are highly selective, with an undergraduate admissions rate of roughly 7%.
The university has roughly 16,000 undergraduate students and 10,000 graduate students.
Cornell saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.2% last year.
14. Columbia University
Tuition Cost: $71,170**
Columbia University is one of the oldest colleges in America, as it was founded in 1754, and one of the most expensive. As one of the original nine Colonial Colleges in the US, it has a long history and offers courses and majors in many different fields of study, ranging from ancient studies to anthropology to English to economics to business and more.
Keep in mind that Columbia University’s acceptance rate is quite low, hovering around 5.5%. You’ll need to be quite competitive to get in. If you are accepted, you can hopefully benefit from financial aid opportunities, including an annual grant of over $66,000 for international students.
Columbia saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
Note: Columbia also makes our list of the colleges with the largest scholarships.
15. Macalester College
Tuition Cost: $70,632
Macalester College is a private liberal arts college located in Minnesota. This college only serves undergraduates, and currently has roughly 2,100 students. The college offers 39 majors, as well as a program that allows students to design their own major and navigate their own fields of study.
Macalester saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
16. Franklin & Marshall College
Tuition Cost: $70,566**
Franklin & Marshall College is an undergraduate liberal arts college that touts itself as one of the oldest colleges in the United States. Franklin College was founded in 1787 with a financial gift from Benjamin Franklin. In 1853 it merged with Marshall College to become the organization it is today.
The college is fairly small, having a student body of just 2,400 students, but it does offer 60 fields of study.
Franklin & Marshall saw its tuition rise by roughly 3% last year.
17. Middlebury College
Tuition Cost: $70,120
Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college located in Vermont. It was founded in 1800, and currently offers 45 majors. The college has an interesting calendar of two four-course semesters in the autumn and spring plus what is known as a “Winter Term” session in January. The Winter Term allows students to pursue independent research or complete an internship.
There are roughly 2,700 undergraduate students.
Middlebury saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.5% last year.
18. Duke University
Tuition Cost: $70,265
Duke University is a private university located in North Carolina that was founded in 1838. Known for a fantastic sports program and basketball team, the school also excels in academics.
There are currently about 6,600 undergraduate students, but notably over 9,000 graduate students.
Duke saw its tuition rise by roughly 6% last year.
19. Yale
Tuition Cost: $69,900
Yale is a private Ivy League college that was founded in 1701, making it the third-oldest college in the United States. The university is organized into 14 colleges. Yale is notable for the number of Nobel Laureate graduates as well as other famous alumni.
The college has roughly 6,500 undergraduate and 5,300 graduate students.
Yale saw its tuition rise by roughly 3.9% last year.
20. Boston University
Tuition Cost: $69,870
Boston University was founded in 1838 in Boston, MA. Don’t confuse Boston University with Boston College – though both are on this list. Boston University is the second-largest college on this list, boasting 17,500 undergraduate students and another 17,000 graduate students.
BU saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.8% last year.
21. Haverford College
Tuition Cost: $69,884**
Haverford College was founded in 1833 in Haverford, PA. This liberal arts college focuses on an education based on discussion and debate of ideas. With just 1,400 students, this small liberal arts school still has over 50 majors to choose from.
Haverford saw its tuition rise by roughly 8.75% last year (well 2023-2024).
22. Wellesley College
Tuition Cost: $69,800
Wellesley College is a well-known liberal arts school in Massachusetts, and it’s particularly well-regarded as a women’s school. Consider attending here if you’re a woman and want a female-oriented education that will help you secure competitive professional spots in the future.
Wellesley saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.3% last year.
23. George Washington University
Tuition Cost: $69,780
George Washington University is a private, federally-charted, university located in Washington, D.C. It was originally founded in 1821 as Columbian College, was was renamed to its current form in 1904. The college boasts 71 degree programs, and currently has over 11,000 undergraduate students.
GWU saw its tuition rise by roughly 3.5% last year.
24. Sarah Lawrence College
Tuition Cost: $69,608
Sarah Lawrence College was founded in 1926 and is one of the top liberal arts colleges available today. It’s particularly well known and respected for its inclusion of women in academia – female college attendees will find a very supportive culture here that they can use for support. There are 12 programs offered in total, but students can also design custom courses based on their unique liberal arts career goals.
Sarah Lawrence saw its tuition rise by roughly 5% last year.
25. Colby College
Tuition Cost: $69,600
Colby College is a private liberal arts college located in Maine that was founded in 1813. Despite its price tag, the college has just a 6% admission rate, highlighting its generous financial aid packages and waiving other common admissions practices.
There are currently about 2,000 students enrolled in 54 fields of study.
Sarah Lawrence saw its tuition rise by roughly 4% last year.
26. Dartmouth College
Tuition Cost: $69,207
Dartmouth College is the ninth oldest college in the US, and it was established in 1769. It offers many top-rated programs and majors in topics like African-American studies, anthropology, and neuroscience. If you demonstrate significant financial need, Dartmouth may pay for 100% of your expenses, including student employment or work-study programs.
Dartmouth saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.6% last year.
27. Tufts University
Tuition Cost: $69,146
Located in Medford, Massachusetts, Tufts University is one of the best art schools in America. Even with the higher sticker price, it could be an excellent choice if you have financial need, as Tufts may pay for your entire education if you demonstrate good grades.
Tufts saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.2% last year.
28. Pepperdine
Tuition Cost: $69,130**
Pepperdine is a private university that started in Southern California, but now has several locations worldwide. The undergraduate program offers 46 majors and 47 minors.
This college currently has about 3,600 undergraduate students and 6,300 graduate students.
Pepperdine saw its tuition rise by roughly 5% last year.
29. Reed College
Tuition Cost: $69,040**
Reed College is a Portland, OR liberal arts college that was founded in 1908 (surprisingly making that one of the newer colleges on this list). Reed has roughly 40 bachelor of arts programs, and has a student population of 1,400. They promise small class sizes and a low teacher to student ratio.
Reed College saw its tuition rise by roughly 7% last year.
30. University of Rochester
Tuition Cost: $69,030
University of Rochester is another of the larger colleges on this list. It was founded in 1850, and currently has a student enrollment of 12,000. This college boasts a huge variety of programs, including art and music, engineering, sciences, medicine and dentistry, business, and education. With over 200 academic programs, there are lots of opportunities for students.
University of Rochester saw its tuition rise by roughly 4.8% last year.
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