As a champion of college affordability, OnlineU has been featured in several national and local media outlets, including College Confidential, 425 Business Magazine, and Forbes. OnlineU has been ranking colleges since 2014, and has been recognized as a leader in the higher education space by over 375 schools. Learn more.
2021 Best Affordable Online Colleges
These are the most affordable online bachelor's degrees offered by colleges with high salary outcomes. Every college earned a Salary Score in the top 15% of all schools in the country.
| Rank | School | Annual Tuition | Salary Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excelsior College | $15,300 | 97 | |
| Thomas Edison State University | $9,278 | 94 | |
| Northeastern University Global Network | $16,230 | 93 | |
| American Public University System | $8,550 | 90 | |
| Colorado State University Global | $10,500 | 89 | |
| National University | $16,650 | 88 | |
| Columbia Southern University | $7,050 | 87 | |
| Linfield University-Online and Continuing Education | $15,840 | 87 | |
| University of Massachusetts Global | $15,000 | 86 | |
| University of Maryland Global Campus | $14,970 | 86 |
Our Mission
With student debt nearing $2 trillion, the OnlineU team is dedicated to helping students find affordable college options by providing data-driven resources and in-depth content. Each year, our team of data specialists research over 40,000 online degrees and their tuition rates, which we turn into our Most Affordable Online College rankings. College tuition should be straightforward, accurate, and easy to compare. We do the hard work so that you don't have to.
By providing this data that is easy to use, but hard to find elsewhere, we hope to empower more people to make the most out of their college degree without a large financial burden.
2021 Most Affordable Online Colleges by Major
We have rankings for over 170 majors and degree programs at the associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels. Every tuition was manually collected and is specific to the program and level.
| # 1 | Aspen University Annual tuition: $4,500 |
| # 2 | California Coast University Annual tuition: $4,725 |
| # 3 | Clayton State University Annual tuition: $5,490 |
| # 1 | Metropolitan State University Annual tuition: $4,037 |
| # 2 | California Coast University Annual tuition: $4,725 |
| # 3 | Fort Valley State University Annual tuition: $5,363 |
| # 1 | Middle Georgia State University Annual tuition: $3,825 |
| # 2 | Georgia Institute of Technology Annual tuition: $4,125 |
| # 3 | The University of West Florida Annual tuition: $4,250 |
| # 1 | Lamar University Annual tuition: $7,440 |
| # 2 | University of the Potomac Annual tuition: $7,785 |
| # 3 | American Public University System Annual tuition: $8,640 |
| # 1 | Western Carolina University Annual tuition: $5,670 |
| # 2 | Fort Hays State University Annual tuition: $6,778 |
| # 3 | Abraham Lincoln University Annual tuition: $7,500 |
| # 1 | Georgia Southwestern State University Annual tuition: $3,855 |
| # 2 | Valdosta State University Annual tuition: $4,395 |
| # 3 | California Coast University Annual tuition: $4,485 |
| # 1 | Saint Leo University Online Annual tuition: $5,610 |
| # 2 | University of Missouri Annual tuition: $7,720 |
| # 3 | West Virginia University Annual tuition: $9,594 |
| # 1 | University of Southern Indiana Annual tuition: $5,105 |
| # 2 | Middle Georgia State University Annual tuition: $5,610 |
| # 3 | Stephen F. Austin State University Annual tuition: $6,060 |
| # 1 | Tallahassee Community College Annual tuition: $2,570 |
| # 2 | Florida SouthWestern State College Annual tuition: $2,753 |
| # 3 | East Georgia State College Annual tuition: $2,850 |