Top 50 National Universities Tuition Comparison

A national university is a 4-years (or high) school that offers diverse areas of major programs for both undergraduate and graduate programs such as University of California and Princeton University.

Here, we introduce the 2023 Top 50 National Universities and compare them with admission and tuition information. Stanford University ranks first in Top 50 National Universities ranking and Harvard University is placed in second. (Ranking data from College Evaluator)

Academic Comparison Between Top 50 National Universities

10 public and 40 private schools are included in the Top 50 National Universities ranking. The average acceptance rate of the schools is 19.10% where Harvard University has the tightest acceptance rate of 3.00% and Brigham Young University has the highest rate of 67.00%.

The average SAT score of the schools is 1,485 where Massachusetts Institute of Technology has the highest SAT score of 1,560. Total 1,122,942 students are attending the Top 50 National Universities where New York University is the largest with 58,226 students and California Institute of Technology is the smallest with 2,397 students.

The average graduation rate is 90.88% and the average students to faculty ratio is 10.16:1 at those colleges.

The following table compares the key academic facts between the Top 50 National Universities with acceptance rate, SAT scores, graduation rates, student population, and students to faculty ratio.

Table. Top 50 National Universities Key Academic Facts

Rank	Name	Acceptance Rate	SAT Score	Graduation Rate	Population	Student-Faculty Ratio
1	Stanford University Stanford, CA	4.00%	1,550	96%	17,680	5:1
2	Harvard University Cambridge, MA	3.00%	1,550	97%	31,345	7:1
3	Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA	4.00%	1,560	96%	11,934	3:1
4	Princeton University Princeton, NJ	6.00%	1,540	98%	8,478	5:1
5	Yale University New Haven, CT	5.00%	1,540	97%	14,567	6:1
6	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY	4.00%	1,530	97%	33,776	6:1
7	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	7.00%	1,540	96%	28,038	6:1
8	California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA	3.00%	-	93%	2,397	3:1
9	University of Chicago Chicago, IL	5.00%	1,540	96%	18,832	5:1
10	Duke University Durham, NC	6.00%	1,550	96%	17,620	6:1
11	Dartmouth College Hanover, NH	6.00%	1,550	94%	6,761	7:1
12	Northwestern University Evanston, IL	7.00%	1,530	95%	23,409	6:1
13	Brown University Providence, RI	5.00%	1,540	96%	10,696	6:1
14	Georgetown University Washington, DC	12.00%	1,500	95%	20,935	11:1
15	Rice University Houston, TX	9.00%	1,540	92%	8,285	6:1
16	Cornell University Ithaca, NY	7.00%	1,530	94%	25,582	9:1
17	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	7.00%	1,530	93%	13,796	8:1
18	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA	11.00%	1,540	93%	15,057	5:1
19	University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN	13.00%	1,510	96%	13,139	9:1
20	Tufts University Medford, MA	10.00%	1,510	94%	13,293	10:1
21	Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO	12.00%	1,530	93%	16,973	7:1
22	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD	7.00%	1,550	95%	32,049	6:1
23	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA	12.00%	1,520	92%	49,318	9:1
24	New York University New York, NY	12.00%	1,530	87%	58,226	8:1
25	Emory University Atlanta, GA	11.00%	1,500	90%	14,779	9:1
26	Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA	11.00%	1,450	86%	14,047	8:1
27	Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA	17.00%	1,490	91%	15,577	14:1
28	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA	17.00%	1,480	92%	43,859	14:1
29	Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA	37.00%	1,410	87%	7,263	10:1
30	Boston University Boston, MA	14.00%	1,440	89%	36,104	11:1
31	University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA	19.00%	1,490	94%	26,005	15:1
32	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX	31.00%	1,370	88%	51,991	17:1
33	Northeastern University Boston, MA	7.00%	1,500	91%	28,167	15:1
34	Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH	27.00%	1,490	84%	12,142	9:1
35	Villanova University Villanova, PA	23.00%	1,440	91%	10,870	11:1
36	University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA	11.00%	-	93%	45,036	20:1
37	University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	9.00%	-	92%	46,116	18:1
38	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	67.00%	1,360	77%	34,811	21:1
39	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	19.00%	1,390	84%	19,096	13:1
40	George Washington University Washington, DC	49.00%	1,410	84%	26,457	12:1
41	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC	17.00%	1,460	90%	31,641	15:1
42	University of Rochester Rochester, NY	39.00%	1,470	86%	12,039	10:1
43	Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO	58.00%	1,400	83%	7,187	16:1
44	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	23.00%	1,390	91%	55,781	17:1
45	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI	18.00%	1,470	94%	50,278	12:1
46	Pepperdine University Malibu, CA	49.00%	1,390	83%	10,446	13:1
47	Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ	46.00%	1,450	87%	8,287	12:1
48	Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL	61.00%	1,310	71%	6,486	12:1
49	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY	65.00%	1,450	84%	6,774	13:1
50	William & Mary Williamsburg, VA	33.00%	1,460	91%	9,517	12:1
	Average	19.10%	1,485	90.88%	1,122,942 (Total)	10.16:1

Top 50 National Universities 2023 Tuition Comparison and 2024 Estimated Costs

The following table lists 2022-2023 tuition & fees and compares them between Top 50 National Universities. The 2022-2023 costs are officially published by NCES, National Center for Education Statistics.

The estimated costs for the academic year 2023-2024 are estimated based on each school's rate of tuition change from 2022 to 2023.

For the undergraduate programs, the average tuition & fees of Top 50 National Universities is $56,251 where Columbia University in the City of New York has the most expensive costs at $66,139 and Brigham Young University has the lowest amount of tuition at $6,304.

The average graduate tuition & fees of Top 50 National Universities is $46,090 where University of Chicago has the highest tuition with $66,492 and Brigham Young University has the lowest amount of graduate school tuition with $7,932.

UndergraduateGraduate Living Costs

Table. Top 50 National Universities 2023 Undergraduate Tuition Comparison and 2024 Estimation

Rank	School Name	2023 Tuition & Fees		2024 Estimated Tuition & Fees
		In-State	Out-of-State	In-State	Out-of-State
1	Stanford University	$58,416		$60,753
2	Harvard University	$57,261		$58,985
3	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	$57,986		$60,174
4	Princeton University	$57,410		$58,845
5	Yale University	$62,250		$64,638
6	Columbia University in the City of New York	$66,139		$70,028
7	University of Pennsylvania	$63,452		$65,243
8	California Institute of Technology	$60,864		$63,129
9	University of Chicago	$64,260		$67,735
10	Duke University	$62,688		$65,231
11	Dartmouth College	$62,658		$64,735
12	Northwestern University	$63,468		$66,288
13	Brown University	$65,146		$68,118
14	Georgetown University	$62,052		$64,220
15	Rice University	$54,960		$57,106
16	Cornell University	$63,200		$65,463
17	Vanderbilt University	$60,348		$63,931
18	Carnegie Mellon University	$61,344		$64,300
19	University of Notre Dame	$60,301		$61,795
20	Tufts University	$65,222		$67,522
21	Washington University in St Louis	$60,590		$62,364
22	Johns Hopkins University	$60,480		$62,293
23	University of Southern California	$64,726		$68,118
24	New York University	$58,168		$59,885
25	Emory University	$57,948		$60,539
26	Tulane University of Louisiana	$62,844		$64,942
27	Boston College	$64,176		$66,745
28	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus	$11,764	$32,876	$10,768	$31,823
29	Lehigh University	$59,930		$62,495
30	Boston University	$62,360		$65,012
31	University of Virginia-Main Campus	$20,342	$55,914	$20,915	$57,430
32	The University of Texas at Austin	$11,698	$41,070	$11,644	$41,144
33	Northeastern University	$60,192		$62,909
34	Case Western Reserve University	$61,584		$69,548
35	Villanova University	$61,618		$64,330
36	University of California-Berkeley	$14,395	$44,467	$14,566	$44,959
37	University of California-Los Angeles	$13,401	$43,473	$13,546	$43,939
38	Brigham Young University	$6,304		$6,494
39	University of Miami	$57,194		$59,736
40	George Washington University	$62,200		$66,723
41	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	$8,989	$37,550	$8,950	$38,221
42	University of Rochester	$61,678		$64,067
43	Colorado School of Mines	$20,040	$42,120	$20,555	$43,442
44	University of Florida	$6,381	$28,659	$6,381	$28,659
45	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	$16,736	$55,334	$16,291	$55,572
46	Pepperdine University	$63,142		$66,780
47	Stevens Institute of Technology	$58,624		$60,379
48	Illinois Institute of Technology	$50,640		$50,906
49	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	$60,074		$61,663
50	William & Mary	$23,970	$47,196	$24,129	$47,355
	Average	$14,772	$56,251	$14,774	$58,334

Table. Top 50 National Universities 2023 Graduate School Tuition Comparison and 2024 Estimation

Rank	School Name	2023 Tuition & Fees		2024 Estimated Tuition & Fees
		In-State	Out-of-State	In-State	Out-of-State
1	Stanford University	$57,210		$59,497
2	Harvard University	$53,760		$55,398
3	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	$61,075		$63,258
4	Princeton University	$60,410		$62,075
5	Yale University	$46,900		$48,132
6	Columbia University in the City of New York	$54,627		$56,385
7	University of Pennsylvania	$44,162		$45,427
8	California Institute of Technology	$60,657		$62,955
9	University of Chicago	$66,492		$69,150
10	Duke University	$61,522		$63,999
11	Dartmouth College	$61,056		$62,882
12	Northwestern University	$53,024		$49,703
13	Brown University	$63,866		$65,700
14	Georgetown University	$57,049		$59,037
15	Rice University	$52,342		$54,858
16	Cornell University	$30,019		$30,032
17	Vanderbilt University	$53,722		$55,329
18	Carnegie Mellon University	$48,557		$49,798
19	University of Notre Dame	$60,116		$61,606
20	Tufts University	$55,280		$55,344
21	Washington University in St Louis	$60,590		$62,983
22	Johns Hopkins University	$62,962		$64,773
23	University of Southern California	$64,666		$68,110
24	New York University	$39,592		$41,028
25	Emory University	$46,700		$47,739
26	Tulane University of Louisiana	$63,244		$65,431
27	Boston College	$34,028		$35,386
28	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus	$15,570	$30,646	$15,570	$14,461
29	Lehigh University	$27,200		$27,270
30	Boston University	$61,924		$64,536
31	University of Virginia-Main Campus	$21,742	$34,832	$21,742	$22,611
32	The University of Texas at Austin	$12,036	$22,952	$12,036	$12,022
33	Northeastern University	$27,009		$27,955
34	Case Western Reserve University	$50,878		$52,402
35	Villanova University	$21,307		$21,416
36	University of California-Berkeley	$14,476	$29,578	$14,476	$14,799
37	University of California-Los Angeles	$13,322	$28,424	$13,322	$13,614
38	Brigham Young University	$7,932		$8,171
39	University of Miami	$42,816		$44,673
40	George Washington University	$33,984		$35,099
41	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	$12,527	$30,819	$12,527	$12,488
42	University of Rochester	$42,668		$38,294
43	Colorado School of Mines	$20,196	$42,138	$20,196	$20,883
44	University of Florida	$12,737	$30,130	$12,737	$12,737
45	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	$26,226	$52,456	$26,226	$27,261
46	Pepperdine University	$39,720		$42,161
47	Stevens Institute of Technology	$40,940		$42,372
48	Illinois Institute of Technology	$35,721		$41,399
49	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	$61,673		$63,365
50	William & Mary	$16,776	$35,136	$16,776	$16,936
	Average	$16,561	$46,090	$16,781	$47,341