U.S. Trade School Profiles by State (2026 stats)
National medians and a directory of every state trade and vocational profile—net price, completion, earnings, employment outcomes, and top trade schools and community colleges. Browse the states hub for college and trade-school links together, or compare with our college state profiles for degree-granting institutions.
TL;DR
Trade school profiles aggregate College Scorecard certificate-predominant trade schools and public community colleges into state-level net price, completion, earnings, and ROI benchmarks. National medians: $14,215 net price, $34,950 earnings at 10 years.
National medians (cross-state)
- Trade and vocational campuses in this series: 3,277
- Cross-state median net price: $14,215
- Cross-state median 10-yr earnings: $34,950
- Cross-state median employment proxy (8 yr): 80.5%
All trade school profiles by state
| State | Campuses | Median net price | Earnings (10 yr) | Completion | Working (8 yr) | Net price rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 42 | $12,609 | $32,912 | 41.2% | 83.5% | #18 |
| Alaska | 6 | $16,392 | $44,008 | 84.4% | 81.9% | #38 |
| Arizona | 72 | $17,578 | $36,857 | 68.4% | 79.2% | #44 |
| Arkansas | 49 | $11,698 | $33,603 | 54.5% | 81.6% | #13 |
| California | 389 | $17,848 | $38,317 | 68.1% | 81.4% | #45 |
| Colorado | 46 | $15,132 | $38,868 | 72.4% | 80.3% | #32 |
| Connecticut | 22 | $17,469 | $40,014 | 72.0% | 21.2% | #41 |
| Delaware | 10 | $14,839 | $31,204 | 60.5% | 83.7% | #30 |
| District of Columbia | 6 | $17,528 | $26,398 | 51.0% | 78.0% | #43 |
| Florida | 201 | $16,252 | $33,026 | 74.0% | 76.2% | #35 |
| Georgia | 73 | $14,247 | $31,164 | 47.8% | 80.4% | #27 |
| Hawaii | 12 | $9,652 | $38,439 | 47.5% | 78.3% | #7 |
| Idaho | 22 | $18,788 | $25,945 | 73.4% | 79.2% | #48 |
| Illinois | 125 | $12,278 | $34,867 | 59.5% | 85.0% | #16 |
| Indiana | 47 | $19,470 | $29,985 | 66.7% | 82.7% | #49 |
| Iowa | 40 | $13,566 | $39,060 | 62.8% | 87.5% | #22 |
| Kansas | 42 | $12,039 | $40,244 | 55.2% | 87.3% | #15 |
| Kentucky | 47 | $14,068 | $30,060 | 56.4% | 80.0% | #25 |
| Louisiana | 75 | $14,183 | $29,834 | 59.4% | 82.9% | #26 |
| Maine | 12 | $10,007 | $41,661 | 48.7% | 10.4% | #8 |
| Maryland | 43 | $16,286 | $36,748 | 40.0% | 81.6% | #36 |
| Massachusetts | 54 | $17,050 | $43,266 | 73.7% | 13.1% | #39 |
| Michigan | 107 | $17,263 | $30,060 | 61.8% | 83.2% | #40 |
| Minnesota | 43 | $13,548 | $45,158 | 48.7% | 88.0% | #21 |
| Mississippi | 33 | $8,616 | $31,420 | 52.1% | 84.8% | #5 |
| Missouri | 65 | $15,417 | $35,071 | 73.0% | 84.7% | #33 |
| Montana | 15 | $10,405 | $30,528 | 44.7% | 82.6% | #9 |
| Nebraska | 17 | $14,639 | $38,729 | 60.4% | 85.9% | #28 |
| Nevada | 24 | $21,847 | $32,493 | 73.2% | 80.6% | #51 |
| New Hampshire | 13 | $14,804 | $44,700 | 61.5% | 10.9% | #29 |
| New Jersey | 81 | $18,708 | $38,020 | 63.9% | 79.7% | #47 |
| New Mexico | 32 | $6,524 | $37,437 | 33.0% | 79.3% | #2 |
| New York | 158 | $16,348 | $40,114 | 74.2% | 41.3% | #37 |
| North Carolina | 87 | $7,890 | $33,330 | 46.9% | 79.0% | #3 |
| North Dakota | 14 | $10,766 | $31,788 | 57.4% | 86.3% | #11 |
| Ohio | 166 | $14,958 | $37,584 | 71.4% | 84.9% | #31 |
| Oklahoma | 68 | $10,478 | $34,457 | 72.4% | 79.2% | #10 |
| Oregon | 43 | $12,380 | $36,845 | 63.9% | 78.8% | #17 |
| Pennsylvania | 146 | $17,864 | $38,744 | 69.6% | 82.6% | #46 |
| Puerto Rico | 64 | $6,146 | $20,854 | 68.7% | 67.5% | #1 |
| Rhode Island | 8 | $21,660 | $37,286 | 79.8% | 39.3% | #50 |
| South Carolina | 48 | $14,029 | $31,360 | 50.7% | 80.4% | #24 |
| South Dakota | 11 | $13,840 | $31,694 | 76.3% | 85.8% | #23 |
| Tennessee | 84 | $12,684 | $34,811 | 71.6% | 80.8% | #19 |
| Texas | 249 | $17,498 | $33,193 | 67.5% | 82.6% | #42 |
| Utah | 44 | $16,134 | $35,032 | 83.6% | 77.5% | #34 |
| Vermont | 3 | $24,129 | $36,234 | 66.7% | 13.0% | #52 |
| Virginia | 70 | $11,928 | $33,772 | 50.0% | 79.7% | #14 |
| Washington | 59 | $11,010 | $43,499 | 73.7% | 79.3% | #12 |
| West Virginia | 43 | $8,095 | $33,511 | 75.0% | 79.6% | #4 |
| Wisconsin | 38 | $12,912 | $32,393 | 56.9% | 87.0% | #20 |
| Wyoming | 9 | $9,346 | $40,706 | 51.8% | 83.8% | #6 |
Data sources
- College Scorecard — certificate-predominant trade schools and public community colleges; costs, completion, earnings, employment proxy
- Census ACS & BLS OEWS — workforce context on state profiles where available
FAQ
What are EDsmart Data trade school profiles?
EDsmart Data trade school profiles aggregate U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard certificate-predominant trade schools and public community colleges into state-level net price, completion, earnings, employment-outcome proxies, and top-campus rankings—compared to national medians on this hub.
Which states have the lowest trade school net price?
EDsmart Data ranks states by median net price among reporting trade schools and community colleges. Use the state directory table on this page to sort by net price, earnings, completion, and net-price rank; individual state profiles include peer comparisons and downloadable JSON.
What is the national median trade school net price and earnings?
EDsmart Data cross-state medians on this hub show median net price of $14K, median 10-year campus earnings of $35K, and a median employment-outcome proxy of 80.5% at eight years after entry. This series covers 3,277 trade and vocational campuses. Figures update with each College Scorecard refresh.
Can I download trade school data by state?
Yes. Each state trade school profile links to a JSON download with benchmarks, top-campus lists, and peer tables. Compare with our college state profiles at /colleges/ for degree-granting institutions.