Average Cost of Community College (2026 stats)
Executive Summary (TL;DR)
Analysis of community college costs including tuition and net price by state.
Key Facts
- Data analysis based on College Scorecard 2024 data.
Download the data
Downloads reflect the processed dataset used to generate this page’s charts and tables.
Top 10 States
State-Level Variation
Top 10 states by average cost of community college. Source: College Scorecard (2024 data).
Data by State
| State | In-State Tuition | Net Price |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $6,237.83 | $7,178.17 |
| Arkansas | $7,888 | $9,653 |
| American Samoa | $5,300 | $3,443 |
| Arizona | $1,562.67 | $6,269.33 |
| California | $1,334.44 | $10,336.12 |
| Colorado | $4,800.50 | $4,936.25 |
| Connecticut | $5,338 | $9,195 |
| District of Columbia | $8,636 | $9,519 |
| Delaware | $5,445 | $8,401 |
| Florida | $2,857.71 | $6,098.57 |
| Federated States of Micronesia | $5,050 | $6,844 |
| Georgia | $3,978 | $9,208 |
| Guam | $3,414 | $4,527 |
| Hawaii | $3,225.67 | $7,519.17 |
| Iowa | $6,587 | $12,226.40 |
| Idaho | $3,635 | $7,965.50 |
| Illinois | $4,796 | $5,605.73 |
| Kansas | $3,284.67 | $8,844.17 |
| Louisiana | $4,880 | $7,787 |
| Massachusetts | $6,407.19 | $7,046.38 |
| Maryland | $4,376.40 | $7,795.67 |
| Maine | $4,153.33 | $7,071.67 |
| Marshall Islands | $6,840 | $11,486 |
| Michigan | $4,924.93 | $6,255.50 |
| Minnesota | $6,303.22 | $16,130.83 |
| Missouri | $5,071.14 | $10,121.36 |
| Northern Mariana Islands | $4,038 | $1,509 |
| Mississippi | $4,239.79 | $5,298.71 |
| Montana | $3,965.91 | $7,202.82 |
| North Carolina | $2,441.03 | $5,622.33 |
| North Dakota | $5,496.25 | $9,717.88 |
| Nebraska | $4,374 | $9,422.71 |
| New Hampshire | $7,455 | $9,299.50 |
| New Jersey | $5,895.21 | $8,353.47 |
| New Mexico | $3,008.70 | $5,323.50 |
| Nevada | $4,510 | $7,341 |
| New York | $6,577.60 | $8,080.80 |
| Ohio | $6,908.81 | $10,305.74 |
| Oklahoma | $5,338.33 | $10,921.87 |
| Oregon | $6,115.86 | $10,031.43 |
| Pennsylvania | $7,414.78 | $9,452.24 |
| Puerto Rico | $2,904.40 | $4,963 |
| Palau | $3,730 | $1,947 |
| Rhode Island | $5,868 | $5,861 |
| South Carolina | $6,483 | $10,176.57 |
| South Dakota | $6,299.29 | $8,660.14 |
| Tennessee | $5,010.85 | $7,206.77 |
| Texas | $3,120.43 | $6,262.79 |
| Utah | $5,570 | $10,373.75 |
| Virginia | $5,946.50 | $7,834 |
| Vermont | $7,160 | $9,952 |
| Washington | $5,286.77 | $17,198.81 |
| Wisconsin | $6,030 | $8,000 |
| West Virginia | $4,812.30 | $6,385.89 |
| Wyoming | $4,713.29 | $8,968.71 |
FAQ
What does the Average Cost of Community College (2026 stats) dataset measure?
It summarizes the metrics shown on this page (charts and tables) using the sources listed in the Data Sources section, with national aggregates and breakdowns where available.
What is the primary data source?
College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education). Some pages also incorporate Census ACS context where noted.
How often is this page updated?
Pages update when the underlying processed datasets are refreshed and the HTML is regenerated; the Last updated date reflects the most recent build.
Analysis & insights
According to EDsmart Data's analysis of average cost of community college (2026 stats) and the cited sources, the charts describe historical records, not future outcomes. National aggregates flatten real variation—Ohio, Georgia, and Washington can look like different worlds. Skewed distributions split the median and the mean into different stories. Program, year, and campus still matter more than any single national line.
Patterns may line up with state policy, labor markets, or mission; association is easy to spot, causation is not. Populous states weigh heavily in national totals. Campus-level detail for a given year lives in the College Scorecard or IPEDS. Suppressed cells in federal releases can move medians in thin markets. Small changes between data refreshes are normal for living files.
Data Sources
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and enrollment data
- Data year: 2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Census ACS - U.S. Census Bureau
- Demographic and workforce data
- Data year: 2023
- Source: census.gov