Average Cost of Room & Board Trends (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Historical trends in room and board costs at colleges and universities from 2015 to 2023.
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.
Room & Board Costs
Room & Board Charges
Median room and board is $12,226 where reported (1,948 campuses).
Multi-year room and board charges are not in institution_cost_history_wide.csv or the current Scorecard extract. Only a current cross-section is shown when available.
FAQ
What does the Average Cost of Room & Board Trends (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.
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