Best Value Colleges in Alabama
We estimate how many years the earnings premium over a typical Alabama high school graduate would take to repay four years of net price. Across the 15 public and private nonprofit colleges that qualify, the estimate runs from 1.5 years at the fastest to 8.4 years at the slowest.
The median college needs 2.9 years to repay its net price, 0.3 years faster than the national median of 3.2 years. Public colleges (9) have a median payback of 2.4 years against 5.2 years for the 6 private nonprofit colleges, so public options tend to repay faster here.
University of Alabama in Huntsville ranks first at 1.5 years, ahead of The University of Alabama (2.3 years) and University of Alabama at Birmingham (2.3 years). Payback is an estimate, not a forecast: it assumes four years of net price and the earnings of past graduates, and it says nothing about your own major or career.
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- Public and private nonprofit 4-year colleges
- Ranked by payback, lowest first. Ties are broken by larger undergraduate enrollment, then by name.
- Main campuses only, with at least 60% of core data fields reported
- Main campus located in Alabama
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- Graduation rate of 40% or higher
- A reported payback value (schools without one are not ranked)
- This page is published only when at least 15 schools qualify; Alabama has 15
- Data period
- Payback: years for the earnings premium over a high school graduate in the same state to repay four years of net price (shown only when the premium is at least $2,000).
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, academic year 2023-24.
- Earnings: median earnings four years after completing, measured in 2022 and 2023 for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 cohorts, in 2024 dollars.
- Graduate debt: median federal loan debt of completers, pooled 2020 and 2021 cohorts.
- Graduation rate: first-time, full-time students who started in fall 2018 (4-year) or fall 2021 (2-year), finishing within 150% of normal time.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing all 15 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | University of Alabama in Huntsville Huntsville, AL Public · 4-year | 1.5 years | $18,796 | $81,045 | $20,705 | 63% |
| 2 | The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL Public · 4-year | 2.3 years | $22,420 | $70,439 | $22,750 | 74% |
| 3 | University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL Public · 4-year | 2.3 years | $18,749 | $64,969 | $22,300 | 63% |
| 4 | University of South Alabama Mobile, AL Public · 4-year | 2.3 years | $17,648 | $62,459 | $24,929 | 53% |
| 5 | Auburn University Auburn, AL Public · 4-year | 2.4 years | $24,323 | $73,151 | $21,000 | 81% |
| 6 | Jacksonville State University Jacksonville, AL Public · 4-year | 2.5 years | $14,279 | $55,318 | $22,189 | 53% |
| 7 | University of North Alabama Florence, AL Public · 4-year | 2.6 years | $12,170 | $50,818 | $22,077 | 54% |
| 8 | Troy University Troy, AL Public · 4-year | 2.9 years | $16,527 | $55,048 | $25,000 | 48% |
| 9 | Samford University Birmingham, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 3.8 years | $32,622 | $66,567 | $19,500 | 78% |
| 10 | Tuskegee University Tuskegee, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 3.8 years | $35,013 | $69,077 | $27,000 | 56% |
| 11 | Huntingdon College Montgomery, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 4.8 years | $22,566 | $51,132 | $27,000 | 47% |
| 12 | University of Montevallo Montevallo, AL Public · 4-year | 5.0 years | $17,683 | $46,262 | $24,000 | 52% |
| 13 | Oakwood University Huntsville, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 5.5 years | $25,669 | $50,714 | $27,000 | 47% |
| 14 | University of Mobile Mobile, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 6.1 years | $22,382 | $46,865 | $26,500 | 56% |
| 15 | Talladega College Talladega, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year | 8.4 years | $15,560 | $39,579 | $28,500 | 43% |
How to compare these colleges
Treat the payback column as a way to compare schools, not as a promise about your own future. It uses the average net price, so your own cost may be higher or lower, and it uses median earnings of former students, which depend heavily on major. Check earnings for your intended program on each college profile, and favor schools where the graduation rate is high.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Alabama
Cheapest colleges in Alabama
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Cheap colleges in Alabama for out-of-state students
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Highest graduate earnings in Alabama
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Same list in nearby states
Best value colleges in Florida
45 schools
Best value colleges in Tennessee
29 schools
Best value colleges in Georgia
25 schools
All 34 colleges in Alabama See the national version of this ranking