Most Affordable Private Colleges in California
Private nonprofit colleges rarely cost what their price tags say. Among the 50 we rank in California, the average net price runs from $13,630 to $58,098 a year, a range of $44,468.
The median net price is $30,237, $6,377 (27%) above the national median of $23,860 for private nonprofit colleges. Median tuition and fees are $53,072, but the median net price, which also counts room, board and books after grants, is $30,237, so aid more than covers the housing and living costs added on top of tuition.
Fresno Pacific University ranks first at $13,630, ahead of Stanford University ($13,807) and California Institute of Technology ($16,075).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- Private nonprofit 4-year colleges whose main award is the bachelor's degree
- Ranked by net price, 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 California
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported net price value (schools without one are not ranked)
- This page is published only when at least 15 schools qualify; California has 50
- Data period
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, academic year 2023-24.
- Tuition and fees: full-time undergraduate sticker price, academic year 2024-25 (the same for in-state and out-of-state students).
- Net price by income: students with family income of $0 to $30,000, academic year 2023-24.
- 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.
- Earnings: median earnings four years after completing, measured in 2022 and 2023 for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 cohorts, in 2024 dollars.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing all 50 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Fresno Pacific University Fresno, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $13,630 | $36,660 | $11,133 | 53% | $63,285 |
| 2 | Stanford University Stanford, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $13,807 | $65,910 | — | 92% | $136,959 |
| 3 | California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $16,075 | $65,898 | — | 94% | $152,843 |
| 4 | Pomona College Claremont, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $19,285 | $65,420 | $4,841 | 93% | $77,544 |
| 5 | University of La Verne La Verne, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $20,161 | $49,470 | — | 64% | $64,109 |
| 6 | Vanguard University of Southern California Costa Mesa, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,241 | $41,700 | $17,225 | 56% | $65,874 |
| 7 | Mount Saint Mary's University Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,413 | $49,564 | $23,849 | 53% | $79,546 |
| 8 | Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,212 | $44,458 | $15,781 | 63% | $71,925 |
| 9 | Reach University Oakland, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,423 | $12,374 | $22,997 | — | — |
| 10 | Los Angeles Pacific University Glendora, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,677 | $12,360 | $23,408 | 29% | $68,736 |
| 11 | National University San Diego, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,878 | $13,284 | $21,554 | 42% | $81,115 |
| 12 | CBD College Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $23,033 | — | — | 72% | $54,889 |
| 13 | University of the Pacific Stockton, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $25,447 | $57,080 | $17,004 | 68% | $81,820 |
| 14 | Whittier College Whittier, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $25,757 | $51,350 | $21,718 | 62% | $57,988 |
| 15 | Thomas Aquinas College Santa Paula, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $26,196 | $30,200 | $19,761 | 83% | $49,755 |
| 16 | California Baptist University Riverside, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $26,285 | $41,228 | $22,298 | 61% | $68,600 |
| 17 | Casa Loma College-Los Angeles Sherman Oaks, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $27,596 | — | $25,094 | 69% | $72,581 |
| 18 | Simpson University Redding, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $27,817 | $39,708 | $25,511 | 45% | $59,198 |
| 19 | William Jessup University Rocklin, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $28,062 | $37,150 | $23,123 | 58% | $55,374 |
| 20 | Concordia University-Irvine Irvine, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $28,115 | $43,480 | $25,431 | 60% | $83,064 |
| 21 | Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $28,849 | $67,980 | $15,308 | 93% | $110,798 |
| 22 | Westmont College Santa Barbara, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,053 | $53,584 | $20,899 | 70% | $64,044 |
| 23 | Hope International University Fullerton, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,310 | $38,050 | $27,991 | 48% | $53,687 |
| 24 | University of Redlands Redlands, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $30,031 | $60,878 | $28,287 | 69% | $75,863 |
| 25 | California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $30,109 | $52,560 | $22,161 | 72% | $69,695 |
| 26 | University of San Diego San Diego, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $30,365 | $59,486 | $15,586 | 83% | $85,309 |
| 27 | Saint Mary's College of California Moraga, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $30,378 | $57,803 | $19,462 | 70% | $74,325 |
| 28 | Menlo College Atherton, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $31,100 | $53,630 | $25,546 | 52% | $79,903 |
| 29 | Biola University La Mirada, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $31,495 | $48,984 | $27,144 | 68% | $61,363 |
| 30 | The Master's University and Seminary Santa Clarita, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $32,647 | $39,020 | $24,624 | 66% | $55,487 |
| 31 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $32,740 | $72,097 | $13,516 | 92% | $95,739 |
| 32 | Woodbury University Burbank, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $33,692 | $47,056 | $28,815 | 58% | $66,794 |
| 33 | Pitzer College Claremont, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $34,191 | $65,192 | $14,535 | 83% | $69,786 |
| 34 | Dominican University of California San Rafael, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $35,333 | $52,161 | $24,572 | 77% | $95,437 |
| 35 | Harvey Mudd College Claremont, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $35,924 | $68,613 | $27,979 | 93% | $137,100 |
| 36 | Scripps College Claremont, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $36,294 | $65,950 | $6,948 | 85% | $75,301 |
| 37 | Occidental College Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $38,263 | $66,274 | $20,705 | 83% | $68,467 |
| 38 | Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $38,729 | $46,250 | $30,999 | 76% | $72,880 |
| 39 | Pacific Union College Angwin, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $41,008 | $37,173 | — | 55% | $88,027 |
| 40 | University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $41,431 | $60,492 | $31,537 | 71% | $91,483 |
| 41 | Laguna College of Art and Design Laguna Beach, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $42,505 | $37,500 | $37,203 | 57% | $48,922 |
| 42 | La Sierra University Riverside, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $45,566 | $37,710 | $44,988 | 64% | $57,898 |
| 43 | California Institute of the Arts Valencia, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $46,080 | $58,996 | $26,686 | 65% | $35,256 |
| 44 | Chapman University Orange, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $46,555 | $64,984 | $33,559 | 81% | $73,336 |
| 45 | Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $48,381 | $62,357 | $32,268 | 79% | $78,039 |
| 46 | Art Center College of Design Pasadena, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $48,661 | $54,170 | $39,645 | 81% | $74,009 |
| 47 | Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $50,062 | $61,293 | $22,985 | 88% | $108,517 |
| 48 | Otis College of Art and Design Los Angeles, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $51,248 | $56,488 | $44,731 | 64% | $50,900 |
| 49 | California College of the Arts San Francisco, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $53,909 | $60,226 | $61,407 | 62% | $53,517 |
| 50 | Pepperdine University Malibu, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,098 | $69,918 | $50,560 | 84% | $84,459 |
How to compare these colleges
Do not rule out a private college because of its sticker price. Private colleges often discount heavily, and the net price shown here is what students who receive aid pay on average, including housing and books. Your own offer depends on your family income and the school's aid policy, so run each college's net price calculator and compare actual award letters.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for California
Cheapest colleges in California
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Cheap colleges in California for out-of-state students
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Community colleges in California
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Best value colleges in California
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Highest graduate earnings in California
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Same list in nearby states
Most affordable private colleges in New York
78 schools
Most affordable private colleges in Pennsylvania
70 schools
Most affordable private colleges in Massachusetts
47 schools
All 232 colleges in California See the national version of this ranking