Cheapest Colleges in Connecticut
Sticker prices at the 19 four-year colleges we rank in Connecticut run from $8,506 to $70,770 a year in tuition and fees, a gap of $62,264 between the cheapest school and the most expensive one.
The 6 public colleges here charge a median of $13,420 a year, $3,480 (35%) above the national public median of $9,940. The 12 private nonprofit colleges on the list charge a median of $52,942, above the $39,582 national private median. Sticker price alone rarely settles the cheapest private option, so check the net price column.
Charter Oak State College ranks first at $8,506, ahead of Central Connecticut State University ($13,050) and Western Connecticut State University ($13,401).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- 4-year colleges whose main award is the bachelor's degree (public, private nonprofit and for-profit)
- Ranked by in-state tuition & fees, 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 Connecticut
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported in-state tuition & fees value (schools without one are not ranked)
- Schools that report no tuition or a $0 price are not ranked
- This page is published only when at least 15 schools qualify; Connecticut has 19
- Data period
- In-state tuition and fees: full-time undergraduate sticker price, academic year 2024-25. Some community colleges report the in-district rate.
- Out-of-state tuition and fees: academic year 2024-25. Shown for public colleges only, because private colleges charge everyone the same price.
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, 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.
- Enrollment: undergraduate students, fall 2024.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing all 19 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Charter Oak State College New Britain, CT Public · 4-year | $8,506 | $8,506 | $15,815 | — | 1,821 |
| 2 | Central Connecticut State University New Britain, CT Public · 4-year | $13,050 | $16,550 | $16,857 | 49% | 7,822 |
| 3 | Western Connecticut State University Danbury, CT Public · 4-year | $13,401 | $16,901 | $17,604 | 51% | 3,511 |
| 4 | Southern Connecticut State University New Haven, CT Public · 4-year | $13,438 | $27,378 | $20,857 | 49% | 6,295 |
| 5 | Eastern Connecticut State University Willimantic, CT Public · 4-year | $13,928 | $17,428 | $21,067 | 58% | 3,418 |
| 6 | Post University Waterbury, CT For-profit · 4-year | $16,327 | — | $21,634 | 29% | 13,603 |
| 7 | University of Connecticut Storrs, CT Public · 4-year | $21,044 | $43,712 | $25,097 | 84% | 19,835 |
| 8 | University of Bridgeport Bridgeport, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $35,760 | — | $27,807 | 45% | 1,534 |
| 9 | Albertus Magnus College New Haven, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $41,908 | — | $34,028 | 49% | 991 |
| 10 | University of Saint Joseph West Hartford, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $47,278 | — | $27,989 | 66% | 838 |
| 11 | University of New Haven West Haven, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $47,332 | — | $34,192 | 61% | 4,841 |
| 12 | University of Hartford West Hartford, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $49,075 | — | $30,282 | 56% | 4,146 |
| 13 | Sacred Heart University Fairfield, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $50,404 | — | $46,174 | 74% | 7,087 |
| 14 | Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $55,480 | — | $40,675 | 77% | 6,531 |
| 15 | Fairfield University Fairfield, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,350 | — | $48,095 | 84% | 5,373 |
| 16 | Connecticut College New London, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $67,242 | — | $36,175 | 83% | 1,937 |
| 17 | Yale University New Haven, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $67,250 | — | $23,777 | 96% | 6,758 |
| 18 | Wesleyan University Middletown, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $70,342 | — | $30,177 | 92% | 3,067 |
| 19 | Trinity College Hartford, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year | $70,770 | — | $34,832 | 83% | 2,146 |
How to compare these colleges
Start with the net price column rather than the sticker price. Net price is the average a student who receives aid pays after grants and scholarships, so a school that ranks lower here can still be the cheaper choice for your family. The out-of-state column applies only if you are not a legal resident of Connecticut, and only public colleges charge a separate rate.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Connecticut
Same list in nearby states
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All 27 colleges in Connecticut See the national version of this ranking