Most Affordable Private Colleges in Missouri
Private nonprofit colleges rarely cost what their price tags say. Among the 23 we rank in Missouri, the average net price runs from $6,100 to $27,650 a year, a range of $21,550.
The median net price is $21,983, $1,877 (8%) below the national median of $23,860 for private nonprofit colleges. Median tuition and fees are $30,340, but the median net price, which also counts room, board and books after grants, is $21,983, so aid more than covers the housing and living costs added on top of tuition.
College of the Ozarks ranks first at $6,100, ahead of Avila University ($16,053) and William Jewell College ($17,562).
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 Missouri
- 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; Missouri has 23
- 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 23 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | College of the Ozarks Point Lookout, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $6,100 | $22,320 | $6,381 | 62% | $44,258 |
| 2 | Avila University Kansas City, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $16,053 | $42,000 | $15,694 | 47% | $61,078 |
| 3 | William Jewell College Liberty, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $17,562 | $20,610 | $12,909 | 64% | $66,965 |
| 4 | Missouri Valley College Marshall, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $18,086 | $23,700 | $16,132 | 23% | $49,963 |
| 5 | Evangel University Springfield, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $18,669 | $28,548 | $16,198 | 65% | $46,593 |
| 6 | Lindenwood University Saint Charles, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $19,638 | $21,600 | $15,678 | 50% | $58,207 |
| 7 | Ozark Christian College Joplin, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $20,580 | $16,000 | $17,900 | 66% | $40,563 |
| 8 | Drury University Springfield, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $20,831 | $36,745 | $18,759 | 64% | $47,568 |
| 9 | Park University Parkville, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,032 | $17,500 | $18,687 | 34% | $63,456 |
| 10 | Southwest Baptist University Bolivar, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,677 | $30,566 | $21,978 | 53% | $54,286 |
| 11 | Washington University in St Louis St. Louis, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,786 | $65,790 | $1,716 | 94% | $95,899 |
| 12 | Culver-Stockton College Canton, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $21,983 | $30,875 | $17,712 | 45% | $48,225 |
| 13 | Maryville University of Saint Louis Saint Louis, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,066 | $27,166 | $16,528 | 69% | $84,871 |
| 14 | Columbia College (MO) Columbia, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,715 | $25,826 | $23,967 | 44% | $57,679 |
| 15 | Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Fayette, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $22,766 | $28,260 | $20,260 | 52% | $51,668 |
| 16 | Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Kansas City, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $23,006 | $10,120 | $19,818 | 59% | $62,368 |
| 17 | Westminster College (MO) Fulton, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $24,314 | $35,214 | $24,543 | 56% | $51,238 |
| 18 | Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $24,398 | $55,760 | $22,501 | 80% | $77,024 |
| 19 | Rockhurst University Kansas City, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $25,884 | $44,966 | $22,797 | 75% | $76,125 |
| 20 | William Woods University Fulton, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $26,569 | $30,340 | $24,014 | 52% | $52,367 |
| 21 | Missouri Baptist University Saint Louis, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $27,006 | $34,612 | $21,808 | 48% | $52,550 |
| 22 | Webster University Saint Louis, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $27,047 | $31,750 | $22,359 | 63% | $75,697 |
| 23 | Kansas City Art Institute Kansas City, MO Private nonprofit · 4-year | $27,650 | $44,550 | $26,293 | 62% | $36,640 |
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
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Same list in nearby states
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All 69 colleges in Missouri See the national version of this ranking