Community Colleges in Pennsylvania
16 community colleges in Pennsylvania meet our size floor, charging between $4,632 and $18,240 a year in tuition and fees, a difference of $13,608 between the cheapest and the priciest.
The median college charges $6,540, $1,994 (44%) above the national community college median of $4,546. The median net price is $9,331, above the median tuition, because net price also counts books, transportation and living costs that tuition leaves out. That is why a community college can show a net price higher than its sticker price.
Community College of Philadelphia ranks first at $4,632, ahead of Community College of Allegheny County ($4,842) and Lehigh Carbon Community College ($5,280).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- Public community colleges and state colleges whose main award is the associate degree
- 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 Pennsylvania
- 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
- State colleges that also grant a few bachelor's degrees but mostly award associate degrees are included and marked in the table
- This page is published only when at least 10 schools qualify; Pennsylvania has 16
- 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 16 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Community College of Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA Public · 2-year | $4,632 | $12,744 | $11,911 | 22% | 11,948 |
| 2 | Community College of Allegheny County Pittsburgh, PA Public · 2-year | $4,842 | $12,583 | $13,970 | 24% | 9,544 |
| 3 | Lehigh Carbon Community College Schnecksville, PA Public · 2-year | $5,280 | $13,270 | $9,203 | 29% | 4,148 |
| 4 | Northampton County Area Community College Bethlehem, PA Public · 2-year | $5,550 | $15,270 | $12,119 | 22% | 7,667 |
| 5 | Bucks County Community College Newtown, PA Public · 2-year | $5,683 | $13,963 | $6,389 | 30% | 5,289 |
| 6 | Butler County Community College Butler, PA Public · 2-year | $5,910 | $12,000 | $6,233 | 34% | 1,789 |
| 7 | Westmoreland County Community College Youngwood, PA Public · 2-year | $6,018 | $14,424 | $5,167 | 28% | 2,441 |
| 8 | Reading Area Community College Reading, PA Public · 2-year | $6,480 | $12,510 | $9,228 | 30% | 3,703 |
| 9 | Luzerne County Community College Nanticoke, PA Public · 2-year | $6,600 | $16,260 | $9,433 | 22% | 3,317 |
| 10 | Montgomery County Community College Blue Bell, PA Public · 2-year | $6,690 | $17,250 | $11,124 | 26% | 7,301 |
| 11 | Delaware County Community College Media, PA Public · 2-year | $6,930 | $15,540 | $6,576 | 22% | 6,861 |
| 12 | Harrisburg Area Community College Harrisburg, PA Public · 2-year | $6,975 | $12,472 | $14,471 | 21% | 9,533 |
| 13 | Pennsylvania Highlands Community College Johnstown, PA Public · 2-year | $7,110 | $13,350 | $6,200 | 39% | 788 |
| 14 | Community College of Beaver County Monaca, PA Public · 2-year | $7,500 | $20,700 | $6,937 | 17% | 1,247 |
| 15 | Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology Lancaster, PA Public · 2-year | $9,050 | $9,050 | $14,104 | 65% | 1,446 |
| 16 | Pennsylvania College of Technology Williamsport, PA Public · Also grants some bachelor's degrees | $18,240 | $25,980 | $25,110 | 52% | 4,464 |
How to compare these colleges
Community college tuition is often quoted at the in-district or in-state rate, and the out-of-state column shows what a nonresident would pay. Colleges marked as also granting some bachelor's degrees are state colleges that mostly award associate degrees. If you plan to transfer, check the receiving university's transfer agreements before choosing on price alone.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Pennsylvania
Cheapest colleges in Pennsylvania
83 schools
Cheap colleges in Pennsylvania for out-of-state students
30 schools
Best value colleges in Pennsylvania
80 schools
Highest graduate earnings in Pennsylvania
85 schools
Most affordable private colleges in Pennsylvania
70 schools
Same list in nearby states
Community colleges in New York
39 schools
Community colleges in New Jersey
18 schools
Community colleges in Maryland
14 schools
All 147 colleges in Pennsylvania See the national version of this ranking