Cheap Colleges in Washington for Out-of-State Students
Out-of-state students pay between $4,365 and $43,209 a year in tuition and fees at the 32 public colleges and universities we rank in Washington, a gap of $38,844 between the cheapest and the most expensive. This list ranks the non-resident price, not the in-state price.
The median public college charges nonresidents $8,287, $4,499 (35%) below the national median of $12,786 for public colleges. Residents pay a median of $5,267, so the typical out-of-state premium is only $3,020 here, a ratio of 1.6 to 1.
Northwest Indian College ranks first at $4,365, ahead of Green River College ($5,263) and Highline College ($5,332).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- All public colleges and universities, 4-year and 2-year (community colleges and state colleges included)
- Ranked by out-of-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 Washington
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported out-of-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; Washington has 32
- Data period
- Out-of-state tuition and fees: academic year 2024-25. Shown for public colleges only, because private colleges charge everyone the same price.
- In-state tuition and fees: full-time undergraduate sticker price, academic year 2024-25. Some community colleges report the in-district rate.
- 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 32 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Northwest Indian College Bellingham, WA Public · 4-year | $4,365 | $4,365 | $3,136 | 22% | 629 |
| 2 | Green River College Auburn, WA Public · 4-year | $5,263 | $4,711 | $13,803 | 40% | 4,965 |
| 3 | Highline College Des Moines, WA Public · 4-year | $5,332 | $4,772 | $9,879 | 37% | 3,838 |
| 4 | Big Bend Community College Moses Lake, WA Public · 4-year | $5,619 | $5,059 | $12,210 | 39% | 1,272 |
| 5 | Wenatchee Valley College Wenatchee, WA Public · 4-year | $5,636 | $5,267 | $9,722 | 41% | 1,759 |
| 6 | Centralia College Centralia, WA Public · 4-year | $5,651 | $5,266 | $9,862 | 44% | 1,552 |
| 7 | Seattle Central College Seattle, WA Public · 4-year | $5,745 | $5,184 | $8,819 | 31% | 3,953 |
| 8 | South Puget Sound Community College Olympia, WA Public · 4-year | $5,813 | $5,252 | $9,132 | 44% | 3,075 |
| 9 | Yakima Valley College Yakima, WA Public · 4-year | $5,873 | $5,312 | $11,843 | 31% | 2,770 |
| 10 | Pierce College District Lakewood, WA Public · 4-year | $5,976 | $5,418 | $10,222 | 31% | 5,313 |
| 11 | Lower Columbia College Longview, WA Public · 4-year | $6,003 | $4,626 | $7,630 | 24% | 1,932 |
| 12 | Spokane Community College Spokane, WA Public · 4-year | $6,612 | $5,461 | $5,473 | 35% | 4,533 |
| 13 | Spokane Falls Community College Spokane, WA Public · 4-year | $6,612 | $5,461 | $7,409 | 31% | 3,199 |
| 14 | Walla Walla Community College Walla Walla, WA Public · 4-year | $6,700 | $5,279 | $9,406 | 43% | 2,418 |
| 15 | Skagit Valley College Mount Vernon, WA Public · 4-year | $7,500 | $5,400 | $6,064 | 35% | 2,477 |
| 16 | Shoreline College Shoreline, WA Public · 4-year | $7,905 | $5,115 | $8,585 | 29% | 3,046 |
| 17 | Columbia Basin College Pasco, WA Public · 4-year | $8,668 | $6,555 | $8,317 | 30% | 4,640 |
| 18 | Olympic College Bremerton, WA Public · 4-year | $9,740 | $4,197 | $7,172 | 33% | 3,826 |
| 19 | Bellevue College Bellevue, WA Public · 4-year | $10,502 | $4,436 | $11,430 | 35% | 7,364 |
| 20 | Edmonds College Lynnwood, WA Public · 4-year | $10,875 | $4,810 | $11,010 | 31% | 3,656 |
| 21 | Whatcom Community College Bellingham, WA Public · 4-year | $11,037 | $5,115 | $11,795 | 36% | 2,378 |
| 22 | Everett Community College Everett, WA Public · 4-year | $11,171 | $5,032 | $10,684 | 38% | 4,709 |
| 23 | Clark College Vancouver, WA Public · 4-year | $11,183 | $5,233 | $11,465 | 37% | 4,945 |
| 24 | Cascadia College Bothell, WA Public · 4-year | $11,296 | $5,157 | $12,281 | 37% | 1,032 |
| 25 | Tacoma Community College Tacoma, WA Public · 4-year | $11,646 | $5,507 | $8,376 | 32% | 4,668 |
| 26 | Grays Harbor College Aberdeen, WA Public · 4-year | $12,553 | $5,593 | $4,783 | 35% | 1,010 |
| 27 | Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA Public · 4-year | $25,959 | $8,586 | $13,886 | 45% | 6,222 |
| 28 | Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA Public · 4-year | $27,526 | $9,417 | $18,476 | 52% | 7,833 |
| 29 | Western Washington University Bellingham, WA Public · 4-year | $28,707 | $9,582 | $21,193 | 65% | 13,544 |
| 30 | Washington State University Pullman, WA Public · 4-year | $29,950 | $13,391 | $14,971 | 61% | 21,099 |
| 31 | The Evergreen State College Olympia, WA Public · 4-year | $31,905 | $9,264 | $24,319 | 43% | 2,160 |
| 32 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA Public · 4-year | $43,209 | $12,973 | $14,091 | 84% | 31,942 |
How to compare these colleges
The ranked column is the out-of-state price. The in-state price is shown for comparison, and net price is the average for students who receive aid, measured mostly for in-state students at public colleges, so it is not a good guide to what a nonresident will pay. Many states cut the non-resident rate through regional exchange programs, reciprocity agreements or merit awards, and residency can change after a year of living in the state, so check each college's non-resident aid page before ruling a school out.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Washington
Cheapest colleges in Washington
18 schools
Community colleges in Washington
26 schools
Best value colleges in Washington
21 schools
Highest graduate earnings in Washington
44 schools
Same list in nearby states
Cheap colleges in Oregon for out-of-state students
18 schools
Cheap colleges in California for out-of-state students
121 schools
Cheap colleges in Texas for out-of-state students
77 schools
All 51 colleges in Washington See the national version of this ranking