The 50 US Colleges With the Best Salary-to-Cost Ratio
50 colleges where graduate earnings outweigh cost by the widest margin. Ranked from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard - 50 institutions with complete data.
| # | College | Salary / net price | Net price | Salary (10yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA - Salary $62,555 / net $2,385 | 26.2x | $2,385 | $62,555 |
| 2 | Santiago Canyon College Orange, CA - Salary $52,421 / net $2,040 | 25.7x | $2,040 | $52,421 |
| 3 | CUNY Queensborough Community College Bayside, NY - Salary $50,546 / net $2,114 | 23.9x | $2,114 | $50,546 |
| 4 | Foothill College Los Altos Hills, CA - Salary $64,467 / net $2,851 | 22.6x | $2,851 | $64,467 |
| 5 | Springfield Technical Community College Springfield, MA - Salary $45,410 / net $2,020 | 22.5x | $2,020 | $45,410 |
| 6 | CUNY New York City College of Technology Brooklyn, NY - Salary $57,019 / net $2,818 | 20.2x | $2,818 | $57,019 |
| 7 | Santa Barbara City College Santa Barbara, CA - Salary $53,616 / net $2,684 | 20.0x | $2,684 | $53,616 |
| 8 | Dalton State College Dalton, GA - Salary $46,083 / net $2,353 | 19.6x | $2,353 | $46,083 |
| 9 | California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA - Salary $166,642 / net $8,509 | 19.6x | $8,509 | $166,642 |
| 10 | Wayne Community College Goldsboro, NC - Salary $40,597 / net $2,093 | 19.4x | $2,093 | $40,597 |
| 11 | South Suburban College South Holland, IL - Salary $38,917 / net $2,011 | 19.4x | $2,011 | $38,917 |
| 12 | Clovis Community College Clovis, NM - Salary $40,732 / net $2,113 | 19.3x | $2,113 | $40,732 |
| 13 | Salish Kootenai College Pablo, MT - Salary $39,194 / net $2,049 | 19.1x | $2,049 | $39,194 |
| 14 | Aims Community College Greeley, CO - Salary $47,170 / net $2,470 | 19.1x | $2,470 | $47,170 |
| 15 | Waubonsee Community College Sugar Grove, IL - Salary $48,582 / net $2,551 | 19.0x | $2,551 | $48,582 |
| 16 | College of Staten Island CUNY Staten Island, NY - Salary $59,992 / net $3,153 | 19.0x | $3,153 | $59,992 |
| 17 | San Joaquin Delta College Stockton, CA - Salary $46,256 / net $2,451 | 18.9x | $2,451 | $46,256 |
| 18 | San Juan College Farmington, NM - Salary $39,336 / net $2,104 | 18.7x | $2,104 | $39,336 |
| 19 | California State University-Stanislaus Turlock, CA - Salary $65,560 / net $3,565 | 18.4x | $3,565 | $65,560 |
| 20 | University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL - Salary $78,456 / net $4,336 | 18.1x | $4,336 | $78,456 |
| 21 | Los Angeles Harbor College Wilmington, CA - Salary $47,368 / net $2,680 | 17.7x | $2,680 | $47,368 |
| 22 | Gadsden State Community College Gadsden, AL - Salary $37,485 / net $2,125 | 17.6x | $2,125 | $37,485 |
| 23 | Napa Valley College Napa, CA - Salary $55,399 / net $3,152 | 17.6x | $3,152 | $55,399 |
| 24 | Kalamazoo Valley Community College Kalamazoo, MI - Salary $43,182 / net $2,461 | 17.5x | $2,461 | $43,182 |
| 25 | Warren County Community College Washington, NJ - Salary $47,869 / net $2,746 | 17.4x | $2,746 | $47,869 |
| 26 | Craven Community College New Bern, NC - Salary $40,874 / net $2,384 | 17.1x | $2,384 | $40,874 |
| 27 | Princeton University Princeton, NJ - Salary $133,523 / net $7,815 | 17.1x | $7,815 | $133,523 |
| 28 | Galen College of Nursing-Louisville Louisville, KY - Salary $69,188 / net $4,058 | 17.0x | $4,058 | $69,188 |
| 29 | Atlanta Technical College Atlanta, GA - Salary $37,957 / net $2,240 | 16.9x | $2,240 | $37,957 |
| 30 | West Georgia Technical College Waco, GA - Salary $41,700 / net $2,469 | 16.9x | $2,469 | $41,700 |
| 31 | Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas De Queen, AR - Salary $36,122 / net $2,141 | 16.9x | $2,141 | $36,122 |
| 32 | Indian River State College Fort Pierce, FL - Salary $43,542 / net $2,617 | 16.6x | $2,617 | $43,542 |
| 33 | De Anza College Cupertino, CA - Salary $62,175 / net $3,801 | 16.4x | $3,801 | $62,175 |
| 34 | Solano Community College Fairfield, CA - Salary $47,449 / net $2,905 | 16.3x | $2,905 | $47,449 |
| 35 | CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College New York, NY - Salary $47,784 / net $2,955 | 16.2x | $2,955 | $47,784 |
| 36 | CUNY Stella and Charles Guttman Community College New York, NY - Salary $49,845 / net $3,091 | 16.1x | $3,091 | $49,845 |
| 37 | Richland Community College Decatur, IL - Salary $42,563 / net $2,690 | 15.8x | $2,690 | $42,563 |
| 38 | California State University-San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA - Salary $61,951 / net $3,946 | 15.7x | $3,946 | $61,951 |
| 39 | Nash Community College Rocky Mount, NC - Salary $41,296 / net $2,638 | 15.7x | $2,638 | $41,296 |
| 40 | California State University-Bakersfield Bakersfield, CA - Salary $62,381 / net $4,001 | 15.6x | $4,001 | $62,381 |
| 41 | Rockingham Community College Wentworth, NC - Salary $38,209 / net $2,457 | 15.6x | $2,457 | $38,209 |
| 42 | Texas Southmost College Brownsville, TX - Salary $45,936 / net $2,957 | 15.5x | $2,957 | $45,936 |
| 43 | Western Texas College Snyder, TX - Salary $48,061 / net $3,101 | 15.5x | $3,101 | $48,061 |
| 44 | Cuyahoga Community College District Cleveland, OH - Salary $40,817 / net $2,652 | 15.4x | $2,652 | $40,817 |
| 45 | York County Community College Wells, ME - Salary $45,918 / net $3,013 | 15.2x | $3,013 | $45,918 |
| 46 | Gulf Coast State College Panama City, FL - Salary $43,513 / net $2,865 | 15.2x | $2,865 | $43,513 |
| 47 | CUNY Medgar Evers College Brooklyn, NY - Salary $49,242 / net $3,245 | 15.2x | $3,245 | $49,242 |
| 48 | Black River Technical College Pocahontas, AR - Salary $37,278 / net $2,472 | 15.1x | $2,472 | $37,278 |
| 49 | Passaic County Community College Paterson, NJ - Salary $42,497 / net $2,835 | 15.0x | $2,835 | $42,497 |
| 50 | Los Angeles Pierce College Woodland Hills, CA - Salary $47,028 / net $3,150 | 14.9x | $3,150 | $47,028 |
How this ranking works
We rank institutions on a single College Scorecard metric combination: median graduate earnings ten years after entry divided by average net price - a simple payback-quality ratio. A ratio above 2.0x means typical graduates recover a year of cost with one year of earnings premium. Only colleges with at least 500 students and complete reported data are included. Averages hide variation by major and family income - treat the table as a shortlist, then verify each school's official numbers.
Next step: run your own numbers
Once you have a shortlist, model the full picture: estimate your admission odds in the Admission Chances tool, simulate the payback in the Degree ROI Simulator, and plan the borrowing in the Loan Payoff Planner. More rankings and all state guides live in the US colleges database.