Most Affordable Colleges in New York 2023

Most Affordable Colleges in New York 2023

By James Barham

Published: Mar 22, 2021
Updated: Mar 13, 2023

Here are the most affordable colleges and universities in New York. Our list will help you find the right kind of school for you, at a price you can afford.

10 Most Affordable Colleges in New York 2022

City College of New York

68%

United States Military Academy

62%

Stony Brook University

61%

Brooklyn College

60%

University at Buffalo

59%

55%

Binghamton University

51%

Queens College, City University of New York

49%

48%

University at Albany, SUNY

48%

Buffalo State College

85%

Alfred State College

82%

State University of New York at Oswego

80%

Houghton University

79%

State University of New York at Purchase

75%

State University of New York at Geneseo

74%

University at Buffalo

70%

State University of New York at Oneonta

70%

University at Albany, SUNY

68%

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

65%

College of Staten Island

20 to 1

20 to 1

Binghamton University

19 to 1

Stony Brook University

19 to 1

University at Albany, SUNY

19 to 1

Excelsior University

19 to 1

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

19 to 1

Brooklyn College

17 to 1

Fashion Institute of Technology

17 to 1

State University of New York at Geneseo

17 to 1

Houghton University

$16,446

Fashion Institute of Technology

$7,170

State University of New York at New Paltz

$7,070

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

$7,070

State University of New York at Purchase

$7,070

University at Buffalo

$7,070

Binghamton University

$7,070

Stony Brook University

$7,070

State University of New York at Geneseo

$7,070

University at Albany, SUNY

$7,070

Houghton University

$14,125

Fashion Institute of Technology

$11,542

State University of New York at New Paltz

$11,310

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

$11,310

State University of New York at Purchase

$11,310

University at Buffalo

$11,310

Binghamton University

$11,310

Stony Brook University

$11,310

State University of New York at Geneseo

$11,310

University at Albany, SUNY

$11,310

Excelsior University

16%

Houghton University

22%

Alfred State College

22%

State University of New York at Oneonta

26%

State University of New York at Geneseo

29%

College of Staten Island

31%

Buffalo State College

31%

State University of New York at New Paltz

31%

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

32%

State University of New York at Purchase

34%

United States Military Academy

11%

United States Merchant Marine Academy

25%

Binghamton University

44%

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

45%

State University of New York at New Paltz

46%

46%

Stony Brook University

48%

Brooklyn College

51%

51%

Fashion Institute of Technology

52%

United States Military Academy

7 to 1

Houghton University

11 to 1

State University of New York at Purchase

12 to 1

United States Merchant Marine Academy

13 to 1

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

14 to 1

University at Buffalo

14 to 1

Buffalo State College

14 to 1

State University of New York at New Paltz

15 to 1

15 to 1

City College of New York

15 to 1

United States Merchant Marine Academy

$780

$6,930

College of Staten Island

$6,930

$6,930

City College of New York

$6,930

Brooklyn College

$6,930

$6,930

Queens College, City University of New York

$6,930

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

$6,930

State University of New York at New Paltz

$7,070

$11,090

College of Staten Island

$11,090

$11,090

City College of New York

$11,090

Brooklyn College

$11,090

$11,090

Queens College, City University of New York

$11,090

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

$11,090

State University of New York at New Paltz

$11,310

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry

$11,310

Colleges and Universities in New York

On average, tuition at New York’s higher education institutes comes in well-below the national average at about $7,900. Students have nearly 80 public school options to choose from, ranging in fees from $1,000 at the United States Merchant Marine Academy up to $10,000 at the University at Buffalo, the largest public university. However, some of the state’s private schools, such as New York University (NYU), charge tuition fees at a much higher cost.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

Although tuition fees at NYU average $52,000, students who attend this school have access to some of the best programs in fields like literature, business, medicine, communications, and law. The school also boasts famous alumni like Whoopi Goldberg and Jonas Salk. New York also offers close to 40 religiously affiliated schools. Students can expect to pay a wide range of tuition costs at these schools, but have the option to major in fields like social work, law, religious studies, business, and nursing.

They say New York is a place where dreams come true. Here, fashion, culture, food, business, art, and many languages comfortably coexist. While The Empire State’s metropolitan landmarks, like the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, are noteworthy, many forget New York also offers access to the Great Lakes, the Atlantic Ocean, and countless cozy cabins tucked away in the verdant Catskills Mountains. Additionally, New York is home to over 200 colleges and universities, making it easy for students to dream big while earning their degrees.

Explore some of the top programs New York higher education institutes have to offer, and make your educational and personal dreams come true.

What are New York’s Colleges & Universities?

New York’s Best Overall

New York's Most Affordable Colleges and Universities Badge — Download Badge

How do we determine New York's best affordable colleges and universities?

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great! If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence in their fields of study.

Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is freer from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

To rank the influence of schools, we first determine the influence of scholars and professionals based on the number of citations and publications they have had over the past 10 years. In addition to publications and citations, we consider the web links to and from these sources, and the page views of those sources. We then match the influential people to their alma maters and institutions of employment, so that their influence is attributed to those schools. Our machine-learning Influence Ranking algorithm produces a numerical score of academic achievements, merits, and citations across Wikipedia, wikidata, Crossref, Semantic Scholar and an ever-growing body of data. If you are interested in exploring how and why we rank by influence, explore our methodology in more depth.

There are 47 affordable colleges and universities in New York with stated tuitions and fees under $20,000/year. The following list of the most affordable colleges and universities in New York is composed entirely of schools offering bachelor’s degree programs, have stated tuition and fees near or under the national average of $16,000/year, and are fully accredited colleges.

If affordability and budgeting throughout your college journey is a priority to you, check out our guide to budgeting for college students.

Most Affordable Colleges in New York 2022

These schools are ranked by academic excellence, and all under $20,000/year.

New York’s Most Affordable Colleges in Your Area of Interest

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