Illinois Best College Rankings
University of Chicago ranked first and Northwestern University ranked second in Illinois college rankings. The 2025 average tuition & fees of the Illinois best colleges is $27,722 for Illinois residents and $32,995 for out-of-state students. The average acceptance rate is 73.36% and the average SAT score is 1,153. The average number of student population is 8,006 and the average student to faculty ratio is 13 to 1.
Below statements summarize the average statistics of tuition, admission, and more academic factors for Illinois best colleges. For the statistics, we only include 4 years colleges such as national universities and liberal arts colleges.
- The average undergraduate tuition & fees is $32,995 and University of Chicago has the highest tuition & fees of $69,324 and Governors State University has the lowest tuition & fees of $12,004.
- The average graduate tuition & fees is $19,491 and University of Chicago has the highest tuition & fees of $68,652 and Columbia College Chicago has the lowest tuition & fees of $2,544.
- The average SAT score is 1,153 and University of Chicago has the highest SAT score of 1,550 and DeVry University-Illinois has the lowest score of 860.
- The average acceptance rate is 73.36% and University of Chicago has the tightest (lowest) rate of 4% and Trinity International University-Illinois has the loosest (lowest) rate of 100%.
- The average student population is 8,006 and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has the most students of 59,238 and Hebrew Theological College has the fewest students of 182.
- The average graduation rate is 57.15% and University of Chicago has the highest rate of 96% and Chicago State University has the lowest rate of 15%.
Illinois Best Colleges Comparison
The below table compares the 49 best colleges in Illinois with important academic factors. You can sort the table by touching/clicking a column name that you want to sort.
| Rank | College Name | Undergraduate Tuition & Fees | Graduate Tuition & Fees | SAT Score | Acceptance Rate | Population | Graduation Rate | Student to Faculty Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | $69,324 | $68,652 | 1,550 | 4.5% | 18,566 | 96% | 5 to 1 |
| 2 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | $68,322 | $54,655 | 1,540 | 7.7% | 23,856 | 95% | 6 to 1 |
| 3 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL | $40,096 | $34,406 | 1,440 | 42.4% | 59,238 | 85% | 20 to 1 |
| 4 | University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL | $32,009 | $27,748 | 1,240 | 77.4% | 33,906 | 62% | 17 to 1 |
| 5 | Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL | $53,710 | $21,912 | 1,260 | 81.6% | 17,384 | 73% | 13 to 1 |
| 6 | Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL | $52,202 | $35,222 | 1,300 | 54.9% | 8,834 | 75% | 14 to 1 |
| 7 | DeVry University-Illinois Lisle, IL | $17,008 | $9,832 | 860 | 98.4% | 31,296 | 37% | 43 to 1 |
| 8 | Bradley University Peoria, IL | $42,160 | $20,440 | - | 76.8% | 4,777 | 76% | 11 to 1 |
| 9 | Wheaton College Wheaton, IL | $45,546 | $20,160 | 1,380 | 87.4% | 2,874 | 85% | 10 to 1 |
| 10 | University of St Francis Joliet, IL | $38,110 | $14,757 | 1,130 | 65.3% | 3,074 | 67% | 15 to 1 |
| 11 | North Central College Naperville, IL | $45,726 | $15,922 | 1,190 | 77.3% | 3,003 | 64% | 12 to 1 |
| 12 | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Carbondale, IL | $13,334 | $31,122 | 1,040 | 86.9% | 11,790 | 62% | 11 to 1 |
| 13 | Augustana College Rock Island, IL | $51,598 | $35,010 | 1,150 | 62.7% | 2,570 | 73% | 12 to 1 |
| 14 | Illinois State University Normal, IL | $26,058 | $13,062 | 1,100 | 88.2% | 21,546 | 65% | 19 to 1 |
| 15 | University of Illinois Springfield Springfield, IL | $20,139 | $19,515 | 1,070 | 85.9% | 4,628 | 53% | 13 to 1 |
| 16 | Benedictine University Lisle, IL | $32,648 | $19,584 | - | 95.2% | 2,917 | 50% | 15 to 1 |
| 17 | Aurora University Aurora, IL | $29,170 | $16,463 | 1,055 | 80.9% | 5,923 | 60% | 18 to 1 |
| 18 | DePaul University Chicago, IL | $45,405 | $23,358 | 1,240 | 75.9% | 21,210 | 68% | 17 to 1 |
| 19 | Olivet Nazarene University Bourbonnais, IL | $38,900 | $12,450 | 1,100 | 55.9% | 3,339 | 61% | 15 to 1 |
| 20 | Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL | $13,060 | $9,176 | - | 69.8% | 15,414 | 49% | 15 to 1 |
| 21 | Lincoln Christian University Lincoln, IL | $15,400 | $9,910 | - | - | 185 | 58% | 2 to 1 |
| 22 | Monmouth College Monmouth, IL | $44,922 | - | 1,110 | 90.9% | 713 | 65% | 9 to 1 |
| 23 | McKendree University Lebanon, IL | $34,740 | $9,450 | - | 71.7% | 2,392 | 53% | 16 to 1 |
| 24 | Illinois College Jacksonville, IL | $38,676 | $18,300 | 1,055 | 78.2% | 942 | 64% | 12 to 1 |
| 25 | Principia College Elsah, IL | $34,680 | - | - | - | 339 | 74% | 6 to 1 |
| 26 | North Park University Chicago, IL | $36,710 | $14,417 | - | 68.5% | 2,557 | 58% | 12 to 1 |
| 27 | Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, IL | $22,726 | $18,217 | - | 74.6% | 5,734 | 22% | 9 to 1 |
| 28 | Greenville University Greenville, IL | $32,200 | $8,784 | 995 | 97.5% | 1,104 | 40% | 13 to 1 |
| 29 | Hebrew Theological College Skokie, IL | $15,150 | $5,550 | - | 57.1% | 182 | 50% | 5 to 1 |
| 30 | Lewis University Romeoville, IL | $39,200 | $15,800 | 1,080 | 71.3% | 7,011 | 67% | 13 to 1 |
| 31 | Roosevelt University Chicago, IL | $21,315 | $20,935 | 985 | 97.2% | 4,281 | 35% | 11 to 1 |
| 32 | Lake Forest College Lake Forest, IL | $56,402 | $16,880 | 1,320 | 56.8% | 1,837 | 78% | 13 to 1 |
| 33 | Elmhurst University Elmhurst, IL | $42,955 | $34,460 | 1,130 | 73.6% | 3,997 | 70% | 15 to 1 |
| 34 | Dominican University River Forest, IL | $38,828 | $18,500 | 1,000 | 90.3% | 3,803 | 55% | 12 to 1 |
| 35 | National Louis University Chicago, IL | $13,245 | $13,453 | - | 95.1% | 8,915 | 30% | 17 to 1 |
| 36 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL | $12,092 | $10,488 | 1,070 | 97.5% | 11,893 | 57% | 15 to 1 |
| 37 | Rockford University Rockford, IL | $37,780 | $14,060 | 940 | 92.9% | 1,241 | 47% | 10 to 1 |
| 38 | Judson University Elgin, IL | $30,297 | $20,775 | 930 | 47.6% | 960 | 60% | 10 to 1 |
| 39 | Knox College Galesburg, IL | $57,903 | - | 1,320 | 70.8% | 1,136 | 68% | 11 to 1 |
| 40 | Western Illinois University Macomb, IL | $14,572 | $13,683 | - | 71.2% | 6,332 | 45% | 12 to 1 |
| 41 | Saint Xavier University Chicago, IL | $38,945 | $13,950 | - | 84.3% | 3,485 | 57% | 16 to 1 |
| 42 | Eastern Illinois University Charleston, IL | $15,859 | $23,214 | 1,000 | 65.4% | 8,505 | 47% | 14 to 1 |
| 43 | East-West University Chicago, IL | $25,395 | - | - | - | 468 | 16% | 20 to 1 |
| 44 | Columbia College Chicago Chicago, IL | $34,088 | $2,544 | - | 89.5% | 5,570 | 52% | 15 to 1 |
| 45 | Chicago State University Chicago, IL | $12,757 | $16,162 | - | 43.3% | 2,238 | 15% | 9 to 1 |
| 46 | Trinity International University-Illinois Deerfield, IL | $12,320 | $18,520 | - | 100.0% | 869 | 46% | 3 to 1 |
| 47 | Governors State University University Park, IL | $12,004 | $10,666 | - | 48.3% | 4,397 | 22% | 11 to 1 |
| 48 | Concordia University-Chicago River Forest, IL | $37,488 | $10,782 | - | 92.8% | 4,770 | 36% | 13 to 1 |
| 49 | Erikson Institute Chicago, IL | $13,564 | $14,164 | - | - | 297 | - | - |
| Average | $32,995 | $19,491 | 1,153 | 73.4% | 8,006 | 57% | 13 to 1 |
Illinois Colleges by Ranking and School Type