Cost comparison
Affordable colleges in Michigan
CampusPin lists 85 colleges in Michigan. The 40 below are ordered by lowest published in-state tuition, with a median of $5,095 and a median average net price of $5,751 among those reporting it. Tuition, total cost, and net price are three different numbers — the table keeps them separate.
Michigan college costs by the numbers
- Lowest published in-state tuition
- Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College ($2,730)
- Median in-state tuition (40 reporting)
- $5,095
- Median net price after aid (40 reporting)
- $5,751
- Highest graduation rate
- Grand Valley State University (67%)
- Most selective
- Lake Superior State University (68% acceptance)
- Largest by enrollment
- Grand Valley State University (22,099 students)
Michigan colleges by published in-state tuition
Lowest published in-state tuition first. Every figure is as reported by the institution to federal data collections; blank cells are unreported values, not zeros.
| College | In-state tuition | Out-of-state tuition | Avg. net price | Graduation rate | Acceptance rate | Public/private | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College | $2,730 | $2,730 | $8,506 | Not reported | 100% | Public | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| Washtenaw Community College | $2,736 | $6,504 | $3,249 | 33% | 100% | Public | Ann Arbor, MI |
| Oakland Community College | $3,020 | $5,560 | $5,777 | 21% | 100% | Public | Auburn Hills, MI |
| Wayne County Community College District | $3,112 | $4,067 | $7,656 | 22% | 100% | Public | Detroit, MI |
| Bay Mills Community College | $3,480 | $3,480 | $3,073 | 30% | 100% | Public | Brimley, MI |
| Henry Ford College | $3,568 | $7,816 | $660 | 17% | 100% | Public | Dearborn, MI |
| Macomb Community College | $3,660 | $8,370 | $5,725 | 18% | 100% | Public | Warren, MI |
| Lansing Community College | $4,100 | $11,300 | $5,437 | 25% | 100% | Public | Lansing, MI |
| Kellogg Community College | $4,118 | $8,282 | $4,858 | 30% | 100% | Public | Battle Creek, MI |
| Kalamazoo Valley Community College | $4,144 | $9,094 | $2,979 | 28% | 100% | Public | Kalamazoo, MI |
| Glen Oaks Community College | $4,176 | $6,624 | $8,918 | 43% | 100% | Public | Centreville, MI |
| Grand Rapids Community College | $4,179 | $12,219 | $8,621 | 21% | 100% | Public | Grand Rapids, MI |
| Mott Community College | $4,426 | $7,410 | $5,687 | 32% | 100% | Public | Flint, MI |
| West Shore Community College | $4,470 | $8,820 | $1,527 | 27% | 100% | Public | Scottville, MI |
| Montcalm Community College | $4,662 | $10,362 | $4,352 | 31% | 100% | Public | Sidney, MI |
| Schoolcraft Community College District | $4,736 | $8,142 | $5,372 | 18% | 100% | Public | Livonia, MI |
| Monroe County Community College | $4,759 | $8,267 | $4,586 | 34% | 100% | Public | Monroe, MI |
| Gogebic Community College | $4,800 | $7,530 | $5,397 | 36% | 100% | Public | Ironwood, MI |
| Delta College | $4,820 | $7,880 | $4,547 | 27% | 100% | Public | University Center, MI |
| Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College | $5,000 | $5,000 | $529 | 11% | 100% | Public | Baraga, MI |
| Kirtland Community College | $5,190 | $9,870 | $7,456 | 34% | 100% | Public | Grayling, MI |
| St Clair County Community College | $5,212 | $12,150 | $5,571 | 34% | 100% | Public | Port Huron, MI |
| Alpena Community College | $5,250 | $8,010 | $3,320 | 52% | 100% | Public | Alpena, MI |
| North Central Michigan College | $5,430 | $10,590 | $5,457 | 29% | 100% | Public | Petoskey, MI |
| Lake Michigan College | $5,445 | $7,755 | $11,209 | 22% | 100% | Public | Benton Harbor, MI |
| Bay de Noc Community College | $5,712 | $10,528 | $11,949 | 30% | 100% | Public | Escanaba, MI |
| Northwestern Michigan College | $5,860 | $13,476 | $6,231 | 25% | 100% | Public | Traverse City, MI |
| Yeshiva Gedolah of Greater Detroit | $6,100 | $6,100 | $4,913 | 40% | 90% | Private | Oak Park, MI |
| Mid Michigan College | $6,132 | $10,864 | $8,370 | 28% | 100% | Public | Harrison, MI |
| Southwestern Michigan College | $6,417 | $8,394 | $5,978 | 38% | 100% | Public | Dowagiac, MI |
| Muskegon Community College | $7,250 | $16,010 | $4,005 | 28% | 100% | Public | Muskegon, MI |
| Jackson College | $7,350 | $10,200 | $7,761 | 16% | 100% | Public | Jackson, MI |
| Saginaw Valley State University | $12,930 | $30,450 | $10,775 | 48% | 72% | Public | University Center, MI |
| Baker College | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,157 | 36% | 82% | Private | Owosso, MI |
| Northern Michigan University | $14,277 | $19,773 | $14,085 | 52% | 84% | Public | Marquette, MI |
| University of Michigan-Flint | $14,704 | $28,320 | $12,280 | 40% | 70% | Public | Flint, MI |
| Central Michigan University | $14,760 | $14,760 | $17,597 | 59% | 90% | Public | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| Ferris State University | $14,778 | $14,778 | $8,624 | 47% | 91% | Public | Big Rapids, MI |
| Lake Superior State University | $14,890 | $14,890 | $12,822 | 51% | 68% | Public | Sault Ste Marie, MI |
| Grand Valley State University | $15,140 | $21,548 | $16,317 | 67% | 83% | Public | Allendale, MI |
What the Michigan cost data shows
- Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College has the lowest published in-state tuition on this page at $2,730 per year. Published tuition is the sticker price and excludes housing, food, books, and fees.
- Median published in-state tuition is $4,910 across the public colleges here and $9,550 across the private ones — a $4,640 difference at sticker price. Private colleges often discount heavily, so compare net price before ruling one out.
- Median average net price is $5,751 across the 40 colleges here that report it. Net price includes housing and other costs, so it can exceed tuition alone.
How this list was built
This page lists colleges CampusPin holds for Michigan, sorted by published in-state tuition, lowest first. That sort is the only ranking applied — there is no CampusPin score, no editorial ordering, and no “#1 cheapest” claim.
Published tuition is the sticker price for instruction. Total cost of attendance adds housing, food, books, and fees. Average net price is what students actually paid on average after grant and scholarship aid, reported to federal collections for a prior entering class. Net price is an average across a whole cohort and varies substantially by family income, so treat it as a comparison tool between colleges rather than a prediction of your own bill.
Figures come from the institution’s federal reporting (85 of 85 Michigan institutions report in-state tuition). Always confirm current costs with the college’s financial aid office before making a decision.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the cheapest college in Michigan?
- Of the 40 Michigan colleges on this page, Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College in Mount Pleasant reports the lowest published in-state tuition at $2,730 per year. That is the sticker price before aid and before housing and food; the college's net price after grants may rank differently.
- Is tuition the same as the total cost of college?
- No. Published tuition covers instruction only. Total cost of attendance adds housing, food, books, transportation, and fees. Net price is what students actually paid on average after grant and scholarship aid was applied, and across the 40 Michigan colleges reporting it here the median is $5,751. Compare all three before deciding a college is or isn't affordable.
- Are public colleges cheaper than private colleges in Michigan?
- At sticker price, yes on this page: median published in-state tuition is $4,910 at the public colleges listed and $9,550 at the private ones. Private colleges typically discount more heavily through institutional grants, so the gap in net price is usually much smaller than the gap in tuition.
- Will I personally pay these amounts at a Michigan college?
- Almost certainly not exactly. Net price varies widely by family income, and the figures here are averages across a previous entering class reported to federal collections. Use them to compare colleges against each other, then run the numbers for your own situation with the net price estimator and confirm with each financial aid office.
More Midwest states
Keep going on CampusPin
Narrow this list with the full filter set, or put any two colleges side by side.
Costs change every academic year. Report a data issue.
Data sources & methodology
Cost, aid, and outcome figures for Michigan colleges are compiled from federal datasets and each institution's own reporting.
Sources used across this page
Not every source informs every figure. Each data point draws on the source appropriate to it see the relevant section and the data dictionary for field-level provenance.
IPEDS / NCES College Navigator
Federal enrollment, admissions, tuition, retention, and program data. Released annually with a 1–2 year lag.
U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard
Net price by income band, post-graduation earnings, and federal aid context.
Institutional websites
Each school's official admissions, registrar, and financial-aid pages are the authoritative source for current details.
Where a value is unavailable it is shown as unavailable, never as 0, free, or a negative judgment. Always confirm final details with the institution before applying.
Suggested citation
CampusPin. Affordable Colleges in Michigan. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/affordable-colleges/michigan