The Cheapest Online Colleges

Among all the factors that students weigh when picking an online college, cost is one of the most important. One of the benefits of online colleges is the lower price: schools don’t need to pay for the same overhead as brick and mortar universities do. However, not all schools are created equal. While many online universities are cheap, some can be as expensive as a traditional school. However, smart students who do their research can find a school that offers a quality education for a fair price.

Some of the cheapest online schools include:

Ashworth University: At $80 per credit hour, Ashworth is one of the cheapest universities out there that offers full Bachelor’s degrees. Though the education is fine, you’ll get what you pay for - expect little direct interaction with professors and students.

Peru State College: A small but well-regarded online college, this school offers credits at $157 a piece. This online college offers a wide variety of undergraduate degrees, and is expected to become more popular in the coming years.

Fort Hays State University: This school is not well known, but offers credit hours for $148 each. Often students pay for name-recognition; if this isn’t important you, go with a well-regarded school, like Fort Hays, no matter the name.

California Coast University: Though this school has only recently received accreditation, the price per credit ($110) is worth a look, especially given the variety of Bachelor’s degrees they offer.

Chaldron State College: Some schools only offer degree completion programs - that is, students must have credits to put towards a degree and cannot complete a full Bachelor’s online. However, students who can attend these colleges can often save a good amount of money. Chaldron offers credits for $157.

In general, students can save even more money if they attend an in-state college, even if they are only doing the online component. Some offline, traditional schools offer online components, and students can save money while also enjoying the quality education and name recognition of well-known colleges.

NOTE: All these schools are accredited, either nationally or regionally. Never enroll in an unaccredited institution, no matter the price.