2026 Best Value Value Schools in the The Plains States Region
[Value](/majors/mechanical-repair-technologies/energy-systems-maintenance-repair-tech/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. A high-value program keeps cost low while graduates go on to earn well.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 3 schools to find the best return on investment for value students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Value Schools in the The Plains States Region
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in value, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value Value Schools
For return on investment in value, no school beat Cloud County Community College this year. Located in the rural area of Concordia, Cloud County Community College is a mid-sized public university. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $3,540, compared with $4,500 for out-of-state students. Students borrow a median of $12,839 to complete the value program here. Value graduates of Cloud County Community College earn a median of $53,004 early in their careers. Set against $12,839 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.
Narrow Value Schools by State
View All Value Rankings >
Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 3 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 1 ranked schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
