2026 Best Value Culinary Arts/Chef Training Schools in Colorado
[Culinary Arts/Chef Training](/majors/personal-and-culinary-services/culinary-arts/culinary-arts-chef-training/) 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 4 schools to find the best return on investment for culinary arts/chef training students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Culinary Arts/Chef Training Schools in Colorado
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the culinary arts/chef training degrees they offer, see the list below.
Best Value Culinary Arts/Chef Training Schools
Colorado Mountain College earned the #1 spot for value among culinary arts/chef training schools in Colorado. Colorado Mountain College is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Glenwood Springs. Students from in state pay about $2,616 in tuition and fees, with out-of-state students paying around $12,840. Students borrow a median of $12,953 to complete the culinary arts/chef training program here. Culinary Arts/chef Training graduates of Colorado Mountain College earn a median of $48,694 early in their careers. Set against $12,953 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at Red Rocks Community College earned it the #2 place for culinary arts/chef training. Red Rocks Community College is a large public school located in the suburb of Lakewood. Students from in state pay about $4,859 in tuition and fees, with out-of-state students paying around $17,459. Culinary Arts/chef Training graduates carry a median of $14,471 in student loans. Soon after graduation, culinary arts/chef training degree recipients from Red Rocks Community College generally make around $76,340. That is a strong return on a $14,471 median debt.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at Auguste Escoffier School Of Culinary Arts Boulder earned it the #3 place for culinary arts/chef training. Auguste Escoffier School Of Culinary Arts Boulder is a large private for-profit school located in the city of Boulder. Students borrow a median of $14,198 to complete the culinary arts/chef training program here. Early-career culinary arts/chef training graduates make about $27,953. That is a strong return on a $14,198 median debt.
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Notes and References
This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs the cost of a degree against the earnings graduates go on to achieve, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 4 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 3 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.
