2023 Best Value Colleges for Economics (With Aid)
496
Ranked Colleges
49,055
Degrees Awarded
$12,300
Avg Net Price*
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 49,055 people earned their degree in economics, making the major the 19th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, economics graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $48,736 and had an average of $22,046 in loans still to pay off.
This year’s “Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 496 colleges that offered a degree in economics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality economics programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the economics program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
One Size Does Not Fit All
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid.
Top 25 Best Value Colleges for Economics (With Aid)
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, this large public school handed out 419 diplomas to qualified ’s economics students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UNC Chapel Hill is also in the top of our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It costs about $12,469 for Economics students with aid per year to attend UNC Chapel Hill.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.
Read more about Economics at UNC Chapel Hill
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Seattle, Washington is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s economics degrees to 309 students in 2020-2021.
On top of its placing in this ranking, UW Seattle also did well on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $12,017 for Economics students with aid per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UW Seattle Economics Report
Out of the 496 schools in the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Queens College landed the #3 spot on the list. Queens, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s economics degrees to 394 students in 2020-2021.
The estimated yearly cost for QC is $3,469 for economics students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at QC
Out of the 496 schools in the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Yale University landed the #4 spot on the list. Yale University is located in New Haven, Connecticut and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 247 ’s economics degrees to qualified students.
Yale did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It costs about $15,296 for Economics students with aid per year to attend Yale.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Yale Economics Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid list. UCLA is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 884 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our economics students with aid list, UCLA has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UCLA is $15,023 for Economics students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Economics at UCLA
University of Florida came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Florida is a large school located in Gainesville, Florida that handed out 330 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
UF also claimed a top spot on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend UF is $5,135 for economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full UF Economics Report
With a ranking of #7, Stanford University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid list. Stanford University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Stanford, California. It awarded 116 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
Stanford also took the #16 spot in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Stanford University is $12,894 for economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Economics at Stanford University
Harvard University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #8. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 267 diplomas to qualified ’s economics students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Harvard, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Harvard University is $13,872 for economics students with aid.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Harvard Economics Report
Williams College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #9. Located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 100 diplomas to qualified ’s economics students in 2020-2021.
Williams did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend Williams is $23,497 for Economics students with aid.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Economics at Williams
University of California - Berkeley did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #10. UC Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 808 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC Berkeley, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Berkeley is $16,032 for economics students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Economics at University of California - Berkeley
Baruch College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Baruch is located in New York, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 97 ’s economics degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $2,264 for Economics students with aid per year to attend Baruch.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at Baruch
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 563 ’s economics degrees to qualified students.
UIUC excels when it comes to economics quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $14,321 for economics students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UIUC Economics Report
University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. UW - Madison is a large public school situated in Madison, Wisconsin. It awarded 864 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UW - Madison is also in the top of our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison is $17,234 for Economics students with aid.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at University of Wisconsin - Madison
University of California - San Diego landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of California - San Diego is a large school located in La Jolla, California that handed out 480 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCSD is also in the top of our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend University of California - San Diego is $15,240 for economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UCSD Economics Report
Princeton University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Princeton is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Princeton, New Jersey. It awarded 140 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
Princeton also made our “Best Economics Schools” list, coming in at #18. The estimated yearly cost for Princeton is $9,836 for economics students with aid.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Economics at Princeton University
With a ranking of #16, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid list. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 728 ’s economics degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at U-M, the school also landed the #24 spot in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is $14,878 for economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full U-M Economics Report
Rice University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #17. This medium-sized school is located in Houston, Texas, and it awarded 132 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Rice, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Economics Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Rice University is $16,076 for Economics students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Economics at Rice University
Hunter College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #18. Hunter College is a public institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 123 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The yearly cost to attend Hunter is $2,158 for economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at Hunter College
Purdue University - Main Campus came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Purdue is a large school located in West Lafayette, Indiana that handed out 196 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
Purdue excels when it comes to economics quality. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The yearly cost to attend Purdue University - Main Campus is $13,377 for economics students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Economics at Purdue University - Main Campus
University of Virginia - Main Campus came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Charlottesville, Virginia, this large public school handed out 528 degrees to qualified ’s economics students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, University of Virginia is in the top on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for University of Virginia - Main Campus is $22,006 for economics students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Economics at University of Virginia
University of California - Irvine came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. UC Irvine is a public institution located in Irvine, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 490 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, UC Irvine is in the top on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Irvine is $12,209 for Economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read full report on Economics at UC Irvine
The City College of New York did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #22. CCNY is a fairly large school located in New York, New York that handed out 143 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The yearly cost to attend The City College of New York is $2,805 for Economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full The City College of New York Economics Report
University of California - Santa Barbara came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of California - Santa Barbara is a large public school situated in Santa Barbara, California. It awarded 723 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
UCSB excels when it comes to economics quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend UCSB is $16,252 for Economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Economics at University of California - Santa Barbara
University of California - Davis came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking. This large school is located in Davis, California, and it awarded 661 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on this list, UC Davis is in the top on our “Best Economics Schools” list. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our “Best Economics Schools” list. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Davis is $15,768 for economics students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Read more about Economics at UC Davis
John Jay College of Criminal Justice did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Economics Schools For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #25. This fairly large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 58 ’s economics degrees in 2020-2021.
The yearly cost to attend John Jay is $2,699 for economics students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Economics at John Jay
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