The middle-income squeeze: what families earning $75,000 to $110,000 pay over the bracket below
The average net price for aided students from families earning $75,001–$110,000 against those earning $48,001–$75,000, college by college and state by state.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard and IPEDS, reporting year 2025 · 1,335 colleges · Updated November 15, 2026
At a glance
- Median jump
- $3,809
- Extra a year for the $75–110k bracket at the median college.
- $48,001–$75,000
- $16,497
- Median average net price a year for this bracket.
- $75,001–$110,000
- $20,601
- Median average net price a year for this bracket.
- Jump of $5,000+
- 418
- Colleges with a step up of at least $5,000 a year (31%).
College Scorecard, data year 2025
Key findings
At the median of 1,335 four-year public and private nonprofit colleges, aided students from families earning $75,001–$110,000 pay $3,809 a year more than those from families earning $48,001–$75,000 ($20,601 against $16,497).
At 418 colleges (31%) the step up is $5,000 a year or more; at 65 colleges the higher-income bracket pays the same or less.
The median jump is $3,879 at public colleges (in-state students, 548 colleges) and $3,754 at private nonprofit colleges (787 colleges).
Vermont has the largest median jump, $7,705 across 7 colleges; Mississippi has the smallest, $1,414 across 12 colleges.
The largest single jump in the federal data is at University of Richmond (VA): $16,251 to $44,118, or $27,867 more a year.
Largest and smallest median jumps
Largest
- Vermont
- $7,705
- Oregon
- $6,112
- New Jersey
- $5,487
- Minnesota
- $5,358
- Oklahoma
- $5,328
Smallest
- Mississippi
- $1,414
- Alabama
- $2,651
- Hawaii
- $2,816
- New Mexico
- $3,087
- Arizona
- $3,157
Every state
Select a column heading to sort. Each figure is the median across a state's colleges; the jump is the median of each college's own jump. Public colleges report in-state students.
The middle-income net price jump, by state, 2026–27
Median net price jump from the $48–75k to the $75–110k bracket, dollars per year
- $1.4k–$3k
- $3k–$3.5k
- $3.5k–$4.5k
- $4.5k–$7.7k
- Not reported
Source: CollegesRef analysis of U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data. Some colleges have changed their aid since the data year. Hover or tab to a state for details; select it to open its colleges.
| Vermont2 public · 5 private | 7 | $18,990 | $25,366 | $7,705 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon7 public · 9 private | 16 | $19,950 | $24,026 | $6,112 |
| New Jersey12 public · 13 private | 25 | $17,480 | $24,156 | $5,487 |
| Minnesota11 public · 20 private | 31 | $15,531 | $20,277 | $5,358 |
| Oklahoma13 public · 8 private | 21 | $13,660 | $18,262 | $5,328 |
| Indiana13 public · 28 private | 41 | $14,108 | $19,591 | $5,323 |
| Rhode Island2 public · 8 private | 10 | $27,808 | $34,452 | $5,239 |
| Wisconsin13 public · 18 private | 31 | $15,274 | $18,824 | $5,129 |
| Maryland11 public · 9 private | 20 | $17,391 | $21,626 | $4,848 |
| Colorado13 public · 4 private | 17 | $13,798 | $19,030 | $4,846 |
| Kentucky6 public · 16 private | 22 | $13,170 | $17,550 | $4,421 |
| Ohio23 public · 37 private | 60 | $17,098 | $21,035 | $4,387 |
| Pennsylvania15 public · 68 private | 83 | $19,053 | $23,355 | $4,324 |
| North Carolina15 public · 32 private | 47 | $16,701 | $19,979 | $4,273 |
| Maine7 public · 8 private | 15 | $13,468 | $18,513 | $4,189 |
| Illinois12 public · 34 private | 46 | $13,868 | $19,407 | $4,151 |
| Massachusetts12 public · 42 private | 54 | $19,092 | $23,623 | $4,119 |
| Michigan15 public · 20 private | 35 | $13,146 | $16,398 | $4,006 |
| District of Columbia1 public · 7 private | 8 | $21,093 | $28,097 | $3,981 |
| Tennessee9 public · 26 private | 35 | $16,319 | $19,673 | $3,875 |
| North Dakota6 public · 2 private | 8 | $11,687 | $15,048 | $3,863 |
| Virginia15 public · 22 private | 37 | $17,823 | $21,880 | $3,843 |
| Idaho4 public · 3 private | 7 | $11,914 | $16,420 | $3,809 |
| New Hampshire4 public · 7 private | 11 | $20,270 | $24,529 | $3,774 |
| Washington14 public · 11 private | 25 | $17,543 | $21,340 | $3,742 |
| Iowa2 public · 22 private | 24 | $17,798 | $21,613 | $3,707 |
| Louisiana14 public · 6 private | 20 | $12,490 | $16,259 | $3,694 |
| Missouri13 public · 21 private | 34 | $15,402 | $19,278 | $3,667 |
| New York39 public · 65 private | 104 | $18,732 | $22,366 | $3,657 |
| Utah6 public · 2 private | 8 | $13,392 | $16,187 | $3,640 |
| California32 public · 38 private | 70 | $16,521 | $20,836 | $3,611 |
| Montana6 public · 3 private | 9 | $18,641 | $23,224 | $3,533 |
| West Virginia9 public · 5 private | 14 | $12,463 | $15,930 | $3,513 |
| South Dakota6 public · 4 private | 10 | $17,645 | $21,173 | $3,492 |
| Arkansas9 public · 7 private | 16 | $15,934 | $18,780 | $3,489 |
| Florida28 public · 27 private | 55 | $13,802 | $16,774 | $3,428 |
| Georgia25 public · 22 private | 47 | $14,662 | $17,033 | $3,423 |
| Kansas7 public · 13 private | 20 | $20,114 | $23,307 | $3,418 |
| Texas33 public · 37 private | 70 | $15,203 | $18,060 | $3,366 |
| South Carolina12 public · 17 private | 29 | $17,357 | $20,496 | $3,354 |
| Nebraska6 public · 7 private | 13 | $15,626 | $18,858 | $3,308 |
| Connecticut5 public · 12 private | 17 | $22,908 | $26,207 | $3,203 |
| Arizona3 public · 3 private | 6 | $24,657 | $27,326 | $3,157 |
| New Mexico5 public · 0 private | 5 | $5,768 | $8,855 | $3,087 |
| Hawaii3 public · 2 private | 5 | $9,674 | $12,579 | $2,816 |
| Alabama13 public · 10 private | 23 | $17,545 | $20,124 | $2,651 |
| Mississippi7 public · 5 private | 12 | $16,956 | $17,118 | $1,414 |
| All reported colleges | 1,335 | $16,497 | $20,601 | $3,809 |
Too few colleges to report (fewer than 5): Alaska (3), Delaware (4), Nevada (4), Wyoming (1).
College by college
Largest jumps
Colleges where the step from the $48–75k bracket to the $75–110k bracket is steepest in the federal data. Read the data check above: some of these colleges have changed their aid since.
| University of RichmondVirginia · Private nonprofit | $16,251 | $44,118 | $27,867 |
|---|---|---|---|
| California Institute of Technology CalTechCalifornia · Private nonprofit | $4,144 | $29,762 | $25,618 |
| Felician UniversityNew Jersey · Private nonprofit | $5,878 | $24,584 | $18,706 |
| Boston UniversityMassachusetts · Private nonprofit | $52,880 | $70,352 | $17,472 |
| Barnard CollegeNew York · Private nonprofit | $9,628 | $26,883 | $17,255 |
| Kenyon CollegeOhio · Private nonprofit | $15,184 | $31,525 | $16,341 |
| Santa Clara UniversityCalifornia · Private nonprofit | $25,352 | $40,238 | $14,886 |
| Brown UniversityRhode Island · Private nonprofit | $10,079 | $24,827 | $14,748 |
| Suffolk UniversityMassachusetts · Private nonprofit | $30,454 | $44,993 | $14,539 |
| Colorado CollegeColorado · Private nonprofit | $13,798 | $28,292 | $14,494 |
| Texas Christian University TCUTexas · Private nonprofit | $19,790 | $34,094 | $14,304 |
| Saint Francis UniversityPennsylvania · Private nonprofit | $21,010 | $35,281 | $14,271 |
| Lafayette CollegePennsylvania · Private nonprofit | $16,456 | $30,704 | $14,248 |
| Oberlin CollegeOhio · Private nonprofit | $18,356 | $32,410 | $14,054 |
| Boston CollegeMassachusetts · Private nonprofit | $9,615 | $23,616 | $14,001 |
| University of Pennsylvania UPENNPennsylvania · Private nonprofit | $12,421 | $25,263 | $12,842 |
| Macalester CollegeMinnesota · Private nonprofit | $15,825 | $28,539 | $12,714 |
| Providence CollegeRhode Island · Private nonprofit | $24,571 | $37,259 | $12,688 |
| Tufts UniversityMassachusetts · Private nonprofit | $16,897 | $29,497 | $12,600 |
| Gallaudet UniversityDistrict of Columbia · Private nonprofit | $20,848 | $33,269 | $12,421 |
| Claremont McKenna College CMCCalifornia · Private nonprofit | $19,127 | $31,487 | $12,360 |
| Berklee College of MusicMassachusetts · Private nonprofit | $32,977 | $45,303 | $12,326 |
| Duke UniversityNorth Carolina · Private nonprofit | $4,608 | $16,813 | $12,205 |
| Loyola Marymount UniversityCalifornia · Private nonprofit | $33,201 | $45,169 | $11,968 |
| Colgate UniversityNew York · Private nonprofit | $15,150 | $26,968 | $11,818 |
Methodology
- Colleges counted
- Every college published on CollegesRef that is public or private nonprofit, in a four-year Carnegie class (doctoral, master's or baccalaureate), in the 50 states or D.C., with at least 500 undergraduates and both figures reported in the College Scorecard.
- Exclusions
- For-profit colleges, two-year colleges, special-focus institutions, colleges with fewer undergraduates than the minimum, U.S. territories and colleges missing either figure are left out.
- Reporting threshold
- A state is reported only when at least 5 colleges qualify; states below it are listed under the table and still count in the national figures.
- Net price by income
- Average net price for aided first-time, full-time students by family income (College Scorecard NPT43 for $48,001–$75,000 and NPT44 for $75,001–$110,000). Public colleges report in-state students only.
- The jump
- The $75,001–$110,000 price minus the $48,001–$75,000 price at the same college. A negative jump means the higher bracket paid less on average, which can happen with small groups of students.
- Data year
- Figures describe the federal reporting year shown in the sources and do not reflect aid policies announced after it.
Read the CollegesRef methodology for how college data is checked, or browse all data stories.
Sources
- Data
- U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports these figures from the IPEDS surveys and federal student aid records; Carnegie classes from IPEDS.
- Edition
- 2026–27, data verified Nov 2026
- Source reporting year
- 2025
- Snapshot
- November 15, 2026
- Licence
- Federal data is a U.S. government work in the public domain. Please credit CollegesRef for this analysis.
- Downloads
- CSVMarkdown (for AI tools)
Frequently asked questions
Short answers about how the numbers work.
Which income brackets are compared?
Families earning $48,001–$75,000 and $75,001–$110,000, the two federal brackets around the U.S. middle. At the median of 1,335 colleges the higher bracket pays $3,809 more a year.
Why might a college charge my family less than this page shows?
The College Scorecard lags policy by a few years. Colleges that later introduced free tuition or no-loan aid for middle-income families still show their older prices here. A college's own net price calculator reflects its current aid.
Do public colleges show in-state or out-of-state prices?
In-state. Federal net price by income at public colleges covers in-state students only, so out-of-state families usually pay more.
Related guides and tools
Step-by-step explanations of the figures, written from the same federal data.
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