Cost is often a major consideration when choosing a college. And with tuition rates continuing to rise every year — not to mention all the other expenses related to attendance — many would-be students are unable to afford a university education. That’s even more of a concern this year as lots of people deal with financial struggles caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Community colleges offer students the ability to get higher education without having as much financial strain. During the 2020 to 2021 academic year, tuition and fees for full-time, in-state enrollment at a public two-year college averaged $3,770 per year versus $10,560 at a public four-year institution and $37,650 at a four-year private school. Students who earn their general-education credits at a community college before transferring to an in-state public four-year university can potentially save a lot of money.
Other than serving as an affordable, and in some cases free, option for education, community colleges have a number of attractive qualities. They often provide more flexible schedules, smaller class sizes and rigorous coursework. Some even go beyond two-year programs to offer four-year bachelor’s degrees. These qualities advantages appeal especially to students who need to balance their studies with other commitments, such as family and work.
Individual community colleges, however, vary in quality and affordability. To determine where students can receive the best education at the lowest price, WalletHub compared more than 650 community colleges across 19 key indicators of cost and quality. Our data set ranges from the cost of in-state tuition and fees to student-faculty ratio to graduation rate. In addition to this ranking, we also conducted a state-level analysis of the Best & Worst Community College Systems.
Main Findings
Best Community Colleges in the U.S.
| Overall Rank | Community College | Total Score | Cost & Financing | Education Outcomes | Career Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | State Technical College of Missouri | 72.61 | 261 | 7 | 3 |
| 2 | College of San Mateo | 69.25 | 87 | 221 | 11 |
| 3 | Saddleback College | 68.84 | 71 | 178 | 28 |
| 4 | Butte College | 67.71 | 3 | 256 | 215 |
| 5 | Santa Fe Community College | 67.17 | 2 | 284 | 233 |
| 6 | Arkansas State University-Mountain Home | 66.98 | 127 | 74 | 66 |
| 7 | Kauai Community College | 66.87 | 107 | 56 | 109 |
| 8 | Ohlone College | 66.64 | 41 | 591 | 9 |
| 9 | Northwest Iowa Community College | 66.55 | 375 | 128 | 2 |
| 10 | Los Angeles Pierce College | 66.39 | 76 | 288 | 61 |
| 11 | Kapiolani Community College | 66.16 | 229 | 141 | 22 |
| 12 | De Anza College | 66 | 115 | 359 | 30 |
| 13 | Los Angeles Harbor College | 65.84 | 23 | 408 | 118 |
| 14 | Alexandria Technical & Community College | 65.61 | 400 | 27 | 7 |
| 15 | College of Southern Maryland | 65.5 | 273 | 17 | 79 |
| 16 | Irvine Valley College | 65.48 | 86 | 240 | 110 |
| 17 | Los Angeles Mission College | 65.47 | 47 | 489 | 67 |
| 18 | Northern Wyoming Community College District | 65.35 | 117 | 198 | 78 |
| 19 | Evergreen Valley College | 65.31 | 55 | 549 | 32 |
| 20 | Northwestern Connecticut Community College | 65.28 | 83 | 268 | 105 |
| 21 | Las Positas College | 65.2 | 18 | 617 | 24 |
| 22 | Shoreline Community College | 65.08 | 294 | 123 | 21 |
| 23 | Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture | 64.92 | 429 | 410 | 1 |
| 24 | Golden West College | 64.91 | 66 | 121 | 226 |
| 25 | Mitchell Technical College | 64.75 | 606 | 2 | 5 |
| 26 | CUNY Queensborough Community College | 64.68 | 141 | 312 | 52 |
| 27 | Orange Coast College | 64.67 | 80 | 362 | 104 |
| 28 | Glendale Community College - CA | 64.51 | 22 | 523 | 126 |
| 29 | Mesalands Community College | 64.51 | 11 | 70 | 589 |
| 30 | Honolulu Community College | 64.42 | 152 | 117 | 140 |
Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that community college, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.
Rankings by State
| State | Rank (1 = Best) | Community College | Total Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 1 | George C Wallace State Community College-Hanceville | 53.89 |
| Alabama | 2 | Enterprise State Community College | 49.77 |
| Alabama | 3 | Jefferson State Community College | 49.31 |
| Alabama | 4 | Lurleen B Wallace Community College | 48.68 |
| Alabama | 5 | Northeast Alabama Community College | 48.39 |
| Alabama | 6 | George C Wallace State Community College-Selma | 48.32 |
| Alabama | 7 | Gadsden State Community College | 48.11 |
| Alabama | 8 | George C Wallace State Community College-Dothan | 47.55 |
| Alabama | 9 | Shelton State Community College | 45.81 |
| Alabama | 10 | Lawson State Community College-Birmingham Campus | 45.25 |
| Alabama | 11 | Bevill State Community College | 44.51 |
| Alabama | 12 | H Councill Trenholm State Community College | 44.49 |
| Alabama | 13 | Central Alabama Community College | 44.09 |
| Alabama | 14 | J F Drake State Community and Technical College | 43.72 |
| Alabama | 15 | Chattahoochee Valley Community College | 41.83 |
| Alabama | 16 | Coastal Alabama Community College | 41.32 |
| Alabama | 17 | Snead State Community College | 40.86 |
| Alabama | 18 | Bishop State Community College | 38.73 |
| Alabama | 19 | Northwest-Shoals Community College | 38.56 |
| Arizona | 1 | GateWay Community College - AZ | 57.97 |
| Arizona | 2 | Chandler-Gilbert Community College | 56.34 |
| Arizona | 3 | Cochise County Community College District | 55.37 |
| Arizona | 4 | Paradise Valley Community College | 55.02 |
| Arizona | 5 | Glendale Community College - AZ | 54.07 |
| Arizona | 6 | Mesa Community College | 53.95 |
| Arizona | 7 | Estrella Mountain Community College | 52.95 |
| Arizona | 8 | Phoenix College | 52.51 |
| Arizona | 9 | Eastern Arizona College | 50.88 |
| Arizona | 10 | Yavapai College | 50.06 |
| Arizona | 11 | Mohave Community College | 50.02 |
Ask the Experts
With college costs rising and more Americans pursuing degrees, community-college proves to be an attractive option for many students. For advice on improving the U.S. community-college system, we asked a panel of experts to weigh in with their thoughts on the following key questions:
- Do you think that making community college tuition-free will increase enrollment and graduation rates?
- What can policymakers do to improve the quality of education and training at community colleges and the career prospects of graduates?
- Should community colleges focus more on preparing graduates for the workforce through career and technical education or on preparing graduates to move to a four-year college?
- In evaluating the best and worst community college systems, what are the top five indicators?
- What are the main challenges facing community college education during the current crisis? What are the best ways to overcome these challenges?
- What is the outlook for community college education in 2021?
Ask the Experts
Professor of Higher Education in the College of Education and Health Professions – University of Arkansas
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Professor Emeritus of Anthropology & of Linguistics – Binghamton University, State University of New York
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Professor Emeritus and former Paul Burdin Chair in Educational Leadership – University of Louisiana; Fellow, Texas Catholic Historical Society
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Professor, Department of Economics – William & Mary; Author of “The Road Ahead for America’s Colleges and Universities” and “Why Does College Cost so Much?”
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Ph.D. – Professor Emeritus, Educational Leadership – Eastern Michigan University
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Ph.D. – Professor/MAT Program Coordinator – North Park University
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Methodology
In order to determine the best community colleges in the U.S., WalletHub selected a sample of 685 schools from the list of member institutions in the American Association of Community Colleges. Due to data limitations, we were not able to include all member schools. Please note that the AACC is not affiliated whatsoever with WalletHub and was used strictly as an informational resource.
We evaluated the schools based on three key dimensions, including: 1) Cost & Financing, 2) Education Outcomes and 3) Career Outcomes. We constructed the three dimensions using 19 total metrics, each grouped with related metrics in the appropriate category and listed below with its corresponding weight. We graded each metric on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the best community college.
Finally, we determined each school’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
Cost & Financing – Total Points: 33.33
- Cost of In-State Tuition & Fees: Double Weight (~6.06 Points)
- Presence of Free Community-College Education: Triple Weight (~9.09 Points)
Note: This metric considers the presence or absence of legislation to provide free community-college education or if such legislation is currently under consideration. - Average Amount of Grant or Scholarship Aid Received: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
- Availability of Employment Services for Students: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “activities intended to assist students in obtaining part-time employment as a means of defraying part of the cost of their education,” as described by the National Center for Education Statistics. - Per-Pupil Spending: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
- School Spending Efficiency: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated by dividing per-pupil spending by the cost of in-state tuition and fees. - Faculty Salary: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
Note: This metric was adjusted for the local cost of living. - Core Revenues per FTE Enrollment: Full Weight (~3.03 Points)
Note: This composite metric refers to revenues per FTE enrollment for public institutions using GASB standard for the following: 1) Revenues from State Appropriations per FTE Enrollment; 2) Revenues from Local Appropriations per FTE Enrollment; 3) Revenues from Government Grants and Contracts per FTE Enrollment and 4) Revenues from Private Gifts, Grants, and Contracts per FTE Enrollment.
Education Outcomes – Total Points: 33.33
- First-Year Retention Rate: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
- Graduation Rate: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
- Transfer-Out Rate: Half Weight (~2.22 Points)
- Credentials Awarded per 100 Full-Time-Equivalent Students: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: “Credentials” refer to degrees and certificates. - Student-Faculty Ratio: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
- Share of Full-Time Faculty: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
- Presence of Special Learning Opportunities: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of special learning opportunities, such as accelerated programs, cooperative (work-study) programs, distance education, dual enrollment, weekend/evening college etc. - Presence of Credit for Life Experiences: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “credit for life experiences” option. Life experience credits can be acquired through certain activities such as community work, volunteerism, seminars, workshops, skills training, or participation in a nonprofit organization and can be converted to academic credits.
Career Outcomes – Total Points: 33.33
- Student-Loan Default Rate: Full Weight (~11.11 Points)
- Median Salary after Attending: Full Weight (~11.11 Points)
Note: This metric measures the median earnings — 10 years after entering the school. - Share of Former Students Earning Above the Average Earnings of a High School Graduate: Full Weight (~11.11 Points)
Note: This metric measures the share of former students earning more than $25,000, or about the average earnings of a high school graduate aged 25 to 34, six years after they first enrolled.
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the National Center for Education Statistics, Campaign for Free College Tuition, U.S. Department of Education and Council for Community & Economic Research.