Illinois ranking · College Scorecard · Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

Best Colleges in Illinois

Using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data retrieved March-July 2026, these operating Illinois colleges (undergraduate enrollment 1,000+) rank highest on value: median earnings ten years after enrollment minus average net price. That single gap is the sort key - not prestige, selectivity, or a composite score.

Compiled by PlainCollege , College outcomes data analysis

$77,025
Top earnings-price gap: 89
Illinois colleges ranked: $14,860
#1 avg net price

The list in one line

Among Illinois colleges with enrollment of 1,000+, every school on this list clears a $-9,639 earnings-minus-net-price gap. University of Chicago leads at $77,025.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

$77,025
#1 - University of Chicago: $91,885
#1 ten-year median earnings: $-9,639
#89 cutoff gap: 1,000+
undergraduate enrollment floor

Value = 10-year median earnings - average net price for federal-aid students. See methodology for cohort and lag details.

University of Chicago

$77,025
University of Illinois U…

$66,699
Illinois Institute of Te…

$64,167
Chamberlain University-I…

$60,568
Northwestern University

$60,196
University of Illinois C…

$57,766
University of St Francis

$50,920
Lewis University

$49,071
Dominican University

$48,582
Saint Xavier University

$47,686
University of Illinois S…

$47,270
Governors State University

$45,840
Northern Illinois Univer…

$44,417
Bradley University

$44,133
Illinois State University

$42,719

What this shows Specialized health and career schools can rank highly when program mix lifts earnings; compare completion rates and debt on each school profile before reading value as overall quality.

The full Illinois list

#	School Name	Median Earnings (10yr)	Avg Net Price	Earnings - Price	Enrollment
1	University of Chicago	$91,885	$14,860	$77,025	7,569
2	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	$81,054	$14,355	$66,699	36,258
3	Illinois Institute of Technology	$82,592	$18,425	$64,167	2,833
4	Chamberlain University-Illinois	$92,405	$31,837	$60,568	14,027
5	Northwestern University	$89,363	$29,167	$60,196	9,201
6	University of Illinois Chicago	$68,740	$10,974	$57,766	22,170
7	University of St Francis	$63,926	$13,006	$50,920	1,223
8	Lewis University	$66,099	$17,028	$49,071	4,015
9	Dominican University	$60,327	$11,745	$48,582	2,561
10	Saint Xavier University	$58,656	$10,970	$47,686	3,096
11	University of Illinois Springfield	$57,103	$9,833	$47,270	2,263
12	Governors State University	$58,169	$12,329	$45,840	2,556
13	Northern Illinois University	$57,808	$13,391	$44,417	11,301
14	Bradley University	$66,852	$22,719	$44,133	3,574
15	Illinois State University	$62,117	$19,398	$42,719	19,057
16	Illinois Wesleyan University	$70,871	$28,199	$42,672	1,582
17	Oakton College	$47,852	$5,183	$42,669	6,072
18	North Park University	$59,572	$16,948	$42,624	1,818
19	Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	$56,346	$14,889	$41,457	8,750
20	Western Illinois University	$54,163	$12,937	$41,226	4,410
21	Joliet Junior College	$42,889	$1,672	$41,217	9,306
22	Benedictine University	$63,446	$22,313	$41,133	1,942
23	Moraine Valley Community College	$43,892	$2,829	$41,063	7,490
24	Augustana College	$62,971	$22,736	$40,235	2,490
25	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	$53,390	$13,297	$40,093	8,494
26	Aurora University	$58,709	$18,838	$39,871	3,974
27	College of DuPage	$46,909	$7,401	$39,508	16,114
28	Elgin Community College	$45,516	$6,026	$39,490	6,648
29	Eastern Illinois University	$51,989	$12,786	$39,203	4,188
30	North Central College	$60,123	$21,044	$39,079	2,428
31	Illinois Valley Community College	$40,810	$2,232	$38,578	2,040
32	Northeastern Illinois University	$52,234	$14,109	$38,125	3,982
33	McHenry County College	$45,143	$7,042	$38,101	4,691
34	DePaul University	$68,751	$30,902	$37,849	14,090
35	Triton College	$41,728	$4,138	$37,590	6,902
36	Elmhurst University	$61,462	$24,185	$37,277	3,006
37	Morton College	$42,406	$5,191	$37,215	2,640
38	Wheaton College	$63,756	$26,975	$36,781	2,121
39	Lake Land College	$38,877	$2,254	$36,623	2,448
40	William Rainey Harper College	$48,071	$11,607	$36,464	9,313
41	College of Lake County	$43,424	$7,607	$35,817	9,420
42	Concordia University-Chicago	$54,089	$18,436	$35,653	1,323
43	Loyola University Chicago	$71,530	$36,079	$35,451	11,737
44	City Colleges of Chicago-Wilbur Wright College	$41,625	$6,375	$35,250	4,372
45	Kishwaukee College	$39,657	$4,574	$35,083	1,936
46	Richland Community College	$38,793	$3,741	$35,052	1,346
47	Lewis and Clark Community College	$37,724	$3,349	$34,375	2,487
48	Lincoln Land Community College	$38,479	$4,299	$34,180	3,976
49	Kankakee Community College	$38,767	$4,665	$34,102	1,985
50	Rock Valley College	$39,158	$5,242	$33,916	4,359
51	McKendree University	$58,572	$24,717	$33,855	1,752
52	Waubonsee Community College	$44,788	$11,442	$33,346	5,721
53	National Louis University	$45,799	$12,641	$33,158	4,406
54	Lake Forest College	$61,825	$28,673	$33,152	1,813
55	Olivet Nazarene University	$53,213	$20,729	$32,484	2,603
56	Kaskaskia College	$38,801	$6,477	$32,324	1,920
57	Sauk Valley Community College	$40,458	$8,493	$31,965	1,158
58	Prairie State College	$36,696	$4,738	$31,958	2,443
59	Carl Sandburg College	$35,274	$3,662	$31,612	1,051
60	John Wood Community College	$38,631	$7,050	$31,581	1,371
61	Chicago State University	$42,778	$12,335	$30,443	1,384
62	South Suburban College	$33,680	$3,242	$30,438	2,042
63	Black Hawk College	$37,253	$6,944	$30,309	2,354
64	Parkland College	$38,320	$8,048	$30,272	3,348
65	Knox College	$54,820	$24,595	$30,225	1,127
66	Danville Area Community College	$34,867	$4,777	$30,090	1,508
67	City Colleges of Chicago-Richard J Daley College	$37,962	$7,886	$30,076	2,789
68	Quincy University	$50,369	$20,359	$30,010	1,010
69	Millikin University	$51,262	$21,989	$29,273	1,382
70	City Colleges of Chicago-Harold Washington College	$36,531	$7,397	$29,134	4,207
71	Heartland Community College	$40,768	$12,013	$28,755	2,997
72	City Colleges of Chicago-Harry S Truman College	$36,484	$7,863	$28,621	2,505
73	John A Logan College	$34,096	$5,541	$28,555	2,016
74	Roosevelt University	$48,712	$20,194	$28,518	2,849
75	Illinois Eastern Community Colleges	$37,533	$10,092	$27,441	1,634
76	Rend Lake College	$35,775	$9,187	$26,588	1,175
77	Southwestern Illinois College	$36,884	$10,427	$26,457	5,675
78	Universal Technical Institute of Illinois Inc	$52,873	$27,060	$25,813	1,156
79	City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College	$32,427	$7,220	$25,207	6,409
80	Illinois Central College	$37,366	$12,961	$24,405	5,052
81	Moody Bible Institute	$45,399	$22,221	$23,178	1,510
82	City Colleges of Chicago-Olive-Harvey College	$31,114	$9,038	$22,076	1,661
83	Rasmussen University-Illinois	$39,080	$19,854	$19,226	1,145
84	City Colleges of Chicago-Kennedy-King College	$28,467	$9,494	$18,973	1,777
85	Columbia College Chicago	$42,195	$26,598	$15,597	5,368
86	DeVry University-Illinois	$45,987	$30,770	$15,217	27,825
87	Lincoln College of Technology-Melrose Park	$38,683	$25,598	$13,085	1,539
88	Midwest Technical Institute-Illinois	$33,601	$27,793	$5,808	1,326
89	School of the Art Institute of Chicago	$40,151	$49,790	$-9,639	2,805

About This Ranking

Schools in Illinois are ranked by the same value metric as the national best-value list: 10-year median earnings minus average net price. Only operating schools with at least 1,000 undergraduates and both figures published are included. Ties break toward larger enrollment. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. See methodology.

Caveats and limitations

"Best" here means the largest earnings-minus-price gap among eligible Illinois schools - not teaching quality, campus life, or the right fit for any applicant. Program mix (for example nursing or engineering) can lift institution-level earnings without proving a stronger undergraduate experience.

Earnings cover federally aided students only and describe a lagged cohort. Net price averages aided students and will not match every family's bill. Always open the school profile for completion, debt, and program detail.

This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or admissions advice.

Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Rankings are computed directly from College Scorecard and IPEDS data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals.