State cost ranking · DOE College Scorecard
Cheapest Colleges in Nebraska
According to U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data, 35 Nebraska colleges ranked by average net price, what students actually paid after grant and scholarship aid, not the published sticker price.
- $4,982
- Cheapest net price
- $16,590
- Nebraska median
- 35
- Schools ranked
Data updated June 2026 · IPEDS 2022–23 vintage
The list in one line
Metropolitan Community College Area has the lowest average net price in Nebraska at $4,982/year, and the state's median net price is 3% below the $17,083 national median across 4,942 schools.
- $4,982
- cheapest ranked net price
- $16,590
- Nebraska median net price
- 15 public / 20 private
- schools in this ranking
- $14,040
- avg net price, <$30K income families
Average net price is the institution-reported average amount students actually paid after all grant and scholarship aid, not counting loans that must be repaid. A very low figure at a specialty or religious institution can reflect a narrow enrollment mix rather than typical affordability, check the sector label and enrollment before comparing.
Sticker tuition and real net price diverge most at Nebraska Wesleyan University, where in-state published tuition of $43,572 falls to an average net price of $18,327 after aid, a $25,245 gap. This is the widest sticker-to-net-price gap among ranked Nebraska schools, and a reminder that published tuition alone is a poor guide to what most admitted students actually pay.
Across all 35 ranked Nebraska schools, 15 are public institutions and 20 are private (nonprofit or for-profit). Sector is shown next to every school below because a low sticker-adjacent price at a small religious, seminary, or specialty school can reflect an unusual enrollment mix rather than broad affordability, check enrollment and sector before drawing conclusions from rank alone.
Average net price also blends every income bracket into one figure, so a family's own bracket can land well above or below the number shown here. Federal reporting requires an institution to have enough surveyed aid recipients in a bracket before that bracket is published, so a very small school can show only a partial income-bracket breakdown even when its overall average net price is fully reported. Use the school's own profile page for the full income-bracket table before treating a single average as a personal cost estimate.
Nebraska's 25 cheapest colleges by real net price
| # | College | Avg net price | Net price (<$30K income) | Median debt | Median earnings, 6yr | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Metropolitan Community College Area Omaha, NE · Public | $4,982 86% of the leader · rank #1 | $4,151 | $8,217 | $35,437 | 15,964 |
| 2 | Mid-Plains Community College North Platte, NE · Public | $5,235 85% of the leader · rank #2 | $4,853 | $9,995 | $34,852 | 2,066 |
| 3 | Western Nebraska Community College Scottsbluff, NE · Public | $5,474 85% of the leader · rank #3 | $4,420 | $9,000 | $33,557 | 1,508 |
| 4 | Central Community College Grand Island, NE · Public | $7,024 80% of the leader · rank #4 | $5,609 | $7,992 | $36,158 | 6,862 |
| 5 | Northeast Community College Norfolk, NE · Public | $8,544 76% of the leader · rank #5 | $5,505 | $11,000 | $39,950 | 5,595 |
| 6 | Southeast Community College Area Lincoln, NE · Public | $9,171 74% of the leader · rank #6 | $6,687 | $11,000 | $39,103 | 9,799 |
| 7 | Little Priest Tribal College Winnebago, NE · Public | $9,303 74% of the leader · rank #7 | $9,010 | - | $25,225 | 208 |
| 8 | Joseph's College Cosmetology Lincoln, NE · Private for-profit | $10,125 71% of the leader · rank #8 | $7,099 | $12,000 | $23,617 | 98 |
| 9 | Peru State College Peru, NE · Public | $11,632 67% of the leader · rank #9 | $9,986 | $21,875 | $39,150 | 1,638 |
| 10 | Chadron State College Chadron, NE · Public | $12,549 65% of the leader · rank #10 | $10,047 | $18,875 | $39,139 | 2,205 |
| 11 | University of Nebraska at Omaha Omaha, NE · Public | $13,441 62% of the leader · rank #11 | $10,534 | $19,000 | $45,494 | 15,015 |
| 12 | Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Curtis, NE · Public | $14,639 59% of the leader · rank #12 | $11,603 | $21,000 | $47,692 | 259 |
| 13 | Capitol Beauty School Omaha, NE · Private for-profit | $14,886 58% of the leader · rank #13 | $14,395 | $6,650 | $28,276 | 167 |
| 14 | Wayne State College Wayne, NE · Public | $15,360 57% of the leader · rank #14 | $12,844 | $19,000 | $40,857 | 4,807 |
| 15 | Entourage Institute of Beauty and Esthetics Lincoln, NE · Private for-profit | $15,787 56% of the leader · rank #15 | $15,787 | $9,955 | $23,293 | 49 |
| 16 | Stephanie Moss Academy Omaha, NE · Private for-profit | $15,965 55% of the leader · rank #16 | $13,979 | $6,867 | $28,093 | 220 |
| 17 | University of Nebraska at Kearney Kearney, NE · Public | $16,242 54% of the leader · rank #17 | $13,066 | $19,500 | $43,241 | 6,017 |
| 18 | College of Saint Mary Omaha, NE · Private nonprofit | $16,590 53% of the leader · rank #18 | $14,090 | $24,250 | $59,339 | 733 |
| 19 | Bellevue University Bellevue, NE · Private nonprofit | $17,550 51% of the leader · rank #19 | $17,561 | $20,000 | $57,732 | 14,476 |
| 20 | University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE · Public | $17,747 50% of the leader · rank #20 | $12,751 | $21,000 | $47,692 | 23,986 |
| 21 | College of Hair Design-Downtown Lincoln, NE · Private for-profit | $17,934 49% of the leader · rank #21 | $17,075 | $12,000 | $24,991 | 72 |
| 22 | Nebraska Wesleyan University Lincoln, NE · Private nonprofit | $18,327 48% of the leader · rank #22 | $14,925 | $26,970 | $47,667 | 1,690 |
| 23 | Clarkson College Omaha, NE · Private nonprofit | $19,241 46% of the leader · rank #23 | - | $23,716 | $62,339 | 1,078 |
| 24 | York University York, NE · Private nonprofit | $20,951 41% of the leader · rank #24 | $19,343 | $21,500 | $36,447 | 585 |
| 25 | Universal College of Healing Arts Omaha, NE · Private for-profit | $21,658 39% of the leader · rank #25 | $21,658 | $14,768 | $23,162 | 27 |
See all 35 ranked Nebraska schools →
| # | College | Avg net price | Net price (<$30K income) | Median debt | Median earnings, 6yr | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health Omaha, NE · Private nonprofit | $21,863 38% of the leader · rank #26 | $17,272 | $23,417 | $61,249 | 1,040 |
| 27 | Nebraska Indian Community College Macy, NE · Public | $23,334 34% of the leader · rank #27 | $22,958 | - | $25,591 | 624 |
| 28 | Union Adventist University Lincoln, NE · Private nonprofit | $23,716 33% of the leader · rank #28 | $19,477 | $27,000 | $43,853 | 635 |
| 29 | Concordia University-Nebraska Seward, NE · Private nonprofit | $23,965 32% of the leader · rank #29 | $19,107 | $25,750 | $44,527 | 3,423 |
| 30 | Hastings College Hastings, NE · Private nonprofit | $24,452 31% of the leader · rank #30 | $21,646 | $27,000 | $45,590 | 1,011 |
| 31 | Midland University Fremont, NE · Private nonprofit | $26,267 26% of the leader · rank #31 | $21,086 | $26,134 | $45,145 | 1,557 |
| 32 | Doane University Crete, NE · Private nonprofit | $26,364 26% of the leader · rank #32 | $21,129 | $25,000 | $46,009 | 1,948 |
| 33 | Bryan College of Health Sciences Lincoln, NE · Private nonprofit | $26,919 24% of the leader · rank #33 | $23,196 | $24,985 | $66,305 | 746 |
| 34 | Creighton University Omaha, NE · Private nonprofit | $31,568 11% of the leader · rank #34 | $20,472 | $25,000 | $63,090 | 8,255 |
| 35 | Myotherapy Institute Lincoln, NE · Private for-profit | $35,500 4% of the leader · rank #35 | - | - | - | 10 |
What this means for you
Use Nebraska's ranking as a starting point, real net price depends on your specific financial-aid package.
- Metropolitan Community College Area reports the lowest average net price in Nebraska, but "average" blends every income bracket, check your bracket's figure before assuming it applies to you. View Metropolitan Community College
- See your specific school's in-state cost rank and nearest-price peers. My School Profile
- Compare campus safety alongside cost before deciding. Nebraska safety
Figures reflect the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard IPEDS 2022–23 release.
Average net price = the institution-reported average amount students actually paid after all grant and scholarship aid, excluding loans. Only schools with a reported average net price in the DOE College Scorecard dataset are ranked. Schools with fewer than 10 net-price-reporting institutions in a state or territory are not given a dedicated ranking page.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard IPEDS 2022–23
Every figure on PlainCampus is rendered directly from federal Clery Act source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Every ranked figure on this page is queried directly from the DOE College Scorecard dataset at request time; no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.
PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice; the data describes reported on-campus activity, it is not a complete picture of safety at any campus and cannot predict any individual student's experience. See our appropriate use guidance.