State cost ranking · DOE College Scorecard
Cheapest Colleges in South Dakota
According to U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data, 20 South Dakota colleges ranked by average net price, what students actually paid after grant and scholarship aid, not the published sticker price.
- $1,895
- Cheapest net price
- $18,146
- South Dakota median
- 20
- Schools ranked
Data updated June 2026 · IPEDS 2022–23 vintage
The list in one line
Oglala Lakota College has the lowest average net price in South Dakota at $1,895/year, and the state's median net price is 6% above the $17,083 national median across 4,942 schools.
- $1,895
- cheapest ranked net price
- $18,146
- South Dakota median net price
- 13 public / 7 private
- schools in this ranking
- $12,926
- 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 Augustana University, where in-state published tuition of $40,160 falls to an average net price of $23,894 after aid, a $16,266 gap. This is the widest sticker-to-net-price gap among ranked South Dakota schools, and a reminder that published tuition alone is a poor guide to what most admitted students actually pay.
Across all 20 ranked South Dakota schools, 13 are public institutions and 7 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.
South Dakota's 25 cheapest colleges by real net price
| # | College | Avg net price | Net price (<$30K income) | Median debt | Median earnings, 6yr | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oglala Lakota College Kyle, SD · Public | $1,895 92% of the leader · rank #1 | $1,422 | - | $20,536 | 1,229 |
| 2 | Sisseton Wahpeton College Agency Village, SD · Public | $2,977 88% of the leader · rank #2 | $590 | - | $23,940 | 215 |
| 3 | Western Dakota Technical College Rapid City, SD · Public | $12,670 47% of the leader · rank #3 | $10,071 | $15,000 | $36,971 | 1,047 |
| 4 | Sinte Gleska University Mission, SD · Public | $12,768 47% of the leader · rank #4 | $11,728 | - | $15,889 | 683 |
| 5 | Mitchell Technical College Mitchell, SD · Public | $13,460 44% of the leader · rank #5 | $9,750 | $12,000 | $47,849 | 1,132 |
| 6 | Stewart School Sioux Falls, SD · Private for-profit | $14,221 40% of the leader · rank #6 | $11,333 | $6,864 | $28,339 | 148 |
| 7 | Northern State University Aberdeen, SD · Public | $15,812 34% of the leader · rank #7 | $10,762 | $22,320 | $41,536 | 3,521 |
| 8 | Black Hills State University Spearfish, SD · Public | $15,911 33% of the leader · rank #8 | $11,863 | $26,000 | $38,927 | 3,475 |
| 9 | Lake Area Technical College Watertown, SD · Public | $15,979 33% of the leader · rank #9 | $11,193 | $12,000 | $43,659 | 2,179 |
| 10 | Southeast Technical College Sioux Falls, SD · Public | $17,400 27% of the leader · rank #10 | $14,418 | $12,000 | $43,427 | 2,478 |
| 11 | The Salon Professional Academy Rapid City, SD · Private for-profit | $18,146 24% of the leader · rank #11 | $14,704 | $8,500 | $25,321 | 65 |
| 12 | Paul Mitchell the School-Rapid City Rapid City, SD · Private for-profit | $19,694 18% of the leader · rank #12 | $17,122 | $7,917 | $22,585 | 79 |
| 13 | Dakota Wesleyan University Mitchell, SD · Private nonprofit | $19,735 17% of the leader · rank #13 | $15,251 | $27,000 | $49,432 | 886 |
| 14 | South Dakota State University Brookings, SD · Public | $19,841 17% of the leader · rank #14 | $14,266 | $23,250 | $49,564 | 11,498 |
| 15 | University of South Dakota Vermillion, SD · Public | $19,858 17% of the leader · rank #15 | $14,921 | $23,592 | $46,290 | 9,868 |
| 16 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Rapid City, SD · Public | $20,183 16% of the leader · rank #16 | $15,348 | $27,000 | $62,863 | 2,492 |
| 17 | Dakota State University Madison, SD · Public | $21,057 12% of the leader · rank #17 | $17,317 | $23,500 | $46,146 | 3,508 |
| 18 | University of Sioux Falls Sioux Falls, SD · Private nonprofit | $21,383 11% of the leader · rank #18 | $18,145 | $23,249 | $46,712 | 1,509 |
| 19 | Mount Marty University Yankton, SD · Private nonprofit | $22,227 7% of the leader · rank #19 | $19,564 | $26,396 | $46,984 | 1,314 |
| 20 | Augustana University Sioux Falls, SD · Private nonprofit | $23,894 4% of the leader · rank #20 | $18,746 | $25,000 | $49,826 | 2,158 |
What this means for you
Use South Dakota's ranking as a starting point, real net price depends on your specific financial-aid package.
- Oglala Lakota College reports the lowest average net price in South Dakota, but "average" blends every income bracket, check your bracket's figure before assuming it applies to you. View Oglala Lakota College
- See your specific school's in-state cost rank and nearest-price peers. My School Profile
- Compare campus safety alongside cost before deciding. South Dakota 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.