In calculating costs of attendance, numerous variables are typically considered for inclusion. The categories that are most often included are tuition and fees, room and board, and books and supplies. Some calculations also include an “other expenses” category. However, our calculations do not include this category, as the primary categories are central to the academic mission of higher education. Institutions also provide grants and scholarships that serve to offset the cost of attendance and will be included in our calculations. Costs are reported by each institution as the amount that a first-time-in-college student who is paying in-state tuition and living in on-campus housing will pay for 30 student credit hours spanning a full academic year.

• The first visualization below (National Averages) shows the mean amount for each category when averaged across all 4-year public universities in the United States that have complete data in the national database (NCES IPEDS).
• On average, room and board ($10,725) at public 4-year institutions in the United States exceeds the cost of tuition and fees ($9,580).
• When adding the primary categories (tuition & fees, room & board, and books & supplies) together, the average cost of attendance calculation is almost $22,000.
• With the average grant and scholarship aid just over $9,000, the net cost of attendance nationally is just over $12,500 for our calculations. 

• The second chart below (NET COA (Distribution)) shows the distribution of average net cost of attendance across the universities in the dataset.
• The average net COA ranges from the lowest cost of $2,700 to the highest cost of $25,124.
• The median net COA is $12,247 with half of the institutions ranging between $9,900 and $15,000. 
• The number of institutions falling within each $1,000 band are shown above each bar, as well as the average amount inside each $1,000 band.