Paying for it · 5 min read
The sticker price is not the price
Published tuition is where the conversation starts and almost never where it ends. Here is what the number on a school's page does and does not tell you.
Published, before any aid
We carry published tuition for 2,215 schools and score it against the budget a family gives us. It is the STICKER price — before need-based aid, academic money, or anything athletic — because that is the figure schools publish and the only one that can be compared like for like. Most families pay less than it.
In-state only means in that state
A public school charges its lower in-state rate only to residents of its own state, so the same school is two different prices depending on where you live. A private school charges one figure to everyone, which is why a private can occasionally come out cheaper than an out-of-state public before aid is even discussed.
Athletic money is not the main lever at most levels
NCAA scholarship limits for Division I soccer ended in July 2025 and rosters are capped at 28 instead. Division III offers no athletic aid at all — it competes on academic and need-based money. For most families the academic and need-based side is the larger number, and it is decided by the admissions office rather than the coach.
Sources
Figures attributed to Startline are counted from the data we hold and update when it does. Recruiting rules change — check anything dated against the governing body itself.