How much is college tuition in North Carolina?

In-state tuition and required fees at public four-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $7,266 a year (2023–24). That is the median of the published prices of 16 institutions. They range from $3,412 to $9,477.

What is the average in-state tuition in North Carolina?

The median, rather than the average, is $7,266 a year for 2023–24: half of North Carolina's public four-year institutions publish a higher price and half a lower one. It covers tuition and required fees, not room, board or books.

How much is out-of-state tuition in North Carolina?

Students from other states are typically charged $22,431 a year in tuition and fees at North Carolina's public four-year colleges (2023–24), $15,165 more than residents.

How much does a private college cost in North Carolina?

Published tuition and fees at private nonprofit four-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $31,250 a year (2023–24), the median of 43 institutions. Many students pay less than the published price after grants and scholarships.

How much is community college in North Carolina?

In-state tuition and fees at public two-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $2,549 a year (2023–24), the median of 58 institutions.

Is college in North Carolina expensive compared with other states?

North Carolina has the 43rd highest in-state public tuition of the 45 states with enough institutions to compare, −25.5% against the median of $9,755 across all states' public four-year institutions.

Typical Cost of College Tuition in North Carolina

On this page

The answer
Other kinds of college
Compared with other states
What this figure is
Common questions
Source

In-state tuition and required fees at public four-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $7,266 a year, going by the prices published for 2023–24. That is 25.5% below the median of $9,755 across all states' institutions.

This is the published price of tuition and fees only. It leaves out room, board and books, and it is not what a family pays after grants and scholarships, which is often less.

In-state, public four-year

$7,266

a year, 2023–24

How the figure is made

Median of 16

institutions, from $3,412 to $9,477

Against all states

−25.5%

BelowAll states $9,755

Out-of-state, private and community college tuition in North Carolina

The same published price for three other cases. Each is the median across the state's institutions of that kind.

Out-of-state, public four-year

$22,431a year

+8.5%All states $20,680

Median of 16 institutions, from $7,412 to $39,330

What the same public colleges charge students who are not residents of the state.

Private nonprofit four-year

$31,250a year

−7.2%All states $33,660

Median of 43 institutions, from $6,276 to $65,805

Private colleges generally publish one price for residents and non-residents alike; this is the in-state figure they report.

In-state, public two-year

$2,549a year

−45.8%All states $4,706

Median of 58 institutions, from $1,867 to $5,806

Community and technical colleges, for students who live in the state.

How North Carolina compares with other states

Each tick is one state's median in-state tuition at public four-year colleges. North Carolina has the 43rd highest of the 45 states with enough institutions to compare.

What this figure is

Every college reports its published tuition and required fees for full-time, first-time undergraduates to the National Center for Education Statistics. This page takes those prices for 2023–24 and finds the median for each kind of institution in North Carolina: half publish a higher price and half a lower one. The median is worked out on this site; NCES publishes the individual prices.

Four-year figures count institutions that mainly award bachelor's degrees or higher. A kind with fewer than three institutions in the state gets no figure, because a median of one or two colleges describes those colleges, not the state. The comparison figure is the same median taken across every state's institutions together.

Common questions

How much is college tuition in North Carolina?: In-state tuition and required fees at public four-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $7,266 a year (2023–24). That is the median of the published prices of 16 institutions. They range from $3,412 to $9,477.
What is the average in-state tuition in North Carolina?: The median, rather than the average, is $7,266 a year for 2023–24: half of North Carolina's public four-year institutions publish a higher price and half a lower one. It covers tuition and required fees, not room, board or books.
How much is out-of-state tuition in North Carolina?: Students from other states are typically charged $22,431 a year in tuition and fees at North Carolina's public four-year colleges (2023–24), $15,165 more than residents.
How much does a private college cost in North Carolina?: Published tuition and fees at private nonprofit four-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $31,250 a year (2023–24), the median of 43 institutions. Many students pay less than the published price after grants and scholarships.
How much is community college in North Carolina?: In-state tuition and fees at public two-year colleges in North Carolina are typically $2,549 a year (2023–24), the median of 58 institutions.
Is college in North Carolina expensive compared with other states?: North Carolina has the 43rd highest in-state public tuition of the 45 states with enough institutions to compare, −25.5% against the median of $9,755 across all states' public four-year institutions.

Source

National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, student charges 2023-24

Published prices for the 2023–24 academic year. Retrieved on October 6, 2026.

About the IPEDS data

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS, Institutional Characteristics 2023-24

College tuition in other states

In-state tuition and fees at public four-year colleges. The percentage compares each state with all states' institutions.