10 Best Colleges for the Money

There are about 2,000 four-year colleges and universities in the US. Money looked at all of them, screened out the ones with fewer than 500 undergraduate students, financial troubles, or graduation rates below the median, then ranked the remaining 705 schools on a variety of things related to alumni success, educational quality, affordability, comparative value, and the majors offered. The result: A ranking of all 705 colleges based on best value for the money. The top 10, along with the estimated price as of the 2016-17 school year without financial aid and the average early career earnings of graduates:

1. Princeton University: $61,300 and $62,800, respectively
2. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor: $28,100; $59,000

3. Harvard University: $64,800; $62,900
4. Rice University (Texas): $58,600; $63,700
5. University of California, Berkeley: $35,700; $60,300
6. Brigham Young University, Provo: Tied for 5th place at $18,500 and $51,800
7. Amherst College (Massachusetts): $66,600; $53,400
8. Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (New York): $62,800; $63,200
9. University of Virginia: $28,100; $55,400
10. Stanford University: $65,300; $68,600

Click for the complete list. (More colleges and universities stories.)