by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take when you want to pursue a degree. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking is part of that endeavor. You may be surprised that some normally high-priced schools offer very generous financial aid packages to those who qualify.
In This Year's Value Report:
After analyzing 157 schools in California, we came up with our list of those that offered the best value programs. Our ranking methodology focuses on different objective factors to make this determination of the best value schools. We explain more about what we look at and why we do so below.
The first step of determing the value of a school in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking is to look at the school's average net price for students with families that make $0-$30k a year. The net price is the sum of tuition, fees, and room and board minus any financial aid awarded to the student. In addition, the overall quality of a school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how much it costs.
To make it into this list a school must offer a quality education like the schools in our Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considers factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
We go into more detail on these factors on our best value ranking methodology page.
You can scroll down to see the top schools for this ranking, but you may also want to view some of the other ranking methods listed below.
Know what field you want to major in? Make sure you check out our best value schools by major. In addition, you can select one of the links below to see the best value colleges for other degree levels.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Stanford University tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $0-$30k) school in California for overall quality. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a private not-for-profit school.
Stanford University has the honor of being ranked #1 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value.
Out of the 157 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Claremont McKenna College landed the #2 spot on the list. Claremont McKenna College is a small private not-for-profit school located in Claremont, California.
Claremont McKenna College has the honor of being ranked #4 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $249.
A rank of #3 on our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list means Pomona College is a great place for students working on their degree. Pomona is a private not-for-profit institution located in Claremont, California.
Not only is Pomona College a great value, but it is also ranked #13 in California for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $2,285.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Los Angeles. It ranked #4 on our 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. UCLA is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California.
University of California - Los Angeles has the honor of being ranked #6 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,772.
Read full value report on University of California - Los Angeles
A rank of #5 on our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list means San Diego State University is a great place for students working on their degree. San Diego State University is a large public school located in San Diego, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, San Diego State University is ranked #21 for quality in the state of California. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $1,133.
University of California - Berkeley landed the #6 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is University of California - Berkeley a great value, but it is also ranked #2 in California for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $9,594.
Read full value report on University of California - Berkeley
California State University - Fullerton came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. Located in Fullerton, California, the school is a large public institution.
California State University - Fullerton has the honor of being ranked #48 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $705.
Read full value report on California State University - Fullerton
With a ranking of #8, California Institute of Technology did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. Caltech is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Pasadena, California.
Not only is California Institute of Technology a great value, but it is also ranked #5 in California for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $10,755.
University of California - Irvine came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. University of California - Irvine is a large public school located in Irvine, California.
Not only is University of California - Irvine a great value, but it is also ranked #14 in California for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $5,924.
Golden West College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking, coming in at #10. This fairly large public school is located in Huntington Beach, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Golden West College is ranked #27 for quality in the state of California. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $3,213.
With a ranking of #11, University of California - San Diego did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. UCSD is located in La Jolla, California and has a large student population. It is a public school.
University of California - San Diego has the honor of being ranked #8 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $7,954.
Read full value report on University of California - San Diego
California State University - Los Angeles came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. California State University - Los Angeles is a large public school located in Los Angeles, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, California State University - Los Angeles is ranked #76 for quality in the state of California. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $577.
Read full value report on California State University - Los Angeles
With a ranking of #13, University of Southern California did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. USC is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California.
University of Southern California has the honor of being ranked #3 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $12,404.
Southwestern College landed the #14 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. Located in Chula Vista, California, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Southwestern College has the honor of being ranked #36 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $3,657.
California State University - San Bernardino ranked #15 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. CSUSB is a public institution located in San Bernardino, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, California State University - San Bernardino is ranked #97 for quality in the state of California. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $428.
Learn More About Value at California State University - San Bernardino
Moreno Valley College ranked #16 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. Moreno Valley College is a public institution located in Moreno Valley, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Moreno Valley College is ranked #95 for quality in the state of California. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $551.
With a ranking of #17, Foothill College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. This fairly large public school is located in Los Altos Hills, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Foothill College is ranked #19 for quality in the state of California. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,458.
With a ranking of #18, Pasadena City College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. This large public school is located in Pasadena, California.
Not only is Pasadena City College a great value, but it is also ranked #59 in California for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $2,960.
West Valley College ranked #19 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. West Valley College is a public institution located in Saratoga, California.
West Valley College has the honor of being ranked #77 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $1,967.
Ventura College came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. Located in Ventura, California, the school is a fairly large public institution.
Not only is Ventura College a great value, but it is also ranked #117 in California for overall quality.
With a ranking of #21, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. UC Davis is located in Davis, California and has a large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is University of California - Davis a great value, but it is also ranked #11 in California for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $9,739.
California State University - Sacramento landed the #22 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. California State University - Sacramento is a large public school located in Sacramento, California.
California State University - Sacramento has the honor of being ranked #54 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $3,878.
Saddleback College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking, coming in at #23. Saddleback College is located in Mission Viejo, California and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Saddleback College has the honor of being ranked #42 in California for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $4,496.
Sonoma State University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California list. Sonoma State University is a medium-sized public school located in Rohnert Park, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Sonoma State University is ranked #90 for quality in the state of California. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $1,831.
California State University - Long Beach landed the #25 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking. CSULB is a public institution located in Long Beach, California.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, California State University - Long Beach is ranked #33 for quality in the state of California. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $5,399.
View Best Value Schools (Income $0-$30k) Nationwide >
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These schools also performed well in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in California ranking:
| Rank | College | Location | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | University of California - Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara, CA | Value Report |
| 27 | Soka University of America | Aliso Viejo, CA | Value Report |
| 28 | College of the Canyons | Santa Clarita, CA | Value Report |
| 29 | Moorpark College | Moorpark, CA | Value Report |
| 30 | California State University - Fresno | Fresno, CA | Value Report |
| 31 | California State University - Monterey Bay | Seaside, CA | Value Report |
| 32 | Mt. San Antonio College | Walnut, CA | Value Report |
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.