by our College Data Analytics TeamIt's not easy to decide which school to attend when you have so many options available. 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 Montana ranking is part of that endeavor. This list may shock you as many typically expensive schools are very generous with need-based financial aid.
See What's Included in This Value Report:
After analyzing 11 schools in Montana, we came up with our list of those that offered the best value programs. To come up with this ranking of the best value schools, we look at factors that are all objective measurements. More specifically, the following explains what we consider and why.
To calculate the value of a school in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana ranking, we first consider its average net price of students from families making $0-$30k a year. The net price is the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that that the student receives. But, a school that excels in providing value for your money must also be a great school overall as well.
To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
To learn more, visit our best value ranking methodology page.
Keep scrolling for the top schools in this ranking or select one of the other rankings methods below.
If you know what major you want to study, check out our list of the best value schools by major. If you're interested in other degree levels, you can view one of the lists below.
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our 2024 rankings named The University of Montana - Western the best value (income $0-$30k) school in Montana. Montana Western is a small public school situated in Dillon, Montana.
Not only is The University of Montana - Western a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Montana for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $9,294.
Read full value report on The University of Montana - Western
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Montana Technological University. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana list. This small public school is located in Butte, Montana.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Montana Technological University is ranked #4 for quality in the state of Montana. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $10,533.
The quality degree programs at The University of Montana helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana. UM is located in Missoula, Montana and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
The University of Montana has the honor of being ranked #2 in Montana 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 $11,651.
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana list means Montana State University - Northern is a great place for students working on their degree. Montana State University - Northern is a small public school located in Havre, Montana.
Montana State University - Northern has the honor of being ranked #9 in Montana 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 $9,749.
Read full value report on Montana State University - Northern
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Flathead Valley Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana list. This small public school is located in Kalispell, Montana.
Not only is Flathead Valley Community College a great value, but it is also ranked #11 in Montana for overall quality. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $7,243.
Montana State University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana list. This fairly large public school is located in Bozeman, Montana.
Not only is Montana State University a great value, but it is also ranked #1 in Montana for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $16,012.
Montana State University - Billings came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana ranking. Montana State University - Billings is a small public school situated in Billings, Montana.
Montana State University - Billings has the honor of being ranked #8 in Montana 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 $12,220.
Read full value report on Montana State University - Billings
Helena College University of Montana came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana ranking. Helena College is a public institution located in Helena, Montana.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Helena College University of Montana is ranked #10 for quality in the state of Montana. Students from families who make $0-$30k a year pay an annual average net price of $11,338.
Read full value report on Helena College University of Montana
With a ranking of #9, Rocky Mountain College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana list. Located in Billings, Montana, the school is a small private not-for-profit institution.
Not only is Rocky Mountain College a great value, but it is also ranked #7 in Montana for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $15,151.
Carroll College landed the #10 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana ranking. Carroll Montana is a private not-for-profit institution located in Helena, Montana.
Not only is Carroll College a great value, but it is also ranked #6 in Montana for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $0-$30k per year is $17,135.
University of Providence landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $0-$30k) in Montana ranking. University of Providence is a private not-for-profit institution located in Great Falls, Montana.
University of Providence has the honor of being ranked #5 in Montana 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 $21,090.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 11 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.