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. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard. 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 75 schools in Florida, 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.
To calculate the value of a school in our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking, we first consider its average net price of students from families making $30-$48k a year. The net price is the sum of room and board, tuition, and fees minus any financial aid that that the student receives. 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:
University of Florida tops this year’s ranking as the best value (income $30-$48k) school in Florida for overall quality. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
University of Florida has the honor of being ranked #1 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $1,385.
The quality degree programs at Florida International University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida. This large public school is located in Miami, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Florida International University is ranked #5 for quality in the state of Florida. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $4,163.
The quality degree programs at Florida State University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida. This large public school is located in Tallahassee, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Florida State University is ranked #2 for quality in the state of Florida. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,953.
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list means University of South Florida - Main Campus is a great place for students working on their degree. USF Tampa is a public institution located in Tampa, Florida.
Not only is University of South Florida - Main Campus a great value, but it is also ranked #7 in Florida for overall quality. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,209.
Read full value report on University of South Florida - Main Campus
Out of the 75 schools in Florida that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Central Florida landed the #5 spot on the list. UCF is a public institution located in Orlando, Florida.
University of Central Florida has the honor of being ranked #6 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $7,073.
Florida State College at Jacksonville ranked #6 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. Located in Jacksonville, Florida, the school is a large public institution.
Florida State College at Jacksonville has the honor of being ranked #17 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $2,927.
Read full value report on Florida State College at Jacksonville
Hillsborough Community College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. Tampa, Florida is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Hillsborough Community College is ranked #18 for quality in the state of Florida. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $4,219.
St Petersburg College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking, coming in at #8. This large public school is located in St. Petersburg, Florida.
St Petersburg College has the honor of being ranked #33 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $2,050.
University of North Florida came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. UNF is a public institution located in Jacksonville, Florida.
Not only is University of North Florida a great value, but it is also ranked #15 in Florida for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $4,827.
Seminole State College of Florida came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. Seminole State College of Florida is a fairly large public school located in Sanford, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Seminole State College of Florida is ranked #32 for quality in the state of Florida. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $3,577.
Florida Atlantic University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. FAU is a public institution located in Boca Raton, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, Florida Atlantic University is ranked #14 for quality in the state of Florida. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $6,413.
Miami Dade College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. This large public school is located in Miami, Florida.
Miami Dade College has the honor of being ranked #26 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $4,113.
With a ranking of #13, Indian River State College did quite well on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. Indian River State College is a public institution located in Fort Pierce, Florida.
Not only is Indian River State College a great value, but it is also ranked #35 in Florida for overall quality. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $3,206.
Saint Johns River State College landed the #14 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. This medium-sized public school is located in Palatka, Florida.
Saint Johns River State College has the honor of being ranked #60 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $617.
Florida Gateway College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking, coming in at #15. FGC is located in Lake City, Florida and has a small student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Florida Gateway College a great value, but it is also ranked #62 in Florida for overall quality. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $51.
Pensacola State College ranked #16 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. Pensacola, Florida is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Pensacola State College has the honor of being ranked #50 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $2,430.
Eastern Florida State College did quite well in the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking, coming in at #17. EFSC is located in Cocoa, Florida and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Eastern Florida State College a great value, but it is also ranked #39 in Florida for overall quality. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $4,057.
Gulf Coast State College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. Gulf Coast State College is a small public school located in Panama City, Florida.
Gulf Coast State College has the honor of being ranked #53 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $2,794.
South Florida State College ranked #19 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. This small public school is located in Avon Park, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, South Florida State College is ranked #54 for quality in the state of Florida. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $3,426.
University of Miami ranked #20 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. U Miami is a private not-for-profit institution located in Coral Gables, Florida.
Not only is University of Miami a great value, but it is also ranked #3 in Florida for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $14,160.
The University of West Florida came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. UWF is a public institution located in Pensacola, Florida.
In addition to being included on this ranking as a good value, The University of West Florida is ranked #30 for quality in the state of Florida. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $6,805.
Chipola College ranked #22 on this year’s Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida list. Marianna, Florida is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. It is a public school.
Not only is Chipola College a great value, but it is also ranked #63 in Florida for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $2,475.
Pasco-Hernando State College came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. PHSC is located in New Port Richey, Florida and has a medium-sized student population. It is a public school.
Pasco-Hernando State College has the honor of being ranked #56 in Florida for overall quality on top of being a good value. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $3,991.
Florida Gulf Coast University landed the #24 spot on the 2024 Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. FGCU is located in Fort Myers, Florida and has a fairly large student population. It is a public school.
Not only is Florida Gulf Coast University a great value, but it is also ranked #27 in Florida for overall quality. The average yearly net price for a student whose family makes $30-$48k per year is $7,214.
Northwest Florida State College came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for the Money (Income $30-$48k) in Florida ranking. NWFSC is a small public school situated in Niceville, Florida.
Not only is Northwest Florida State College a great value, but it is also ranked #51 in Florida for overall quality. Students from families who make $30-$48k a year pay an annual average net price of $4,563.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.