University of Iowa is harder to get into (80% vs 88% admitted), but students with aid paid less there on average (in-state): $18,517 vs $22,508 a year.
Highlighted = the better number: lower price or debt, higher rate or pay.
Sticker price per year (in-state at public colleges)
$29,219
$24,539
Average paid after grants (in-state at public colleges)
$22,508
$18,517
Average paid from out of state, estimated
$44,596
$37,565
What in-state families with aid paid, by income
Measure
University of Iowa
Iowa State University
Under $30,000
$15,353
$11,957
$30,000–$48,000
$15,374
$12,869
$48,000–$75,000
$17,179
$14,013
$75,000–$110,000
$22,278
$19,173
Over $110,000
$26,721
$22,905
After you start
Measure
University of Iowa
Iowa State University
Undergrads
22,264
25,367
Graduate within 6 years
73%
75%
Come back for year two
90%
88%
Median earnings 10 years after starting
$70,727
$67,568
Median debt at graduation
$21,262
$21,250
Highlighted only when the gap is at least 5%. "Average paid" is what students who got federal aid paid per year after grants, not a price quote; at public colleges the income rows are in-state students. The out-of-state estimate adds a public college's extra out-of-state tuition to its in-state average; out-of-state students usually get less aid, so many pay more. How we get our numbers