Most Affordable Community Colleges in Missouri
Two-year colleges, ranked by what students actually pay after aid. These are usually the cheapest route to the first two years of a degree, and credits often transfer to a four-year school.
14 community colleges in Missouri are listed here, 14 of them reporting a net price. They run from $5,837 a year at St Charles Community College to $15,190 at State Technical College of Missouri, with a middle of about $8,496.
The cheapest are St Charles Community College, Moberly Area Community College and Ozarks Technical Community College. A low average is not a low bill for everyone — aid depends on your family's income — but it is where to start.
Community colleges in Missouri, cheapest first · 14
Average net price per year after grants and scholarships, with the share of students on federal Pell grants where reported. Schools publishing no net price are listed last.
- St Charles Community College
- Moberly Area Community College
- Ozarks Technical Community College
- Jefferson College
- State Fair Community College
- Metropolitan Community College-Kansas City
- Saint Louis Community College
- Three Rivers College
- Crowder College
- Missouri State University-West Plains
- Mineral Area College
- East Central College
- North Central Missouri College
- State Technical College of Missouri
Questions families ask
- What is the most affordable community college in Missouri?
- By average net price — what students actually pay per year after grants and scholarships — it is St Charles Community College at about $5,837 a year. That is an average across all students there; your own cost depends on your family's income, so check the school's net price calculator.
- What is the difference between sticker price and net price?
- Sticker price is the published tuition before any aid. Net price is what students actually pay after grants and scholarships are subtracted — not loans, which you pay back. Net price is usually far lower, and at expensive private colleges the gap can be tens of thousands a year, which is why every figure on this page is net price rather than tuition.
- How much do community colleges in Missouri cost on average?
- Across the 14 community colleges in Missouri that report a figure, the middle of the range is about $8,496 a year after aid, running from $5,837 to $15,190.
- What does the Pell grant percentage mean?
- It is the share of undergraduates at that school receiving a federal Pell grant — need-based aid that does not have to be repaid. A higher share usually means the school enrols more students from lower-income families. Across the community colleges listed here it runs from 25% to 49%, with a middle of about 33%. It is the only aid figure the Department of Education publishes per school, so it is the only one shown.
Which of these actually fits you?
A list is a starting point, not an answer. Two minutes of questions gives you a shortlist ranked on cost, academics, size and location — with the reaches labelled honestly.
Find your match — free