How Much Would Free College Cost?

Report Highlights. Free community college for all would cost the U.S. government an average of $9.0 billion per year.

The maximum annual cost of universal free college is equivalent to $99.49 billion in 2025 dollars.
$34.59 billion (in 2025 dollars) is the lowest projected cost of universal free college.
The cost of free community college represents 0.13% of federal spending.
Projected costs of universal free college represent between 0.49% and 1.42% of U.S. government spending based on different program models.

Annual Cost* of by Program Type in 2025 Dollars
Type of Program	First Year Cost (in billions)	Subsequent 10-Year Average Annual Cost (in billions)
Last-Dollar Tuition-Free	$34.59	$51.62
First-Dollar Tuition-Free	$72.41	$99.49
Debt-Free	$93.31	$93.31+

*These are inflation-adjusted values based on 2020 estimates^[1] from Georgetown University.

How Much Would Free Community College Cost?

While a number of states and institutions offer free and reduced-cost college programs, proposed federal initiatives would contribute to free community college nationwide.

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) proposed a $90.0 billion budget expansion in 2025 to offer free community college for 10 years (i.e. $9.0 billion per year).
The ED has proposed free community college in previous years; a 2022 proposal would have increased the department’s budget by $14.312 billion.
The added annual tax revenue associated with higher income among college educated workers is projected to reach $116.198 billion (in 2025 dollars) in the 10th year of a free college program.

Bar graph: Cost of College by Program Model, First Year according to Georgetown University and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

How Much Does Free College Cost?

As of 2026, free college programs are available to students in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

State-wide free college programs are available to students in at least 44 states; 43 states are home to local programs.
Over half of states had tuition-free college programs by 2024.
A 2019 proposal for a joint state-federal program included a preliminary budget of $71.6 billion; adjusted for inflation, this proposed budget would be equivalent to $90.165 billion in 2025 dollars.

Pie chart: Distribution of Funds from a Last-Dollar Plan by Income Bracket according to Georgetown University

Last-Dollar Tuition-Free Program

Under this program, the government pays the remaining tuition and fees (excluding room and board) after grant aid has been applied. While last-dollar tuition-free programs require less federal funding than other program models, students from low-income households don’t benefit as much.

A nationwide last-dollar program would cost $34.59 billion (in 2025 dollars) in the first year.
Over the following 10 years, the last-dollar program would cost an estimated $516.2 billion.
After 11 years, the total cost of a nationwide last-dollar program would be $550.76 billion.
Models indicate that 13% of the funds from a nationwide last-dollar program would benefit students living in the bottom income quartile.
Meanwhile, 37% of funds from a last-dollar program would go to the top income quartile.
66% of last-dollar funds would benefit white students when that demographic only represents 53% of students at public colleges and universities.

Pie chart: Distribution of Funds from a First-Dollar Plan by Income Bracket according to Georgetown University

America’s College Promise Act

At the local and state levels, College Promise programs already help students and their families pay for higher education. A proposed nationwide program has been reintroduced to Congress as recently as 2023.

The proposed America’s College Promise Act (ACPA) of 2023 proposes that the federal share of free community college tuition will be 100% in the first year.
By the program’s 5th year, the federal share will be 80% and states will pay for 20% of community college tuition.
ACPA 2023 sets aside $1.00 billion annually for a Student Success Fund, which distributes grants to institutions that develop programs designed to improve student success** among underserved student populations.
Section III of the 2023 ACPA bill designates $98.1 billion in its first year for historically Black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, and other minority-serving institutions.

**Improving student success includes boosting enrollment, retention, labor market outcomes, etc. among students of color, low-income households, students with disabilities, first generation college students, and other groups that are considered underserved.

National map: Statewide College Promise Programs according to College Promise

First-Dollar Tuition-Free Program

Under this program, government funds would pay for the full cost of tuition before grant aid is applied. While first-dollar tuition-free programs are streamlined and require less administrative work to implement, they may not accurately reflect each student’s financial need.

A nationwide first-dollar program would cost $72.41 billion (in 2025 dollars) in the first year.
Over the following 10 years, the first-dollar program would cost an estimated $994.9 billion.
A first-dollar program would cost a total of $1.067 trillion over 11 years.
Models indicate 25% of the funds from a first-dollar program would benefit students living in the bottom income quartile.
Another 25% of funds from a first-dollar program would benefit students from top income quartile households.

National Map: Statewide 4-Year College Promise Programs according to College Promise

College For All Act

The College For All Act proposes free college tuition at all community colleges, public 4-year colleges, and tribal colleges.

The College for All Act as proposed in 2025 would cover public postsecondary for students from households earning a maximum^† income of $300,000 per year.
A 2019 proposal for the College for All Act included a preliminary $48 billion budget to cover 67% of public postsecondary tuition costs.
The 2019 College for All Act proposed that states and tribal governments would be responsible for 33% of public college tuition (equivalent to $23.6 billion).

^†A $300,000 limit assumes a double-income household; single-income households would earn $150,000 or less to qualify.

First-Year Cost of Statewide Free College Programs in 2025 Dollars
State	First-Dollar Program (in millions)	Last-Dollar Program (in millions)
Alabama	$1,160.74	$505.10
Alaska	$113.21	$55.98
Arizona	$1,331.18	$664.35
Arkansas	$646.93	$189.10
California	$7,474.51	$1,801.45
Colorado	$1,305.05	$697.94
Connecticut	$745.21	$404.33
Delaware	$175.42	$114.46
District of Columbia	$17.42	$4.98
Florida	$2,758.16	$872.11
Georgia	$2,005.48	$704.16
Hawaii	$211.50	$87.09
Idaho	$274.94	$116.94
Illinois	$4,122.93	$2,754.42
Indiana	$1,608.61	$792.49
Iowa	$673.05	$390.65
Kansas	$730.28	$408.06
Kentucky	$1,008.96	$359.54
Louisiana	$1,196.82	$374.47
Maine	$210.25	$88.33
Maryland	$1,497.89	$924.36
Massachusetts	$1,501.62	$878.33
Michigan	$3,354.08	$1,944.52
Minnesota	$1,395.87	$832.30
Mississippi	$547.40	$139.34
Missouri	$1,088.58	$460.31
Montana	$171.68	$114.46
Nebraska	$393.13	$145.56
Nevada	$389.40	$204.03
New Hampshire	$281.17	$190.35
New Jersey	$2,937.30	$1,887.29
New Mexico	$339.64	$80.87
New York	$3,956.22	$1,471.76
North Carolina	$1,874.85	$654.39
North Dakota	$136.85	$89.57
Ohio	$2,882.56	$1,567.56
Oklahoma	$736.50	$241.35
Oregon	$857.18	$488.93
Pennsylvania	$3,712.37	$2,583.98
Rhode Island	$191.59	$93.31
South Carolina	$1,208.01	$529.98
South Dakota	$186.61	$113.21
Tennessee	$1,250.31	$375.72
Texas	$6,897.25	$3,111.48
Utah	$732.77	$394.38
Vermont	$143.07	$90.82
Virginia	$2,565.32	$1,682.01
Washington	$1,719.34	$884.55
West Virginia	$329.68	$103.26
Wisconsin	$1,342.38	$874.60
Wyoming	$65.94	$16.17

Debt-Free College Programs

Under this program the full cost of college is covered by the government; this includes tuition, the cost of room and board, or any other expense. Naturally, this is the most expensive program model. A bill proposing the Debt-Free College Act (DFCA) was reintroduced to Congress as recently as 2023.

The 2023 DFCA proposal included a total budget estimate of $87.0 billion in the program’s first year ($89.329 billion in 2025 dollars).
Most 2023 DFCA appropriations would be available only to students attending in-state public institutions; $3 billion (03.45% of total funds) would be earmarked for students attending historical black colleges and universities as well as other minority-serving institutions.
Previous estimates for first-year implementation were equivalent to $99.49 billion in 2025 dollars.

How Much Does College Cost Now?

Beyond the direct cost to students and their families, the ED funds institutions directly while its Office of Federal Student Aid (OFSA) provides students loans and grants. Additional aid comes from state and local governments.

OFSA had a $91.685 billion budget for FY2026.
$41.012 billion of FY2026 budgetary resources are earmarked for the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, representing 44.7% of OFSA’s budget.
OFSA’s existing loan obligations for FY2026 total $17.103 billion (41.7% of student loan budgetary resources).
States contributed $133.9 billion to higher education in FY2025; local governments contributed a further $15.3 billion.
The ED requested a $7,395 cap per Pell Grant awards for AY2027-28.
The total requested budget for Pell Grants for AY2027-28 is $40.761 billion.
The requested budget for direct loans is $22.538 billion for AY2027-28.
Federal spending totaled $7.01 trillion in 2025; the ED’s higher education budget for that year ($82.364 billion) represents 1.17% of that value.