Do I really need this student loan? The latest trend in college tuition.

Americans love to complain about the rising costs of college. But consider this: The average in-state student at a public university currently pays only $2,480 a year in net tuition and fees.

Tuition, of course, is only one item on the list of university expenses. Room and board may cost more. However, the overall cost of attending a public college is falling, not rising, after adjusting for inflation.

According to the data, the average net price of tuition and fees for an in-state student at a four-year public university dropped 40% in the ten years after inflation, from $4,140 in 2014-2015 to an estimated $2,480 in 2024-2025. new report from the College Board.

“The notion that college costs are out of control is not accurate,” he said Mark Beckerpresident of the Association of Public and Grant Universities. “And the College Board data shows it.”

The figures represent the average net price of tuition and fees for a first-time student, after deducting scholarships, bursaries and other discounts and taking into account inflation.

(The College Board includes financial aid and inflation to show real price changes over time. If you ignore both inflation and aid, it means that college tuition is rising slightly, other reports have shown.)

The overall cost of attending a public college is also falling, although not as quickly. The net cost of attending an in-state college, including room and board and other expenses, fell from $23,050 in 2014 to $20,780 in 2024, after accounting for subsidies and inflation, the College Board found. As a result, room and board make up a larger portion of an in-state student’s annual bill.

Prices are falling across academia

Prices are falling across the higher education sector and the industry is struggling declining registration and cost-conscious customers, say financial experts.

Falling college prices, however, are not a trend that makes headlines. Applicants faint when someone starts a new list most expensive universities: those that load over $70,000 one year of tuition and fees, or over $400,000 total costs over four years.

But these are “sticker” prices and research suggests most students don’t pay them. Elite universities often commit to this meet financial needs every student. Colleges routinely offer discounts to attract worthy students.

Even at private nonprofit colleges, average tuition and fees have fallen from $18,680 in 2014 to an estimated $16,510 in 2024, after adjusting for inflation and aid.

At public two-year colleges, net tuition has fallen to negative numbers. The average student in 2024 will receive enough aid to fully cover tuition and fees, leaving $710 for other expenses.

The numbers come from the College Board’s annual report on trends in college prices and student aid.

The sticker price for college is dropping

According to the College Board, falling costs for public colleges reflect two economic trends, both of which benefit consumers.

The sticker price for college is dropping. Published 2024 tuition and fees for students at the state’s public four-year colleges averaged $11,610, down from a high of $12,830 in 2019 after inflation.

Public flagship universities in 45 states charge lower tuition and fees in 2024 than they did in 2019, after adjusting for inflation.

Aid for students is also increasing. Per-student scholarship aid increased from $8,000 in 2014 to $9,130 in 2024 for students at the state’s four-year public colleges, in inflation-adjusted dollars.

The College Board found that the overall amount of aid awarded by colleges and their states has increased over the past 10 years.

About half of public college students will graduate debt-free in 2022-2023, compared with about two-fifths of students a decade earlier.

“States have been reinvesting in higher education over the last decade,” he said, after a series of dramatic cuts during the Great Recession era Nicholas Hillmanprofessor and expert in higher education finance at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Americans expect college tuition to increase

Falling prices and decreasing debt are conspicuous by the public. About half of Americans expect this tuition fees in public schools will increase next year, while according to the latest survey data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, only 9% expect it to decline.

Public opinion is not entirely wrong. College tuition is gradually rising in most of the country, but inflation is rising faster.

Tuition costs for American households are covered out of pocket increased by less than 9% from 2019 – according to the analysis of the Chronicle of Higher Education. However, total prices increased by over 22%.

Public skepticism has prompted many colleges to limit tuition increases, according to the public Jason Delislenon-resident senior fellow at the Center for Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute.

“People are more price sensitive. They wonder if they should go to college at all, Delisle said. “They are wondering whether to take on debt.”

College enrollment has been declining for a decade, even though it has signs of rebound. The shortage of students forces universities to compete on the price of their activities.

Universities “don’t control”

Colleges are “in something of a buyers’ market,” Delisle said. “They’re not in the driver’s seat.”

Higher education experts say college pricing is complex and admissions officers have difficulty explaining the math to prospective students and their families.

In fact, many universities charge students fees based on their ability to pay. In this equation, the sticker price is just a starting point. Students pay tuition at different rates, something no amount of dollars on a college’s website can convey.

“There is no uniform price that everyone pays,” Hillman said, “like there is on an airplane.”

Tuition costs also vary greatly by state. According to the College Board, the cheapest state is Florida, where the average tuition and fees for in-state students is $6,360. Vermont is the most expensive, with an average of $17,490.

However, almost every state charges lower fees in 2024 than in 2019, after adjusting for inflation. Public universities subsidize in-state students by collecting contributions from out-of-state students. These students pay, on average, about $30,000 more.

“It’s hard to make a general statement about all 50 states,” Becker said. “But if you look across the country, the net effect is that there has been an increase in investment in higher education.”