How Much Does Law School Cost?

Originally posted on March 10, 2016

With the average attorney salary at more than $120,000 just a few years out of law school, it is no wonder that many people are attracted to this field as a career.

However, the cost of law school — factoring in tuition, fees, room and board, and more — is high at many institutions. To pay for law school, many students rely on financial aid, including borrowing student loans.

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Below you can find the cost of attendance for the U.S. News & World Report’s top-ranked law schools in the United States, as well as links to top sources of non-loan aid.

Average law school tuition

Rank	School Name	2015-2016 Tuition	2015-2016 Total COA	Top Sources of Non-Loan Aid
1	Yale University	$55,800	$78,326	1. Yale Law School Grants (Need-based)
2 (Tie)	Harvard University	$57,200	$85,000	1. Harvard Law School Grant and Loan Assistance (Need-based)
2 (Tie)	Stanford University	$54,183	$85,968	1. Stanford Financial Aid 2. Yellow Ribbon Program
4 (Tie)	Columbia University	$60,624	$88,530	1. Need-based grants 2. Fellowships (No separate application – considered at the time of admittance) 3. Yellow Ribbon Program
4 (Tie)	University of Chicago	$56,916	$84,129	1. Scholarships (No additional application needed) 2. Need-based scholarships 3. Yellow Ribbon Program
6	New York University	$57,544	$85,964	1. Dean’s Award Scholarship 2. Furman Academic Scholars Program 3. Mitchell Jacobson Leadership Program in Law & Business 4. Cybersecurity Service Scholarship 5. AnBryce Scholarship Program 6. Latino Rights Scholarship 7. Root-Tilden-Kern Public Interest Scholarship Program 8. Sinsheimer Service Scholarship 9. Furman Public Policy Scholarship Program
7	University of Pennsylvania	$55,300	$82,230	1. Merit Scholarships 2. Need-based grants 3. Toll Public Interest Scholars Program 4. Teach for America Scholarship
8 (Tie)	Duke University	$56,500	$80,937	1. Mordecai Scholars 2. Global Leaders Scholarship Program
8 (Tie)	University of California-Berkeley	$48,654.50 (Resident); $52,575.50 (Non-Resident)	$78,198.50 (Resident); $82,149.50 (Non-Resident)	1. Entering Student Scholarships 2. Continuing Student Scholarships 3. UC Scholarships 4. Need-based grants
8 (Tie)	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	$53,153 (Resident); $56,153 (Non-Resident)	$71,703 (Resident); $74,703 (Non-Resident)	1. Need-based law school grants 2. Merit-based law school scholarships
11	University of Virginia	$54,000 (Resident); $57,000 (Non-Resident)	$76,529 (Resident); $79,639 (Non-Resident)	1. Merit scholarships 2. Need-based scholarships
12	Northwestern University	$58,098	$83,296	1. Irell & Manella Diversity Scholarship 2. Kirkland & Ellis LLP Diversity Fellowship Program 3. Winston & Strawn LLP Diversity Scholarship 4. Butler Rubin Saltarelli & Boyd LLP Diversity Scholarship 5. Yellow Ribbon Program
13	Cornell University	$59,900	$80,132	1. Institutional Scholarships
14	Georgetown University	$55,255	$82,700	1. Need-based grants 2. Yellow ribbon program
15	University of Texas-Austin	$33,162 (Resident); $49,244 (Non-Resident)	$53,606 (Resident); $69,958 (Non-Resident)	1. Merit-only scholarships 2. Need, Disadvantage or Adversity Scholarships 3. Merit and Need scholarships
16	University of California-Los Angeles	$45,284.26 (Resident); $51,778.26 (Non-Resident)	$68,452.26 (Resident); $74,946.26 (Non-Resident)	1. Need Access Grant 2. UCLA Law Departmental Scholarships 3. Yellow Ribbon Program
17	Vanderbilt University	$50,900	$75,866	1. Law Scholar Merit Award 2. Law School Merit Scholarships 3. Need-Based Scholarships 4. Yellow Ribbon Program 5. Teach for America Corps Merit Scholarships
18	Washington University in St. Louis	$51,216	$75,232	1. Washington University Scholarships
19	Emory University	$50,900	$75,003	1. Woodruff Fellows Program 2. Merit-based scholarships 3. Yellow Ribbon Program 4. Resident Director Positions 5. Emory Employee Founder Scholarship 6. Scholarships for Women 7. International student scholarships
20 (Tie)	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	$42,230 (Resident); $50,372 (Non-Resident)	$60,394 (Resident); $68,536 (Non-Resident)	1. Scholarships
20 (Tie)	University of Southern California (Gould)	$57,286	$75,286-$82,286	1. USC Gould Scholarships
22 (Tie)	George Washington University	$54,114	$80,400	1. Need-based grants
22 (Tie)	University of Alabama	$22,020 (Resident); $37,360 (Non-Resident)	Not Available	1. Law School Scholarships
22 (Tie)	University of Iowa	$22,348 (Resident); $40,192 (Non-Resident)	$41,016 (Resident); $58,860 (Non-resident)	1. Merit-based scholarships 2. UI Law Foundation Scholarships 3. Law Opportunity Fellowships
22 (Tie)	University of Notre Dame	$51,892	$72,322	1. Merit-based scholarships 2. Polking Family Fellowship 3. Yellow Ribbon Program 4. On-campus Employment