Best-Value Colleges in New York
40 New York 4-year colleges ranked by return on investment - 10-year graduate earnings per dollar of net price - among schools that beat the state median on earnings and graduation rate.
Quick answer
The best-value college in New York is CUNY Bernard M Baruch College, New York - a net price of $657 against $75,971 in median 10-year earnings, an ROI of 115.6×, with a 72% graduation rate. Every school here turns a modest cost into outsized, above-median earnings.
| # | School | Net price /yr | 10-yr earnings | ROI (earn ÷ price) | Grad rate | In-state tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  CUNY Bernard M Baruch College New York, NY | $657 | $75,971 | 115.6× | 72% | $7,462 |
| 2 |  United States Merchant Marine Academy Kings Point, NY | $1,516 | $90,610 | 59.8× | 81% | $909 |
| 3 |  Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY | $15,370 | $102,491 | 6.7× | 95% | $74,180 |
| 4 | $12,999 | $83,847 | 6.5× | 80% | $46,820 | |
| 5 | $28,425 | $131,426 | 4.6× | 69% | $42,675 | |
| 6 |  SUNY Maritime College Throggs Neck, NY | $22,888 | $95,951 | 4.2× | 75% | $8,571 |
| 7 |  Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY | $18,902 | $74,502 | 3.9× | 78% | $10,931 |
| 8 |  Binghamton University Vestal, NY | $20,907 | $80,596 | 3.9× | 84% | $10,567 |
| 9 |  Fashion Institute of Technology New York, NY | $16,514 | $62,696 | 3.8× | 83% | $6,596 |
| 10 |  University at Albany Albany, NY | $18,266 | $67,979 | 3.7× | 64% | $10,881 |
| 11 |  SUNY College at Geneseo Geneseo, NY | $18,952 | $67,316 | 3.6× | 72% | $9,035 |
| 12 |  Manhattan College Riverdale, NY | $25,074 | $86,316 | 3.4× | 66% | $55,900 |
| 13 | SJSU St. Joseph's University-New York Brooklyn, NY | $18,853 | $63,905 | 3.4× | 64% | $38,520 |
| 14 |  Canisius University Buffalo, NY | $18,178 | $60,681 | 3.3× | 71% | $35,880 |
| 15 |  SUNY Oneonta Oneonta, NY | $18,369 | $60,386 | 3.3× | 70% | $8,831 |
| 16 |  University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY | $21,775 | $70,814 | 3.3× | 73% | $11,036 |
| 17 |  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY | $32,758 | $102,051 | 3.1× | 83% | $66,032 |
| 18 |  Cornell University Ithaca, NY | $33,934 | $104,043 | 3.1× | 95% | $72,270 |
| 19 |  Hamilton College Clinton, NY | $25,793 | $78,411 | 3.0× | 91% | $72,690 |
| 20 |  State University of New York at New Paltz New Paltz, NY | $19,499 | $58,073 | 3.0× | 69% | $8,572 |
| 21 |  St. Thomas Aquinas College Sparkill, NY | $21,253 | $62,909 | 3.0× | 63% | $41,100 |
| 22 |  Molloy College Rockville Centre, NY | $26,735 | $77,789 | 2.9× | 72% | $41,380 |
| 23 |  Colgate University Hamilton, NY | $29,409 | $85,139 | 2.9× | 91% | $73,646 |
| 24 |  St. John's University-New York Queens, NY | $24,508 | $69,571 | 2.8× | 68% | $55,640 |
| 25 |  Adelphi University Garden City, NY | $26,646 | $75,482 | 2.8× | 69% | $52,050 |
| 26 |  Clarkson University Potsdam, NY | $32,137 | $89,696 | 2.8× | 74% | $61,148 |
| 27 |  Barnard College New York, NY | $28,930 | $80,516 | 2.8× | 93% | $73,033 |
| 28 |  Russell Sage College Troy, NY | $21,084 | $58,316 | 2.8× | 66% | $39,812 |
| 29 |  State University of New York at Cortland Cortland, NY | $22,125 | $60,236 | 2.7× | 68% | $8,874 |
| 30 |  Le Moyne College Syracuse, NY | $23,835 | $62,731 | 2.6× | 71% | $41,946 |
| 31 |  Mount Saint Mary College Newburgh, NY | $26,680 | $67,705 | 2.5× | 66% | $45,630 |
| 32 |  Elmira College Elmira, NY | $23,178 | $57,550 | 2.5× | 64% | $39,760 |
| 33 |  Wagner College Staten Island, NY | $30,038 | $74,360 | 2.5× | 68% | $54,796 |
| 34 |  New York University New York, NY | $35,737 | $82,509 | 2.3× | 88% | $65,622 |
| 35 |  University of Rochester Rochester, NY | $34,347 | $79,042 | 2.3× | 84% | $70,306 |
| 36 |  Hofstra University Hempstead, NY | $30,647 | $69,039 | 2.3× | 67% | $59,960 |
| 37 |  St. John Fisher University Rochester, NY | $29,743 | $66,944 | 2.3× | 74% | $43,174 |
| 38 |  Siena College Loudonville, NY | $33,934 | $76,079 | 2.2× | 76% | $48,895 |
| 39 |  Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, NY | $31,829 | $69,363 | 2.2× | 82% | $70,580 |
| 40 |  Hobart William Smith Colleges Geneva, NY | $31,617 | $68,831 | 2.2× | 73% | $66,748 |
How we ranked this
From every New York four-year college that publishes net price, 10-year median earnings, and graduation rate, we keep only those that beat the state median on earnings and that graduate at least 45% of students (or the state median grad rate, whichever is higher). We then rank by ROI = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price - the dollars of graduate earnings each dollar of net price buys - highest first. This rewards genuine return on investment rather than the cheapest sticker price, and the 4-year + outcome guards keep out the low-completion and 2-year outliers a pure price sort surfaces. Colleges missing any of the three figures are excluded, never estimated. Minimum 5 qualifying schools required to publish a page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best-value college in New York?+
CUNY Bernard M Baruch College in New York has the highest return on investment among New York 4-year colleges that beat the state median on outcomes: a net price of $657 against $75,971 in 10-year median earnings - an ROI of 115.6× (dollars earned per dollar of annual net price) - with a 72% graduation rate.
What does "net price" mean?+
Net price is the average annual cost students actually pay after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the full cost of attendance - a far better affordability measure than sticker tuition. We use the College Scorecard average net price.
How is "best value" defined here?+
Value means return on investment, not cheapness. Among New York four-year colleges that beat the state median on BOTH 10-year graduate earnings and graduation rate (and graduate at least 45% of students), we rank by the ROI ratio = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price. The school that turns each tuition dollar into the most graduate earnings ranks first.
Is the cheapest college always the best value?+
No. A rock-bottom price that leads to low earnings is worse value than a moderate price that leads to high earnings. That is exactly why we rank by the earnings-to-net-price ratio rather than by lowest price, and require above-median earnings and graduation rates first. Colleges missing net price, earnings, or graduation data are excluded rather than estimated.
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · IPEDS. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “-” and never estimated. GetInto.College does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.