
College Costs Are Up 10% : How Families Are Really Paying for School
Knowledge Snapshot: how families pay for college Families spent an average of $34,019 on college during the 2025-26 academic year. That amount was approximately 10%
Unless you’ve been building up a college fund since your child was very young, you probably don’t have the money available to cover the costs of tuition, room and board at a four-year university or college.
According to the College Board, the average cost of tuition and fees for the typical four-year public college was $8,244 during the 2011-12 school year. And that was the price for in-state students. The cost for out-of-state students averaged $12,526.

Knowledge Snapshot: how families pay for college Families spent an average of $34,019 on college during the 2025-26 academic year. That amount was approximately 10%

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