2023 Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Cosmetology Associate Degree School for You
In 2021-2022, 124,611 degrees and certificates were awarded to cosmetology students, making the major the most popular in the country.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which trade school program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Trade College Search has developed this Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 34 schools in the United States to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for cosmetology students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
2023 Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Colleges.
Top 10 Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools
Our analysis found Clover Park Technical College to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a associate degree in the United States. CPTC is a small public school located in the small city of Lakewood.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CPTC are $5,979 per year. Cosmetology majors at CPTC take out an average of $12,614 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
Out of the 34 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Johnson County Community College landed the # 2 spot on the list. JCCC is a large public school located in the city of Overland Park.
JCCC undergraduate students pay an average of $5,472 in tuition and fees each year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, JCCC also did well on our Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Trade Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
The excellent associate degree programs at Saint Paul College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value cosmetology schools in the United States. Located in the city of Saint Paul, Saint Paul College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Saint Paul College undergraduate students pay an average of $6,318 in tuition and fees each year.
Out of the 34 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Ridgewater College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the remote town of Willmar, Ridgewater College is a public school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Ridgewater College are $6,114 per year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Ridgewater College also is in the top 15% of our Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Trade Schools ranking.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Waukesha County Technical College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools list. WCTC is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Pewaukee.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WCTC are $6,722 a year.
WCTC also claimed a spot on our Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Trade Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
Lee College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools list. Lee College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Baytown.
Lee College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,302 in tuition and fees each year.
Lee College also claimed a spot on our Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Trade Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
Houston Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for cosmetology students to get a associate degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the large city of Houston, Houston Community College is a public college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Houston Community College are $5,460 a year. On average, cosmetology graduates from Houston Community College take out $21,156 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
Read full report on Cosmetology at Houston Community College
Central New Mexico Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for cosmetology students to get a associate degree. It came in at #8 on the list. CNM is a fairly large public school located in the city of Albuquerque.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CNM are $7,978 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, cosmetology graduates from CNM carry an average student debtload of $8,183.
Read full report on Cosmetology at Central New Mexico Community College
San Jacinto Community College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools list. San Jacinto College is a very large public school located in the suburb of Pasadena.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at San Jacinto College are $5,040 a year.
Cerritos College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for cosmetology students to get a associate degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Cerritos College is a large public school located in the suburb of Norwalk.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cerritos College are $10,324 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Cerritos College also did well on our Best Cosmetology Associate Degree Trade Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Cosmetology by Region
View the Best Value Cosmetology Associate Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
Region |
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Southeast |
New England |
Rocky Mountains |
Plains States |
Middle Atlantic |
Far Western US |
Southwest |
Other U.S. Territories |
Great Lakes |
Cosmetology Related Majors for Cosmetology
Cosmetology is one of 4 different types of trade school programs to choose from.
Cosmetology Concentrations
Most Popular Majors Related to Cosmetology
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Culinary Arts | 22,075 |
Funeral & Mortuary Science | 2,186 |
Casino Operations and Services | 385 |
Other Personal & Culinary Services | 95 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Tiffany Bumgardner.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
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