How much do universities and colleges charge international students in tuition fees?
Which countries have the cheapest universities / lowest fees?
University and college tuition fees for international students are typically around USD $20,000 per year. You can save tremendously on tuition fees by being flexible about which country and university you attend.
Here we compare tuition fees for international students by country.
Finding cheaper courses
Study savings opportunities exist because of differences in fees (i) across countries (ii) between institutions and (iii) between courses.
Some universities have flat fee structures while others charge double or more for premium courses. Once you decide on a study major, it pays to look across countries and universities to see where the best value lies for your course.
- Among English-speaking destinations for international students, Canada has the lowest tuition fees.
- Canada is followed by New Zealand.
- Towards the top are Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, which have similar fee levels.
Note that fees are affected by exchange rates. Recent strength in the US dollar has made America the most expensive country with respect to course fees.
Tuition fee comparison by country
| Country | Tuition (local $) | Exchange rate | Tuition (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $26,427 | 0.75 | $19,820 |
| Canada | $15,601 | 0.75 | $11,701 |
| New Zealand | $25,583 | 0.68 | $17,396 |
| United Kingdom | £13,763 | 1.43 | $19,682 |
| United States | $20,519 | 1 | $20,519 |
Updated: 8 March 2016
Method for estimating tuition fees
For each country, we determined a representative course fee for a first-year business student. The fee shown is the average across 3 universities. The universities sampled are mid-range in world universities rankings.
- We chose 3 universities in the country ranked just outside the world top 400 according to Webometrics.
- For example, the 3 American universities used were Michigan Technological University, Northeastern University, and University of Arkansas.
The estimates include, where they are large, fees imposed by the universities such as student fees and health cover. They exclude accommodation and living costs.