Best Economics Degrees in the US by ROI
Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
Programs Analyzed
352
Colleges with salary data
Average 20-Yr Net ROI
+$149,844
Across all programs
Average Annual Cost
$47,110
Cost of attendance
| # | College | State | 20-Yr Net ROI | Median Salary | Annual Cost | Avg Debt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Duke University
Grad rate: 96.2% |
NC | +$1,063,784 | $112,646 | $82,749 | $13,437 | Full ROI → |
| 2 |
Trinity College
Grad rate: 83.2% |
CT | +$1,052,595 | $112,699 | $83,090 | $21,500 | Full ROI → |
| 3 |
Stanford University
Grad rate: 94.0% |
CA | +$906,317 | $104,592 | $82,162 | $12,500 | Full ROI → |
| 4 |
Pomona College
Grad rate: 93.9% |
CA | +$848,596 | $100,669 | $81,196 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 5 |
Harvard University
Grad rate: 97.5% |
MA | +$825,419 | $100,286 | $82,842 | $6,617 | Full ROI → |
| 6 |
Middlebury College
Grad rate: 93.0% |
VT | +$766,755 | $98,106 | $82,260 | $19,500 | Full ROI → |
| 7 |
Dartmouth College
Grad rate: 95.4% |
NH | +$764,992 | $98,252 | $83,802 | $18,400 | Full ROI → |
| 8 |
University of California-Berkeley
Grad rate: 93.5% |
CA | +$718,178 | $87,328 | $42,708 | $13,000 | Full ROI → |
| 9 |
University of Chicago
Grad rate: 95.2% |
IL | +$715,000 | $96,012 | $86,856 | $13,197 | Full ROI → |
| 10 |
Amherst College
Grad rate: 92.7% |
MA | +$700,306 | $94,870 | $83,650 | $16,662 | Full ROI → |
| 11 |
Johns Hopkins University
Grad rate: 94.3% |
MD | +$694,413 | $93,824 | $81,300 | $12,494 | Full ROI → |
| 12 |
University of Pennsylvania
Grad rate: 96.5% |
PA | +$681,588 | $94,172 | $85,738 | $14,000 | Full ROI → |
| 13 |
Williams College
Grad rate: 95.8% |
MA | +$652,355 | $91,723 | $81,164 | $12,925 | Full ROI → |
| 14 |
Claremont McKenna College
Grad rate: 93.3% |
CA | +$645,052 | $91,488 | $82,127 | $12,000 | Full ROI → |
| 15 |
Yale University
Grad rate: 97.0% |
CT | +$621,652 | $91,001 | $85,120 | $13,250 | Full ROI → |
| 16 | Northeastern University Oakland | CA | +$606,885 | $73,998 | N/A | $24,500 | Full ROI → |
| 17 |
Illinois Wesleyan University
Grad rate: 80.9% |
IL | +$604,964 | $85,928 | $68,399 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 18 |
Swarthmore College
Grad rate: 93.9% |
PA | +$581,439 | $88,391 | $80,014 | $19,500 | Full ROI → |
| 19 |
Vanderbilt University
Grad rate: 92.7% |
TN | +$579,679 | $88,705 | $84,412 | $12,424 | Full ROI → |
| 20 |
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Grad rate: 83.5% |
NY | +$577,504 | $86,862 | $79,934 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 21 |
Barnard College
Grad rate: 92.2% |
NY | +$557,115 | $87,791 | $84,023 | $16,750 | Full ROI → |
| 22 |
Marist University
Grad rate: 80.6% |
NY | +$553,368 | $84,203 | $63,898 | $26,000 | Full ROI → |
| 23 |
Colgate University
Grad rate: 90.9% |
NY | +$536,615 | $86,742 | $83,650 | $17,500 | Full ROI → |
| 24 |
University of Notre Dame
Grad rate: 96.6% |
IN | +$528,623 | $85,821 | $80,211 | $19,965 | Full ROI → |
| 25 |
Columbia University in the City of New York
Grad rate: 95.1% |
NY | +$526,122 | $87,202 | $86,042 | $25,000 | Full ROI → |
| 26 |
Carnegie Mellon University
Grad rate: 92.0% |
PA | +$520,917 | $85,635 | $80,514 | $22,020 | Full ROI → |
| 27 |
Brigham Young University
Grad rate: 80.4% |
UT | +$516,574 | $72,747 | $20,879 | $11,000 | Full ROI → |
| 28 |
Santa Clara University
Grad rate: 88.5% |
CA | +$509,723 | $84,356 | $77,768 | $19,500 | Full ROI → |
| 29 |
Northwestern University
Grad rate: 96.2% |
IL | +$505,057 | $85,909 | $87,804 | $16,227 | Full ROI → |
| 30 |
Hamilton College
Grad rate: 91.8% |
NY | +$501,022 | $84,359 | $80,380 | $18,250 | Full ROI → |
| 31 |
University of Richmond
Grad rate: 87.9% |
VA | +$497,330 | $83,877 | $77,290 | $23,000 | Full ROI → |
| 32 |
Wayne State University
Grad rate: 58.3% |
MI | +$496,624 | $73,856 | $26,794 | $24,681 | Full ROI → |
| 33 |
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Grad rate: 93.2% |
MI | +$493,738 | $74,685 | $33,345 | $19,690 | Full ROI → |
| 34 |
Colby College
Grad rate: 89.2% |
ME | +$480,662 | $83,980 | $81,550 | $24,250 | Full ROI → |
| 35 |
Rice University
Grad rate: 94.7% |
TX | +$480,119 | $81,590 | $74,110 | $11,289 | Full ROI → |
| 36 |
Cornell University
Grad rate: 95.2% |
NY | +$471,931 | $83,282 | $83,196 | $15,500 | Full ROI → |
| 37 |
Tufts University
Grad rate: 93.5% |
MA | +$471,702 | $83,710 | $84,600 | $17,850 | Full ROI → |
| 38 |
University of California-Santa Barbara
Grad rate: 85.5% |
CA | +$471,529 | $73,844 | $36,776 | $13,516 | Full ROI → |
| 39 |
California State University-Channel Islands
Grad rate: 55.1% |
CA | +$460,764 | $69,846 | $24,039 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 40 |
College of the Holy Cross
Grad rate: 90.3% |
MA | +$453,150 | $81,782 | $76,510 | $27,000 | Full ROI → |
| 41 |
University of Michigan-Dearborn
Grad rate: 56.3% |
MI | +$448,785 | $70,842 | $22,435 | $28,381 | Full ROI → |
| 42 |
Georgetown University
Grad rate: 95.0% |
DC | +$437,201 | $81,913 | $84,696 | $16,500 | Full ROI → |
| 43 |
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus
Grad rate: 71.8% |
OH | +$429,421 | $70,663 | $28,783 | $21,264 | Full ROI → |
| 44 |
Washington University in St Louis
Grad rate: 94.1% |
MO | +$421,627 | $80,729 | $83,476 | $14,110 | Full ROI → |
| 45 |
Providence College
Grad rate: 86.7% |
RI | +$420,012 | $80,089 | $76,667 | $26,000 | Full ROI → |
| 46 |
University of Virginia-Main Campus
Grad rate: 95.3% |
VA | +$418,042 | $71,811 | $38,132 | $19,000 | Full ROI → |
| 47 |
Wellesley College
Grad rate: 90.7% |
MA | +$414,573 | $80,094 | $83,050 | $11,190 | Full ROI → |
| 48 |
James Madison University
Grad rate: 81.0% |
VA | +$410,011 | $69,797 | $30,213 | $18,575 | Full ROI → |
| 49 |
Gonzaga University
Grad rate: 87.5% |
WA | +$409,385 | $77,846 | $69,290 | $22,500 | Full ROI → |
| 50 |
San Jose State University
Grad rate: 66.2% |
CA | +$398,800 | $67,079 | $25,695 | N/A | Full ROI → |
How ROI is calculated
20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.
Find Best Economics Degrees by State
Browse Economics programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.