2023 Best Value Economics Bachelor's Degree Schools in California
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Economics Bachelor's Degree School for You
In 2020-2021, 10,510 degrees and certificates were awarded to economics students who went to a California college or university. This makes it the #12 most popular major in the state.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Economics Bachelor's Degree Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 47 schools in California to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for economics students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 10 Best Economics Bachelor's Degree Schools
Our 2023 rankings named California State University - Channel Islands the best value school in California for economics students working on their bachelor’s degree. CSUCI is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Camarillo.
CSUCI undergraduate students pay an average of $6,817 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that economics majors at CSUCI take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $15,851.
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The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at California State University - East Bay helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value economics schools in California. Located in the large suburb of Hayward, Cal State East Bay is a public college with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cal State East Bay are $6,995 a year. Economics majors at Cal State East Bay take out an average of $17,616 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
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Out of the 47 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Fresno landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Fresno, Fresno State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Fresno State are $6,653 a year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, economics majors at Fresno State accumulate an average of around $14,708 in student debt.
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Out of the 47 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Jose State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. San Jose State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Jose.
San Jose State undergraduate students pay an average of $7,852 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at University of California - Berkeley helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value economics schools in California. UC Berkeley is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UC Berkeley are $14,226 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, economics graduates from UC Berkeley carry an average student debtload of $13,817. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $378.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, UC Berkeley also did well on our Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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With a ranking of #6, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo did quite well on this year’s best value schools for economics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo undergraduate students pay an average of $10,195 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $367, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also is in the top 10% of our Best Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking.
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California State University - Fullerton landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree economics programs. Cal State Fullerton is a very large public school located in the large suburb of Fullerton.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State Fullerton are $6,976 per year. The average amount in student loans that economics majors at Cal State Fullerton take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $14,363.
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With a ranking of #8, California State University - Sacramento did quite well on this year’s best value schools for economics students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Sacramento, Sac State is a public college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Sac State are $7,392 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, economics graduates from Sac State carry an average student debtload of $19,610.
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San Diego State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public school with a fairly large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SDSU are $8,136 per year. Economics majors at SDSU take out an average of $16,928 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $221.
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California State University - Long Beach came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Economics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in California ranking. CSULB is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Long Beach.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CSULB are $6,846 a year. While working on their Bachelor's Degree, economics majors at CSULB accumulate an average of around $16,335 in student debt.
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Request InformationBest Value Economics Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Value Economics Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 713 |
| Oregon | 596 |
| Nevada | 147 |
| Hawaii | 92 |
| Alaska | 17 |
More Economics Rankings in California
Majors Related to Economics
One of 12 majors within the area of study, economics has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Political Science & Government | 49,282 |
| Sociology | 38,475 |
| General Social Sciences | 18,997 |
| International Relations & National Security | 14,306 |
| Anthropology | 11,415 |
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 pixabay.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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