Dekalb, IL · Public · Every figure is for a student starting in fall 2027. We work each one out again whenever we update the site.
How to pay for Northern Illinois University
What a year costs here, what brings it down, and what a SmartTuition plan could save a family like yours.
Paying for four years here
Four years here, after grants
$84,388
A SmartTuition plan could save a family like this about $4,000.
A SmartTuition plan shows what to pay from where, each semester, using your own numbers.
Build your SmartTuition plan for Northern Illinois University, $99 →Best once your award letter arrives. No letter yet? Get the monthly email.
A family of four with good credit and $500 a month for college. How we worked these out ↓
A year at Northern Illinois University
| Full price, in state | $29,845 |
| Full price, out of state | $29,845 |
| After grants, at your income | $19,727 |
At this income, 14 of Illinois's other 38 colleges cost less after grants, and 24 cost more. See them all →
What can bring it down
Merit scholarships. $1,000 to $8,000 a year, from a 3.0 GPA.
Northern Illinois University's promise. AIM HIGH Huskie Pledge: first-year tuition and general fees, after other aid, for Illinois freshmen with a family income of $115,000 or less, for the fall 2027 class. The conditions ↓
Pay less for college
A SmartTuition plan shows what to pay from where, each semester.
At Northern Illinois University, our scenarios for Illinois households with good parent credit show a SmartTuition plan saving a median of about $6,600 over four years. How we worked this out ↓
Considering more than one college?
Put the schools you are considering on one list and we price each of them for your family. It is free. It asks what you earn and what you have saved, never your name.
Put your schools side by side →Merit scholarships
What Northern Illinois University says it awards for grades and test scores.
$1,000 to $8,000 a year, from a 3.0 GPA
GPA 4.0 or higher $8,000 a year 4.0 GPA 3.9 or higher $7,000 a year 3.90-3.99 GPA 3.7 or higher $6,000 a year 3.70-3.89 GPA 3.5 or higher $4,000 a year 3.50-3.69 GPA 3.25 or higher $3,000 a year 3.25-3.49 GPA 3.0 or higher $1,000 a year 3.00-3.24 Apply for admission by the priority date; the scholarship is set by your high school GPA. These are the amounts for students admitted for fall 2026 and later. A merit scholarship goes on a rolling basis after the priority deadline while funds remain.
Enter your student's GPA in our college comparison to see this scholarship beside your family's price.
Published guarantees you may qualify for
We do not assume you qualify for any of these, and our plans never bank on them. Check each against your own situation with the aid office.
AIM HIGH Huskie Pledge: first-year tuition and general fees, after other aid, for Illinois freshmen with a family income of $115,000 or less, for the fall 2027 class
Household income up to $115,000. Covers tuition, fees.
- For an Illinois resident who graduates from an Illinois high school in 2026-27 with a 3.0 GPA. The student starts full time at NIU the next fall, files by the February 1 priority date and has family assets of $115,000 or less. It covers first-year tuition and general fees; renewal keeps the same amount with a 2.5 GPA.
“Have a family adjusted gross income at or below $115,000. This information will be collected on the 2027-28 FAFSA or Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid using the 2025 tax year. Have family assets of $115,000 or less, as defined by the FAFSA. If your initial grants and scholarships do not cover the full amount of your tuition and general fees, a Huskie Pledge Grant will be issued to ensure that your gift aid equals or exceeds NIU’s annual tuition and general fees.”
How we worked these out
The family
A family of four with good parent credit and $500 a month to put toward college, and the savings you pick. In state, the grants are what Northern Illinois University reports families at that income got, on average. Your own will differ, and a family with no aid pays close to the full price. Out of state, there are no grants: the price is before any scholarship from the college.
What a SmartTuition plan saves
The difference, over four years, between a SmartTuition plan and the standard approach: savings first, then loans for the rest. It counts loan interest and the federal tax credit. For a family that lives in Illinois, it also counts Illinois' tax deduction for money you put through its 529 plan.
The $6,600 in the “Pay less for college” box near the top of this page is the median saving in Northern Illinois University's own scenarios. Each scenario is a household that lives in Illinois, with an income from $45,000 to $200,000 and savings of none, $40,000 or $100,000 in a 529. We price Northern Illinois University at the aid it reports for that income.
Every scenario has parents with good credit and $500 a month toward college. The card above uses the same two. A scenario where the parents would borrow more than $65,000 is left out.
The prices by income
- They describe students who got aid.
- “Over $110,000” has no upper limit, so it averages families just over $110,000 with far wealthier ones. A family at $115,000 should expect to pay less than it shows.
- Each range is reported on its own, so the prices do not always rise with income.
Where the prices come from
Where the prices come from: Northern Illinois University's own 2026-27 tuition, fees, housing and food, from its website, carried forward to 2027 at 3.0% a year. Books are the College Scorecard's. The grants are the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard (2025-26 figures), carried forward the same way. Each price after grants is the cost less those grants. The out-of-state figure uses the published out-of-state tuition instead. The average price after grants counts the students who get federal aid. Your own figure will be different.
SmartTuition.ai is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Northern Illinois University. Aid policies change; check current terms with the college's aid office.
Nearby at your income
- Olivet Nazarene University$19,282 a year
- Northwestern University$19,415 a year
- Northern Illinois University$19,727 a year
- Saint Xavier University$20,826 a year
- Chicago State University$21,967 a year
What each college charges, less the average grant for your income. Every Illinois college →