Stanford vs. Harvard vs. Yale vs. Princeton

Stanford University vs. Harvard University vs. Yale University vs. Princeton University comparison

	Stanford University	Harvard University	Yale University	Princeton University
	Remove	Remove	Remove	Remove
Overview	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Location	Stanford, CA	Cambridge, MA	New Haven, CT	Princeton, NJ
Setting	Large Suburban	Midsize City	Midsize City	Large Suburban
Enrollment	18,446	30,386	15,081	8,922
Type	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year
National Ranking	#2	#4	#5	#1
Religious Affiliation	-	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	stanford.edu	harvard.edu	yale.edu	princeton.edu
Team Colors

Costs	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Tuition (In State)	$61,731	$54,269	$64,700	$59,710
Tuition (Out of State)	$61,731	$54,269	$64,700	$59,710
Room & Board	$19,922	$20,374	$19,180	$19,380
Avg Net Price	$17,998	$17,900	$26,044	$19,811
Avg Grant Aid	$64,164	$64,942	$59,076	$60,629
% Receiving Grant Aid	55%	57%	54%	60%

Admission	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Applied	53,733	56,937	51,803	39,644
Admitted	2,099	1,965	2,332	1,782
Acceptance Rate	3.9%	3.5%	4.5%	3.4%
Enrolled %	80.9%	83.7%	70.4%	58.6%
Avg High School GPA	3.96	4.0	3.95	3.93
Typical High School Grades	A-	A/A+	A-	A-
Admissions Standards	Elite	Elite	Elite	Elite
Applicant Competition	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme
ACT Range	34/35	34/36	33/35	34/35
SAT Range	1510/1580	1500/1580	1500/1580	1500/1580
Submit Test Scores	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline	Jan 2, 2026	Jan 1, 2026	Jan 2, 2026	Jan 1, 2026

Academics	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Student to Faculty Ratio	6:1	7:1	6:1	5:1
Popular Majors	Social Sciences (21%) General Studies (16%) Engineering (15%) Biology (7%) Computer and Information Sciences (5%)	Social Sciences (32%) Biology (12%) Liberal Arts and Humanities (9%) History (9%) Mathematics (6%)	Social Sciences (27%) History (9%) General Studies (8%) Biology (7%) Ethnic Studies (7%)	Social Sciences (21%) Engineering (14%) Biology (8%) History (6%) Human Services (6%)
Outcomes	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Graduation Rate	96%	97%	97%	96%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$122,900	$136,700	$118,400	$113,900
Making Student Loan Payments	88%	70%	84%	83%
Median Student Loan Debt	$12,475	$6,500	$13,500	$7,500
Median Loan Payment	$128	$67	$139	$77

Diversity	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
% Men	31%	32%	25%	21%
% Women	25%	38%	30%	16%
Racial Diversity	Very High	Very High	Very High	Very High
HBCU	No	No	No	No
% White	37%	44%	47%	45%
% Black	6%	6%	7%	8%
% Hispanic	15%	10%	11%	9%
% Native American	1%	0%	1%	0%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	10%	6%	6%	4%
% International	9%	11%	11%	11%
% Unknown Race	0%	3%	1%	2%

Students	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
% In-State	37%	15%	6%	16%
% Out-of-State	47%	70%	81%	71%
Campus	Stanford	Harvard	Yale	Princeton
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	No	No	No
Daycare Facility	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Learn More	Details	Details	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Harvard University is larger than than Stanford based on total student enrollment (30,386 students vs. 18,446 students)

Stanford vs. Harvard Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, Stanford or Harvard?

• Stanford University is 13.8% more expensive to attend than Harvard for in-state tuition ($61,731.00 vs. $54,269.00)
• Out of state tuition is 13.8% higher at Stanford than Harvard University ($61,731.00 vs. $54,269.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Harvard University than Stanford ($17,900 vs. $17,998)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Stanford University are 2.3% lower than costs at Harvard University ($19,922 vs. $20,374)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Harvard University than Stanford University (57% vs. 55%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Harvard University students is 1.2% larger than aid received Stanford University ($64,942 vs. $64,164)

Stanford vs. Harvard Admissions Difficulty Comparison

Which college is harder to get into, Stanford or Harvard? Average SAT and ACT scores plus acceptance rates offer good insight into the difficulty of admission between Harvard or Stanford .

• The average SAT score at Harvard University (1497) is 18 points higher than at Stanford (1479)
• Incoming Harvard students have a 1 point higher average ACT score (34) than students at Stanford (33)
• Accepted freshman Harvard students have a 0.04 point higher average high school GPA (4.0) than students at Stanford (3.96)
• Stanford has a higher acceptance rate (3.9%) than Harvard (3.5%)

Stanford vs. Harvard Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, Stanford or Harvard? Graduation rate, salary and amount of student loan debt are indicators of a college which offers better outcomes for its graduates. Compare the following outcomes facts between Harvard and Stanford.

• The graduation rate at Harvard is higher than Stanford University (97% vs. 96%)
• Graduates from Harvard University earn on average $13,800 more per year than Stanford graduates after ten years. ($136,700 vs. $122,900)
• Harvard University students graduate with a $5,975 lower median federal student loan debt than Stanford graduates. ($6,500 vs. $12,475)
• Harvard graduates are paying $61 less per month on federal student loans than Stanford graduates. ($67 vs. $128)
• More Stanford graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former Harvard students, three years after graduation. (88% vs. 70%)

Sources: U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov IPEDS and College Scorecard https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/