The Best Illinois Colleges

The Best Colleges in Illinois for 2025

These are the top ranked public and private four-year colleges in Illinois as ranked by CollegeSimply. Leading the list for 2025 as the best overall college in Illinois is University of Chicago. The top rated public state college is University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Learn how the Best Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page.
Illinois Public Private 4 year

41 results

Concordia University Chicago
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C
River Forest, IL
 

Concordia University Chicago

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

#27 Best Private Colleges in Illinois

  • 5,066enrollment
  • $17,767net price
  • 93%acceptance rate
  • 990-1180SAT range
  • 19-25ACT range
  • 3.18Avg GPA

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Rockford University
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R
Rockford, IL
 

Rockford University

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

#28 Best Private Colleges in Illinois

  • 1,249enrollment
  • $24,098net price
  • 57%acceptance rate
  • 850-1070SAT range
  • 17-23ACT range
  • 3.25Avg GPA

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Greenville University
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G
Greenville, IL

Greenville University

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

#29 Best Private Colleges in Illinois

  • 1,053enrollment
  • $21,442net price
  • 95%acceptance rate
  • 811-1219SAT range
  • 14-24ACT range
  • 3.23Avg GPA

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Aurora University
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A
Aurora, IL

Aurora University

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

#30 Best Private Colleges in Illinois

  • 5,935enrollment
  • $19,220net price
  • 85%acceptance rate
  • 930-1133SAT range
  • 20-26ACT range
  • 3.56Avg GPA

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Chicago State University
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C
Chicago, IL

Chicago State University

Public 4 Year

0 reviews

#11 Best Public Universities in Illinois

  • 2,324enrollment
  • $9,852net price
  • 41%acceptance rate
  • 750-963SAT range
  • 15-19ACT range
  • 3.18Avg GPA

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