Skip to content
Best College Rankings

Private nonprofit · Town campus · verified rankings · federal data

Earlham College

Students comparing Earlham College on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

CompareOfficial site
Richmond, Indiana670 undergraduatesMean consensus percentile 35Private nonprofitSmall enrollmentResearch university

The short answer

Earlham College: U.S. News ranks it #74 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #855 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #336 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026) — Top 10 College Radio Station. It enrolls 670 undergraduates, admits 73.1% of applicants, and posts a 69.0% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $53,930; aid recipients pay $24,714 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $50,797.

The six numbers that matter most

Acceptance rate
73.1%

About the dataset median

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported entering class, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Average net price
$24,714

64% below the $67,915 published price

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardAverage for full-time first-time aid recipients, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median earnings, 10 yrs
$50,797

Below the dataset median of $54,053

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian earnings 10 years after entry, working and not enrolled, College Scorecard June 2026 release

6-year graduation rate
69.0%

Above the dataset median of 56%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent six-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median debt at graduation
$23,488

About the dataset median

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian federal loan debt of completers, College Scorecard June 2026 release

SAT middle 50%
1110–1290

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardSum of reported reading and math section percentiles for the most recent entering class, College Scorecard June 2026 release. Section percentiles added together approximate, but do not exactly equal, the composite score range.

Where Earlham ranks, and why the answers differ

Each publisher's position, the list it belongs to, and how many institutions it was drawn from.

SourceListRank
US News2026National Liberal Arts Colleges#74of 210Liberal arts colleges
Forbes2026America's Top CollegesNot ranked by this source
Washington Monthly2026Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars#855of 1,504Tuition & tax value (WM)
WSJ2026Best Colleges in the U.S.Not ranked by this source
Niche2026Best Colleges (Overall)B+#336of 2,605Overall (Niche)
Money2026Best Value Colleges3 starsListedBest value (Money)
Princeton Review2026Best Colleges (Overall)Top 10 College Radio StationListedOverall (Niche)
QS2026World University RankingsNot ranked by this source

Methodology sensitivity: Earlham's position moves 44 percentile points depending on which published list you read. That is a wide spread, so which list you consult substantially changes the impression you get. How we compute this

Ranking positions are the editorial property of their publishers and are reproduced here with attribution for comparison and commentary. Follow each source link for its full list and methodology.

About Earlham

Earlham College is a private nonprofit institution in Richmond, Indiana. Federal data show 77.2% first-year retention and a 7:1 student-faculty ratio. Figures on this page come from College Scorecard and IPEDS; publisher rankings shown here are transcribed from named sources and checked in our dataset.

Strengths and honest considerations

Strengths

  • Cost and outcome metrics on this profile come directly from federal collections, not self-reported marketing sheets.
  • Net price $24,714 reflects what aid recipients actually paid in the most recent federal reporting year.

Considerations

  • This school may not appear on every publisher list we track; an empty rankings table means no tracked publisher ranked it, not missing federal data.
  • Compare $67,915 sticker cost against $24,714 net price before ruling a school in or out on price alone.
  • Publishers we have not loaded yet, or lists that omit this school, show as “not ranked by this source” — that is expected.

Who this school genuinely fits

Students comparing Earlham College on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

What it costs

Published price, then what families actually pay after grants and scholarships.

Tuition & fees
$53,930

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Undergraduates on Pell grants
24.4%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardShare of undergraduates, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Room & board
$13,985

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Published cost of attendance comes to roughly $67,915 a year, but the average family pays $24,714 — a 64% difference. 24.4% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, the federal marker of low family income.

Net price varies enormously by income band, so run Earlham's net price calculator for your own household before drawing conclusions. Why net price is the only cost number that matters.

Programs and academics

Most popular majors

  1. 1Business
  2. 2Biology
  3. 3Psychology
  4. 4Computer Science
  5. 5Economics

Standout programs

    Student-faculty ratio
    7:1

    IPEDS / National Center for Education StatisticsIPEDS 2023 fall enrollment

    First-year retention
    77.2%

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent first-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    Undergraduate enrollment
    670

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    Earlham: questions families ask

    Out-of-state tuition is $53,930 and on-campus room and board is $13,985, for a published total of $67,915 before aid. The average net price for first-time full-time students receiving aid is $24,714.

    The most recent federal admissions rate reported to the Department of Education is 73.1%. Test policy as reported in IPEDS: see the admissions section on this page for the institution's own category.

    Similar colleges

    Matched on institutional character, overlapping majors and comparable cross-source standing.

    John Carroll University

    University Heights, OHPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    John Carroll University: U.S. News ranks it #3 on Regional Universities (Midwest) (2026); Forbes ranks it #343 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #529 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #206 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Niche ranks it #540 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 4 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026) — #17 Best College Radio Station. It enrolls 2,274 undergraduates, admits 80.9% of applicants, and posts a 78.5% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $50,500; aid recipients pay $28,746 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $62,860.

    Acceptance rate
    80.9%
    Average net price
    $28,746
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $62,860
    6-yr graduation rate
    78.5%
    US News · Regional univ. (Midwest)#3 of 165Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#343 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#529 of 1,504+4 more on profile

    2,274 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 34 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Kettering University

    Flint, MIPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Kettering University: U.S. News ranks it #7 on Regional Universities (Midwest) (2026); Forbes ranks it #218 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #1279 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #180 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Niche ranks it #587 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026). It enrolls 1,205 undergraduates, admits 78.7% of applicants, and posts a 70.8% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $48,470; aid recipients pay $34,660 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $94,823.

    Acceptance rate
    78.7%
    Average net price
    $34,660
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $94,823
    6-yr graduation rate
    70.8%
    US News · Regional univ. (Midwest)#7 of 165Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#218 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#1279 of 1,504+4 more on profile

    1,205 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 38 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Calvin University

    Grand Rapids, MIPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Calvin University: U.S. News ranks it #4 on Regional Universities (Midwest) (2026); Forbes ranks it #251 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #750 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #476 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 4 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026). It enrolls 3,193 undergraduates, admits 70.9% of applicants, and posts a 74.1% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $39,350; aid recipients pay $22,992 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $58,375.

    Acceptance rate
    70.9%
    Average net price
    $22,992
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $58,375
    6-yr graduation rate
    74.1%
    US News · Regional univ. (Midwest)#4 of 165Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#251 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#750 of 1,504+3 more on profile

    3,193 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 30 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Compare Earlham against these