Skip to content
Best College Rankings

Private nonprofit · Urban campus · verified rankings · federal data

Trinity College

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

Hartford, Connecticut2,146 undergraduatesMean consensus percentile 30Private nonprofitSelectiveSmall enrollment

The short answer

Trinity College: U.S. News ranks it #36 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Forbes ranks it #88 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #609 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #227 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 4.5 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026). It enrolls 2,146 undergraduates, admits 29.3% of applicants, and posts a 83.8% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $70,770; aid recipients pay $34,832 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $90,779.

The six numbers that matter most

Acceptance rate
29.3%

Below the dataset median of 76%

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

Average net price
$34,832

61% below the $89,660 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
$90,779

Above 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
83.8%

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
$23,000

About the dataset median

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

SAT middle 50%
1298–1470

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 Trinity 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#36of 210Liberal arts colleges
Forbes2026America's Top Colleges#88of 500Top colleges (Forbes)
Washington Monthly2026Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars#609of 1,504Tuition & tax value (WM)
WSJ2026Best Colleges in the U.S.#227of 500U.S. colleges (WSJ)
Niche2026Best Colleges (Overall)Not ranked by this source
Money2026Best Value Colleges4.5 starsListedBest value (Money)
Princeton Review2026Best Colleges (Overall)ListedOverall (Niche)
QS2026World University RankingsNot ranked by this source

Methodology sensitivity: Trinity's position moves 28 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 Trinity

Trinity College is a private nonprofit institution in Hartford, Connecticut. Federal data show 90.0% first-year retention and a 9:1 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 $34,832 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 $89,660 sticker cost against $34,832 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 Trinity 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
$70,770

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

Undergraduates on Pell grants
13.8%

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

Room & board
$18,890

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

Published cost of attendance comes to roughly $89,660 a year, but the average family pays $34,832 — a 61% difference. 13.8% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, the federal marker of low family income.

Net price varies enormously by income band, so run Trinity'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
    9:1

    IPEDS / National Center for Education StatisticsIPEDS 2023 fall enrollment

    First-year retention
    90.0%

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

    Undergraduate enrollment
    2,146

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

    Trinity: questions families ask

    Out-of-state tuition is $70,770 and on-campus room and board is $18,890, for a published total of $89,660 before aid. The average net price for first-time full-time students receiving aid is $34,832.

    The most recent federal admissions rate reported to the Department of Education is 29.3%. 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.

    Colorado College

    Colorado Springs, COPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Colorado College: U.S. News ranks it #29 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Forbes ranks it #138 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #220 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #332 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Niche ranks it #195 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3.5 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026). It enrolls 2,014 undergraduates, admits 18.5% of applicants, and posts a 87.7% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $70,734; aid recipients pay $33,375 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $65,222.

    Acceptance rate
    18.5%
    Average net price
    $33,375
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $65,222
    6-yr graduation rate
    87.7%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#29 of 210Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#138 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#220 of 1,504+4 more on profile

    2,014 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 26 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Macalester College

    Saint Paul, MNPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Macalester College: U.S. News ranks it #28 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Forbes ranks it #207 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #38 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #333 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Niche ranks it #136 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 4 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026) — #1 Student Support and Counseling Services. It enrolls 2,131 undergraduates, admits 28.5% of applicants, and posts a 87.1% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $68,104; aid recipients pay $32,149 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $63,878.

    Acceptance rate
    28.5%
    Average net price
    $32,149
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $63,878
    6-yr graduation rate
    87.1%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#28 of 207Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#207 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#38 of 1,504+4 more on profile

    2,131 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 26 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Trinity University

    San Antonio, TXPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Trinity University: U.S. News ranks it #40 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Forbes ranks it #82 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #476 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); WSJ ranks it #212 on Best Colleges in the U.S. (2026); Niche ranks it #65 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 4 stars; Princeton Review lists it on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026) — #11 Best Science Lab Facilities. It enrolls 2,505 undergraduates, admits 25.9% of applicants, and posts a 84.0% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $53,676; aid recipients pay $23,464 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $71,668.

    Acceptance rate
    25.9%
    Average net price
    $23,464
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $71,668
    6-yr graduation rate
    84.0%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#40 of 210Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#82 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#476 of 1,504+4 more on profile

    2,505 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 22 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Compare Trinity against these