The formats stopped apologizing: these six degrees carry the same name as their campus versions, and U.S. News now ranks two of them above most residential programs' reputations.
1
Bloomington, Indiana · Public
Kelley Direct tops the U.S. News online ranking again at $94,944 — no asterisk on the diploma — while the Bloomington MBA quietly over-places its sticker price.
2
Chapel Hill, North Carolina · Public
MBA@UNC climbed to No. 2 in the U.S. News online ranking, and the residential program pairs Southern cost of living with a Research Triangle hiring base.
3
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania · Private
Management science runs deep at Carnegie Mellon: an analytics-soaked MBA, the No. 3 online program, and the MSCF — quant finance's favorite master's degree.
Kelley Direct took the U.S. News No. 1 spot again in January — its fourth win — at a $94,944 total that undercuts every brand-name rival. UNC’s MBA@UNC climbed to second at $125,589, selling smaller live classes for the premium, and Tepper’s hybrid held third at $147,648, the most expensive seat in the format and the closest to a campus MBA in feel.
What changed this cycle is who applies. Online cohorts now average more work experience than full-time classes, and Tepper reports 71.7% of 2025 graduates earning raises during or right after the program. The format’s discount to campus degrees keeps narrowing because the outcomes do too.
Los Angeles, California · Private · Class size 200
Financial Times ranks the online MBA fourth in the world, the MSBA rides LA's data economy, and the alumni network answers like family.
Ann Arbor, Michigan · Public · Class size 380
The highest-ranked public program, and our reigning value pick among the elite. MAP consulting projects put every student on a live client engagement.
Seattle, Washington · Public · Class size 120
More than half of Foster graduates take tech offers, the class is tiny, and Washington residents pay a fraction of coastal-private prices.
| # | School | BP Score | Tuition | Avg. GMAT | Acceptance | Median salary | Placed 3 mo. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana Kelley School of Business | 85.6 | $110,000 | 685 | 38% | $140,000 | 88% |
| 2 | UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School | 85.1 | $128,000 | 700 | 36% | $150,000 | 84% |
| 3 | CMU Tepper School of Business | 86 | $150,000 | 705 | 31% | $155,000 | 85% |
| 4 | USC Marshall School of Business | 84.7 | $160,000 | 710 | 30% | $150,000 | 83% |
| 5 | Michigan Ross School of Business | 91.2 | $148,000 | 722 | 24.7% | $160,000 | 95.8% |
| 6 | UW Foster School of Business | 86.4 | $120,000 | 710 | 35% | $155,000 | 88% |
Every figure comes from each school's employment report prepared under the MBA CSEA standard, which is independently audited. Where a school declines to report, we mark it unranked for that pillar rather than estimating.
No. We accept no advertising, referral fees, or enhanced-profile payments from ranked institutions.
Fully rebuilt each June when audited employment reports land, with a mid-cycle data refresh in January.
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