The Most Affordable Medical Schools in the US: Lowest Tuition, Ranked

Tuition Is the Biggest Lever You Control

Physician incomes converge by specialty, not by alma mater — which makes what you pay for the degree the most controllable financial variable in the entire career. With in-state MD tuition ranging from about $16,000 to over $70,000 per year, school choice swings total tuition by a quarter of a million dollars. The affordable tier has a clear geography: it is mostly Texas.

The 15 Most Affordable US Medical Schools (In-State Tuition)

School	In-state	Out-of-state	MCAT median	Acceptance
New Mexico	$15,788	$44,024	505	15.3%
Puerto Rico	$17,500	$35,000	500	15.8%
Texas A&M	$17,968	$31,068	508	6.4%
Texas Tech	$18,693	$31,793	504	11.5%
Texas Tech El Paso (Foster)	$19,000	$32,000	509	12.5%
UTMB Galveston	$19,000	$32,000	507	10.5%
UT Rio Grande Valley	$19,200	$32,300	504	8.0%
Baylor College of Medicine	$19,686	$32,782	518	5.8%
UT Austin (Dell)	$19,994	$35,058	512	5.2%
UT Tyler	$20,100	$36,040	—	—
UTHealth Houston (McGovern)	$21,083	$28,738	511	5.3%
UT San Antonio (Long)	$21,823	$37,239	511	6.5%
UT Southwestern	$21,867	$34,967	517	5.7%
Sam Houston State	$22,000	$38,000	503	7.0%
ECU Brody	$22,252	$53,692	506	14.2%

Florida State ($22,408) just misses the table, and Kaiser Permanente's Tyson School of Medicine has offered free tuition to its early cohorts — the cheapest possible path while it lasts. Compare every school on the medical school tuition page.

The Texas Phenomenon

Eleven of the fifteen cheapest MD programs are Texan — a deliberate product of legislative subsidy that caps resident tuition across the state's public health-science centers, plus Baylor, a private school that charges Texans public rates. Texas runs its own application system (TMDSAS), reserves most seats for residents, and lets many students establish residency after the first year. For a Texan, the in-state lineup spans every tier — from accessible programs like Texas Tech (11.5% acceptance) to elite ones like Baylor and UT Southwestern. See best medical schools in Texas for the full state guide.

The Elite Bargains

Two schools on this list are top-tier programs at one-quarter the usual price. Baylor — top-25, median MCAT 518 — and UT Southwestern — top-40, MCAT 517 — cost their residents under $90,000 in total tuition, less than a single year at the most expensive private schools. Their admissions bar is correspondingly national: acceptance rates under 6% with MCAT medians matching schools that charge $70,000. If your numbers reach that tier and you have (or can get) Texas residency, nothing else in American medical education matches the value.

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Debt Math, Not Sticker Pride

A $150,000 tuition difference, carried through four years of school and three to seven of residency, compounds to a gap that shapes specialty choice, practice setting, and net-worth trajectory well into your forties. Cheap-school graduates can choose primary care, academic medicine, or underserved practice without debt vetoing the decision. Run the full arithmetic in medical school payback period and medical school cost, debt, and ROI — and apply in-state first, where both the price and the admissions odds favor you.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cheapest medical school in the US?

The University of New Mexico, at about $15,800 per year for state residents, followed by the University of Puerto Rico (about $17,500) and Texas A&M (about $18,000). Kaiser Permanente's Tyson School of Medicine has offered free tuition to its early cohorts, making it the cheapest of all for admitted students while the program lasts.

Why are Texas medical schools so cheap?

State legislative subsidy: Texas caps resident tuition at its public health-science schools, holding it near $18,000-22,000 at Texas Tech, UTMB, UTRGV, Dell, McGovern, UT San Antonio, and UT Southwestern. Even private Baylor College of Medicine charges Texas residents under $20,000. Texas also runs its own application system (TMDSAS) and reserves most seats for Texans.

Are cheap medical schools worse for residency matching?

No. Baylor (median MCAT 518) and UT Southwestern (517) are elite programs by any measure, and residency programs select on board scores, clinical grades, and research — not tuition. A graduate with $150,000 less debt has strictly more freedom in specialty and practice choice.

How much does the cheapest path through medical school cost in total?

Four years at $16,000-22,000 tuition runs $64,000-88,000, plus living costs — roughly $150,000-200,000 all-in. The same degree at a $65,000-per-year private school exceeds $400,000 all-in. That spread, compounded by interest through residency, is the largest controllable variable in a medical career's finances.

Can out-of-state applicants get cheap medical school tuition?

Sometimes. Texas nonresident tuition ($28,000-38,000 at most public schools) is still below the national in-state median, and Texas allows many students to establish residency after year one. UNM and ECU Brody, by contrast, admit few nonresidents. The reliable move remains your own state's public schools, where you hold both a price and an admissions advantage.