MBAs are popular for a multitude of reasons: for launching new careers, gaining high salaries, and learning valuable skills. The rewards of an MBA don’t come cheap, but it may surprise you to learn just how affordable online MBA programs can be.
If you are looking for a lower-cost, more affordable way to gain an MBA, you’re not alone. Many candidates are hoping to work towards this impressive goal while avoiding the high tuition costs of traditional programs. And, if this is you, an online program could be your answer. In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of taking your MBA online and the reason so many candidates are choosing to do so. We’ll also look at how much an online MBA actually costs, exploring some examples of the best programs out there.
The Advantages of an Online MBA
The main advantages awarded by an MBA match those gained in a traditional MBA. Just like an in-person program, an online MBA provides the opportunity to accelerate career progress, to boost salaries, to build professional networks, and to gain vital skills for a career in business.
But that’s not all that an online MBA can offer. Far cheaper than a traditional MBA, it stands out as an affordable option that offers very similar—and often identical—curricula, electives, and faculty to the traditional in-person MBA.
As well as its low-cost status, the online MBA is highly flexible and increasingly international. The former, because candidates can structure online classes around their existing responsibilities, and the latter due to a de-localized teaching method, which enables students to enroll from anywhere in the world.
These benefits are particularly appealing to professionals who wish to hold on to their current employment, since they are able to fit their online MBA around their working life. Plus, any strategy learned in the classroom can be applied directly to their workplace, leading to instantaneous benefit from the program—and vice versa, since candidates are able to workshop real difficulties in their job with their MBA classmates.
The Popularity of Affordable Online MBAs
Over the past few years, online MBAs have soared in popularity. When you consider the advantages that we have outlined above, this comes as no surprise. People are searching for ways to earn an MBA that involves less sacrifice, in terms of both money and time.
This is in part due to the pandemic, which shifted perspectives on what was possible to achieve from the comfort of home, and raised expectations on flexibility. But online MBAs were booming even before Covid-19; the number of accredited U.S. schools with fully online MBA programs increased by 85% between 2017 and 2021, from 284 to 526—and that’s without including the increase in hybrid offerings.
What Does “Cheap” Mean for Online MBA Programs?
Finding a low-cost program is a priority for many MBA hopefuls. It makes sense—with the price tags of traditional MBAs as they are, an affordable alternative is a necessity for many.
Online MBA programs are less expensive due to the lower operating costs for schools, the lack of transport or campus fees for students, and the fact that candidates need not take time away from paid employment. Earlier this year, U.S. News & World Report revealed that, amongst the 10 most affordable online MBA programs, the average cost per credit hour is $292.
That said, it is important to bear in mind that an MBA is still a significant investment. The top-ranked programs can hit six figures in cost, especially for those based in the U.S.
More affordable options are out there, of course, but candidates need to weigh the quality of the program against the cost to ensure they receive the best return on their investment.
The first step to doing this is ensuring that any online MBA program you consider is accredited.
A good quality MBA program will be accredited by organizations such as the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the Association of MBAs (AMBA), or the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS)—and sometimes by more than one of the above. Not only will this accreditation ensure that your experience on the program is top quality, it will provide you with a better chance at employment once you have graduated.
The Best Low-Cost Online MBAs
There are many sites that collate annual rankings of the top MBA programs out there; and online MBAs are no different. Sites will rank online MBA programs annually, considering how cheap they are, their ROI, their faculty, and a long list of other factors.
Two particularly reliable rankings are those published by the Financial Times and by U.S. News and World Report. The former considers MBA programs across the globe, while the latter looks only at those in the U.S..
In 2024, the Financial Times ranked the best 10 online MBAs as follows. To give a sense of the cost and structure of the program, we have included price per credit and maximum possible program duration. Note that some of these programs are not 100% online, requiring students to attend the program for a duration that can range from a welcome week to an in-person module.
| Rank | Online MBA Program | 100% online? | Cost Per Credit | Total cost for program | Program Duration |
| 1 | IE Business School | Yes | – | €62,000 | 18 or 24 months |
| 2 | Imperial College Business School | Yes | – | £53,500 | 21, 24 or 32 months |
| 3 | Warwick Business School | No | – | £47,500 | 2 years |
| 4 | University of Southern California: Marshall | Yes | $2,421 | – | 2 years |
| 5 | Carnegie Mellon: Tepper | No | $769 | – | 24 – 32 months |
| 6 | Durham University Business School | Yes | – | £32,000 | 2 years |
| 7 | AGSM at UNSW Business School | Yes | – | $68,500 | 2 – 4 years |
| 8 | Polimi School of Management | Yes | – | €43,500 | 15 – 32 months |
| 9 | Birmingham Business School | Yes | £1,875 (per module) | – | 24 months |
| 10 | University of Bradford School of Management | Yes | – | £20,196 per year | 2-3 years |
In 2025, U.S. News ranked the following schools as offering the best 10 online MBAs. Once again, we have included price per credit and maximum possible program duration. And, once again, some of these programs have in-person elements.
| Rank | Online MBA Program | 100% online? | Cost Per Credit | Program Duration |
| 1 | Indiana Kelley | No | $1,758 | 2 – 3 years |
| 2 | UNC Kenan-Flagler | Yes | $2,025 | 18 – 36 months |
| 3 | Carnegie Mellon Tepper | No | $2,307 | 24 – 32 months |
| 4 | Florida Warrington | Yes | $1,208 | 1 – 2 years |
| 4 | Washington Foster | No | $1,548 | 21 months |
| 6 | Michigan Ross | No | $2,256 | 2 – 5 years |
| 7 | Arizona Carey | Yes | $1,372 | 21 – 36 months |
| 7 | Arizona Eller | Yes | $1,250 | 14 months – 5 years |
| 7 | Kansas Lawrence KS | Yes | $895 | 2.5 years |
| 7 | USC Marshall | No | $2,421 | 2 years |
Throughout the rankings compiled by these sites over the past years, several business school names crop up time and time again. For example, Carnegie Mellon Tepper appears in both the Financial Times’ and U.S. News’ 2024 and 2025 rankings, as does Florida Warrington; and Indiana Kelley tops the U.S. News list in both 2024 and 2025. These are programs that are frequently ranked highly for their in-person MBA programs, too, demonstrating high quality and ROI across the board.
