15 Best Cities in the US for Cheap Student Housing

Short answer: Provo, Utah; Stillwater, Oklahoma; and Morgantown, West Virginia are the cheapest cities for student housing in 2026, out of the fifteen college towns on this list. More than half the places we list in each start under $700 a month. Provo has rooms from $299. Picking between an in-state safety and an out-of-state dream? Rent swings more between college towns than most 18-year-olds (and, honestly, most parents) expect, so here's every city ranked by live Find My Place listings, with named buildings and the catch in each.

Key Takeaways

• Provo runs away with it. 56 of its 91 places on FMP start under $700 a month.
• Next up: Stillwater, Morgantown, Lincoln, Greenville. The low-cost listings we name there start at $415 to $509.
• Pittsburgh, Bloomington, Iowa City, and Columbia, Missouri sit at the bottom. Under 1 in 10 of their places start below $700.
• Rexburg is its own animal. Housing there is sold by the semester, so don't compare it month to month.
• "Cheap" and "bad" are not synonyms. Most of these towns are walkable and social. They're underpriced, not underbuilt.

Cheapest Cities for Student Housing: The 2026 Ranking at a Glance

Methodology: we pulled every priced listing on each city's Find My Place page on September 27, 2026, and counted how many start under $700 a month. Starting prices mix per-room and per-unit floor plans, so treat them as entry points, not averages. Listing prices in the last column are the starting prices shown on each property's own page. They're examples, not always the single cheapest place in town.

1. Provo, Utah (BYU): The Cheapest Student Housing Market on This List

Provo wins because of sheer depth. Of 91 places in Provo on FMP, 56 start under $700 a month. Chandell lists from $299, about a 20-minute walk to BYU.

Glenwood on North University Avenue has shared rooms from $445 and private rooms from $720. Liberty Square lists from $495 and carries 289 reviews. Shared rooms in BYU-approved complexes are the sweet spot.

2. Stillwater, Oklahoma (Oklahoma State): Small Market, Low Floor

Stillwater is the cheapest small market on this list. Five of the 9 places in Stillwater start under $700. Prime Place Stillwater on West Elm Avenue lists from $449.

The Heights on East 5th Avenue starts at $474. The catch is volume. Nine places don't leave much room if you start late.

3. Morgantown, West Virginia (WVU): Old Houses, New Complexes, Both Cheap

Morgantown gives you the most choice under $700 outside Utah: 20 of 39 places in Morgantown. The converted houses near downtown are the cheapest. 984 Willey St lists from $415. Out on the purpose-built side, West Run on Koehler Drive starts at $425.

The hills, though. The hills are not decorative. They will find you during finals week.

4. Lincoln, Nebraska (University of Nebraska): Downtown Living at College-Town Prices

Want a real downtown without big-city rent? Lincoln. Five of 11 places in Lincoln start under $700.

Stadium Walk Apartments on North 9th Street lists from $509. Prime Place Lincoln on Y Street starts at $549. Both sit near UNL's City Campus, where the whole state's football attention lives every fall.

5. Greenville, North Carolina (East Carolina): Pre-Leasing Competition Keeps Prices Low

Three Greenville student complexes start under $500. The Bower Student Living on South Charles Boulevard lists from $420. Pirates Cove on East 10th Street starts at $450.

Carolina Creek on University Suites Drive has private rooms from $485. Seven of 18 places in Greenville start under $700. The Uptown district costs more.

6. Manhattan, Kansas (Kansas State): Shared Rooms From $339

If you're fine sharing a room, Manhattan is hard to beat. Prime Place Manhattan on College Avenue lists shared rooms from $339. The Quarters Manhattan, a little further up College Avenue, has private rooms from $525. Five of 13 places in Manhattan start under $700.

Aggieville is the social center. The wind is a feature, not a bug. Buy a real coat.

7. Logan, Utah (Utah State): Provo's Quieter, Cheaper-Room Cousin

Logan is where you go for a sub-$350 shared room within walking distance of class. Autumn Hills 560 lists shared rooms from $328 and private rooms from $383, a 17-minute walk to USU. Autumn Hills Cove starts at $367. Of 76 places in Logan, 27 start under $700. It's a smaller town than Provo with the same per-room contract system.

8. Oxford, Mississippi (Ole Miss): Walkable, but Plan Around the Square

Oxford is cheap for the Deep South SEC, not cheap outright. Only 2 of 10 places in Oxford start under $700. The Hollis Townhomes lists from $649.

Archive Oxford on Archive Circle starts at $699. The Square is the social center, so check how far your place is from it. That walk is a joke in October and a slog in August humidity.

9. Tuscaloosa, Alabama (University of Alabama): Cheap Once You Leave the Stadium Zone

Live a few blocks out and Tuscaloosa gets a lot friendlier. Lofts at City Center on 10th Avenue East lists from $495. Redpoint Tuscaloosa starts at $499. The Crimson on 17th Street has private rooms from $639. Only 3 of 25 places in Tuscaloosa start under $700, so the cheap end fills fast.

10. Lawrence, Kansas (University of Kansas): One Standout Deal, Then a Jump

Lawrence has exactly one obvious bargain. Then prices jump. Hawks Pointe on West 7th Street lists private rooms from $439.

Helix 24 on West 24th Place starts at $635. After that, most of the 17 places in Lawrence start above $700. Oread and Old West Lawrence, just west of Massachusetts Street, are the classic student neighborhoods.

11. Iowa City, Iowa (University of Iowa): Cheap Only If You Look Past Downtown

Iowa City is a solid town with a thin cheap end. Only 1 of 18 places in Iowa City starts under $700. That's Hawks Ridge on Hawk Ridge Drive, from $575. The Quarters Iowa City on Highway 6 East starts at $725. Downtown, near the Pentacrest and the Ped Mall, is where prices climb.

12. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Pitt and CMU): Big City, Cheap Only If You Share

Pittsburgh is the anomaly: a real city with a symphony, museums, and pro sports, plus shared rooms under $400. University Commons on McKee Place in Oakland lists shared rooms from $384 and private rooms from $574. Penn Commons downtown has shared rooms from $425. Private apartments get expensive fast: only 1 of 36 places in Pittsburgh shows a starting price under $700 on the city page.

13. Bloomington, Indiana (Indiana University): Great Town, Few Budget Listings

Bloomington is here for the town, frankly, not the rent. Only 1 of 47 places in Bloomington starts under $700: Elevate Apartments on West Arlington Road, with private rooms from $525. The small-landlord house market off 3rd Street is where the rest of the deals hide. Kirkwood Avenue at night is one of the best bar strips in the Midwest.

14. Columbia, Missouri (Mizzou): Three Colleges, Few Budget Complexes

Columbia is home to Mizzou, Stephens College, and Columbia College, but its listed student complexes cluster in the high $700s. The Domain at Columbia on East Stadium Boulevard lists from $754. The Pointe at Rock Quarry Park starts at $775. None of the 5 places in Columbia start under $700. Downtown options like Brookside start at $1,379.

15. Rexburg, Idaho (BYU-Idaho): Compare Semester Contracts, Not Monthly Rent

Rexburg can be cheap, but it doesn't price like the other fourteen. Most BYU-Idaho-approved housing is sold as a semester contract, and FMP listings there quote prices per semester. That's why we left it out of the under-$700 ranking. Rexburg has 80 places on FMP, the second-deepest market on this list.

Delta Phi Apartments is an 11-minute walk to BYU-I. Davenport is 12 minutes out. Divide any semester price by the months it covers before you compare it with Logan or Provo.

How to Compare Student Housing Costs Across Cities

Rent in isolation is misleading. Two cities with identical $700 starting prices can have very different total costs once you fold in utilities, groceries, transit or car costs, and what a campus job actually pays. Many of the prices above are base rent only, so ask each property which fees sit on top of the lease.

The rule we give FMP students: total monthly cost (rent + utilities + groceries + transit) should stay under 45% of your realistic monthly income from a part-time job plus any financial-aid refund. If the math only works assuming a summer job that hasn't been offered, you're overbuying.

Where to Find Cheap Student Housing Listings in These Cities

Every city on this list has a live page on Find My Place, linked in each section above, with starting prices on every listing and student reviews where they exist. Start with the city page, filter by room type, and sort by price. For shared houses and mid-year sublets, school-specific Facebook groups are also worth watching. For mid-year moves, read our guide on how to find a sublease as a college student.

Frequently Asked Questions About Cheap Student Housing Cities

What's the cheapest state for student housing overall?

Oklahoma has the lowest overall cost of living in the US, with an index of 83.0 in the second quarter of 2026, according to the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center. Its housing index is 65.1, against a national average of 100. Alabama, Iowa, West Virginia, Kansas, and Mississippi follow. But the town matters more than the state: Pittsburgh, in a state that isn't on that list, still has shared rooms under $400.

Is it cheaper to live in student-specific housing or a regular apartment?

Depends where you are. In Utah, the BYU and USU contracted housing market is almost always cheaper per bedroom than a conventional apartment, because the whole system was built on per-room contracts. In Boston, Chicago, or LA, the reverse is often true: a 4-bedroom house split four ways usually beats the student-branded high-rise. Run the per-room math either way before you commit.

How do I know a "cheap" listing isn't a scam?

Watch for three immediate tells: the landlord wants payment before you've toured, insists on Venmo to a personal account, or lists rent 30% under the city's market range. Any one of those, stop. The county assessor website tells you who actually owns the property in 90 seconds flat. Our checklist on student rental red flags goes deeper than this article can.

How early should I sign a lease in these markets?

Earlier than feels reasonable. In most college towns, the cheapest student housing for an August move-in gets signed in the winter and early spring. Wait until late spring and you're choosing from what's left. If you're reading this in March, you're slightly late. Not fatal, but move.