Cost of Attending College in Montana: Tuition and Living Costs
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Aug 04, 2026 • US States & Cities
Part of the guide Cost of Attending College by State: Tuition and Living Costs Compared
In 2024-2025, Montana's two flagship universities charged about $8,500 a year in tuition and fees for residents and $33,000-34,000 for non-residents, with on-campus room and board adding roughly $13,000 more.
| Campus | Resident tuition and fees | Non-resident tuition and fees |
|---|---|---|
| University of Montana (Missoula) | $8,552 | $33,671 |
| Montana State University (Bozeman) | $8,460 | $33,287 |
| Flathead Valley Community College | $6,223 | $11,659 |
Published tuition and fees at Montana's public campuses
Costs below come from the U.S. Department of Education's College Navigator and cover full-time, first-year undergraduates for the 2024-2025 academic year.
| Campus | Resident tuition/fees | Non-resident tuition/fees |
|---|---|---|
| University of Montana (Missoula) | $8,552 | $33,671 |
| Montana State University (Bozeman) | $8,460 | $33,287 |
| Flathead Valley Community College (Kalispell) | $6,223 | $11,659 |
The four regional universities, Montana State University Billings, Montana Technological University, University of Montana Western, and Montana State University Northern, generally price below the two flagships, and the system's other two-year colleges run close to Flathead Valley's numbers.
Room, board, and total cost of attendance
At the University of Montana, published on-campus room and board runs $12,804 a year, and books, supplies, and other personal expenses add close to $7,500 more, bringing the total in-state, on-campus cost to $28,838 and the non-resident total to $53,957.
At Montana State University Bozeman, on-campus room and board runs $14,000, with books and other expenses adding roughly $5,500, for a total in-state, on-campus cost of $27,936 and a non-resident total of $52,763.
Living off campus costs less
Montana State University's own cost worksheet shows a student living off campus with family pays a total of $13,936 a year, about half the on-campus in-state figure, since it strips out room, board, and some personal expenses. Living off campus without family cuts the housing bill compared to a campus meal plan and dorm rate, though it adds costs like utilities and a security deposit that campus estimates do not always break out.
What counts as fees
The figures above bundle tuition with mandatory fees such as building, technology, and health fees, which Montana campuses charge on top of tuition and which College Navigator folds into a single tuition and fees number. Course-specific fees for labs, certain majors, or online delivery sit outside this total and add a few hundred dollars a term depending on your program.
Cutting non-resident cost with WUE
If you come from one of the 15 states or territories in the Western Undergraduate Exchange , apply for the WUE rate instead of paying full non-resident tuition. WUE caps your bill at 150% of the resident rate, which on a Montana flagship's roughly $8,500 tuition works out to a WUE ceiling near $12,750 instead of $33,000-plus.
Two-year colleges as a lower-cost start
Flathead Valley Community College charged $6,223 for in-state tuition and fees in 2024-2025, about $2,300 less than a flagship. Starting at a two-year MUS college and transferring later cuts your total bachelor's degree cost while keeping the same MUS credits, since the system uses common course numbering across campuses.
Budgeting bottom line
Expect roughly $28,000-29,000 a year for a Montana-resident student living on campus at a flagship, $52,000-54,000 for a non-resident without a tuition break, and closer to $14,000-19,000 a year at a two-year college or living at home. Add your own transportation, health insurance, and personal spending on top of these campus estimates, since those figures vary by student.