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BACHELOR'S DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES

Is a bachelor's degree in Economics worth it?

Compare cost, debt and earnings across 390 college programs with reportable data.

Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Positive payoff

+$76,873 over 10 years

National scenario across reporting bachelor's degree programs, using median year-4 earnings, their institutions’ average net prices and a typical 4-year duration.

7.8 yrsTime to earn back the modeled cost
+29%Estimated return after 10 years
$79,468Observed earnings · year 4
$41,170Highest annual price before payoff reaches $0

The price benchmark is $19,218 per year below this threshold.

Start with your decision

What do you need to compare?

PRICE SENSITIVITY

The price can change the verdict.

Hold observed earnings constant and see how the modeled ten-year payoff changes as annual price rises.

What stays fixed$79,468 observed annual earnings · 4 years of study · $45,000 alternative annual earnings · ten-year horizonThe marked price is the average college-wide net-price context across reporting institutions. This is a sensitivity test, not a tuition quote or earnings forecast.
WHAT THIS DEGREE PAYS

Outcomes at a glance

$79,468Typical earnings four years after completion
$84,533Average earnings five years after completion
$22,907Typical federal student debt
74thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
99Degrees awarded in 2024–25
369College programs reporting earnings

Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 31 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.

A PRACTICAL READ

Four useful answers about Economics

How much do Economics bachelor's degree graduates earn?

The national median is $79,468 four years after completion across reportable bachelor's degree programs in this federal field.

How much federal debt do graduates have?

The median reported federal debt is $22,907. The figure excludes private loans and does not describe every graduate.

Does the college matter for Economics?

Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $69,792 to $92,453 in observed year-4 earnings.

What careers are related to Economics?

DegreeVerdict links this field to 9 displayed occupations using the official federal CIP–SOC crosswalk. Occupational wages are career context, not graduate salary promises.

COMPARE DEGREE LEVELS

More schooling changes both the cost and the outcome.

Compare the same field at each degree level with reportable data. These are separate groups of graduates, so the differences do not prove that an additional degree caused higher earnings.

OPEN PROFILE

Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Year-4 earnings
$101,310
Federal debt
$22,625
Programs in the comparison
1
1 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Associate's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$60,076
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
3
3 report earnings →CURRENT VIEW

Bachelor's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$79,468
Federal debt
$22,907
Programs in the comparison
390
369 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Master's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$104,085
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
22
22 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Doctoral Degree

Year-4 earnings
$97,632
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
1
1 report earnings →
COLLEGE-TO-COLLEGE RANGE

Where the middle half of programs lands

Year‑4 earnings differ by college. This band shows the 25th percentile, national median and 75th percentile among reporting programs.

Median
25th percentile$69,792National median$79,46875th percentile$92,453
369 programs report year‑4 earnings.
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Compare price, debt and earnings together

$92,45375th-percentile year-4 earnings among reporting programs
$22,907Median federal debt across programs that report it
59Programs with earnings in the top quarter and debt at or below the median
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION

Three useful places to start

Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.

Highest observed earnings

Williams College

$166,678 four years after completionWilliamstown, MA · inspect the full program →Lowest reported federal debt

Harvard University

$6,617 among completer borrowersCambridge, MA · inspect the full program →Largest recent graduating class

University of California, Berkeley

909 reported awards in 2024–25Berkeley, CA · inspect the full program →
PRICE × EARNINGS MAP

Where colleges sit for this exact degree

Move left for a lower annual college-wide net price and up for higher observed year-4 earnings.

$160,763Observed year-4 earnings$121,787
$13,370Annual college-wide average net price$34,832
All reporting colleges Lower-price, higher-earnings quadrantAxes trim the outer 5% for readability; outliers remain pinned to the chart edge. Price is institution-wide context, not exact program tuition.
Build your shortlist

Choose colleges offering this exact degree

Start with the highest-earning reported programs below, or open the full directory to search every college.

30 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 25 shown
Search every reporting program →
WHERE OUTCOMES ARE STRONGEST

See the spread, not just the national number.

1Williams College$166,6782Duke University$161,1493Princeton University$160,7634University of Chicago$159,5785Harvard University$155,5926Dartmouth College$152,9297Claremont McKenna College$146,5248Carnegie Mellon University$144,8869Yale University$142,93610Amherst College$141,730

Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking

Career outlook

Jobs this degree may lead to

Federal education-to-career links identify related occupations. They do not imply that every graduate enters the same job.

Pay and projected demand

Related careers do not share one outlook

Bubble size = annual openings2025–35 national projection

Occupation wages describe workers in these jobs, not graduates of this degree. BLS projections are national estimates and do not guarantee hiring.

Managers, All Other$141,900 median wage622,190 jobs nationwide+4.9% projected growth through 2035 · 100,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$74,300–$238,270 typical wage rangeEconomists$124,720 median wage17,790 jobs nationwide+4.7% projected growth through 2035 · 1,100 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$67,360–$238,060 typical wage rangeEconomics Teachers, Postsecondary$123,920 median wage11,560 jobs nationwide+2.4% projected growth through 2035 · 1,000 openings a yearTypical entry education: Doctoral or professional degree$64,060–$224,200 typical wage rangeSocial Science Research Assistants$61,990 median wage30,640 jobs nationwide+5.0% projected growth through 2035 · 4,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$38,090–$102,070 typical wage rangeSurvey Researchers$69,460 median wage8,290 jobs nationwide-4.8% projected growth through 2035 · 600 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$39,260–$130,860 typical wage rangeData Scientists$120,230 median wage262,440 jobs nationwide+34.6% projected growth through 2035 · 24,800 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$67,240–$199,130 typical wage rangeStatisticians$105,650 median wage29,030 jobs nationwide+11.0% projected growth through 2035 · 1,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$64,000–$174,050 typical wage rangeMarket Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists$78,760 median wage899,580 jobs nationwide+7.0% projected growth through 2035 · 82,000 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$43,390–$155,480 typical wage rangeSecondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education$72,040 median wage1,065,210 jobs nationwide-0.2% projected growth through 2035 · 63,500 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$48,780–$107,600 typical wage range

BLS May 2025 wages and 2025–35 projections. Career figures describe occupations, not graduates of a specific college.

COMPARE NEARBY FIELDS

Similar degrees in the same subject family

These alternatives share the same broad federal CIP family and credential level. Earnings and debt use the same definitions as this page.

Bachelor's Degree

Political Science and Government

Year-4 earnings
$61,929
Federal debt
$23,708
609 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Sociology

Year-4 earnings
$52,094
Federal debt
$25,000
509 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Anthropology

Year-4 earnings
$45,920
Federal debt
$23,000
208 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Geography and Cartography

Year-4 earnings
$57,751
Federal debt
$22,716
130 reporting programs →
EXPLORE BY STATE

Where this degree has enough data to compare

State pages are published only when at least five operating colleges report year-4 earnings for this exact field and credential.

CA39 programs$84,572 average earningsNY35 programs$88,006 average earningsPA31 programs$89,015 average earningsMA24 programs$97,439 average earningsTX14 programs$79,718 average earningsVA13 programs$87,213 average earningsOH13 programs$82,902 average earningsNJ13 programs$83,629 average earningsWI12 programs$72,493 average earningsIL12 programs$84,840 average earningsCT12 programs$95,458 average earningsMN11 programs$84,395 average earnings

This page keeps the field and credential level fixed. Federal categories can still combine multiple catalog programs or concentrations. Automated ROI is limited to associate and bachelor’s degrees because institution-wide annual net price is not a reliable proxy for short certificate prices. ROI is an illustrative scenario, not a federal determination.