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Associate degrees

Affordable online accounting associate degrees

Compare 6 online accounting associate degrees on published rates checked in October 2026, plus the fees and conditions that change what you pay.

Affordable Degree GuideSources checked Editorial policy

At a glance

  • 6 programs compared
  • Degree length: 60–64 semester credits
  • Published tuition for the whole degree: $10,240–$21,240 before fees, at the rates shown before you choose a state, with no transfer credits
  • Lowest published tuition: Barton Community College, $10,240 (64 semester credits at $160 per credit)
  • Every school here is institutionally accredited (checked October 2026)
  • Prices checked October 14, 2026

Estimate your degree tuition

Use published rates to explore a scenario. This is not a transfer-credit evaluation or financial aid offer.

Enter the credits the school has already accepted toward this degree, using the unit selected below. Assumed credits apply only to programs that use that unit; we do not convert between semester and quarter credits. Semester credits are used unless a unit selector appears.

Showing a zero-transfer-credit scenario at the currently published rates. Add your state to see residency pricing where it is published.

Sorted by estimated tuition, lowest first. Required fees are listed separately.

Program costs for your scenario: credits remaining, estimated tuition, and known fee components
Institution & programCredits remainingEstimated tuitionKnown fee components
Barton Community CollegeAAS in Technical Accounting Specialist · Online2026–2027 · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: Higher Learning Commission64semester credits$10,240Barton Online tuition (standard fees shown separately)$640
York County Community CollegeAssociate degree in Accounting · Online2026–2027 · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: New England Commission of Higher Education60semester credits$11,520Standard out-of-state tuition; regional discount requires confirmation$2,520
Trine UniversityAssociate in Accounting (online) · Online2026-2027 (the cost page prints a 2026-2027 per-credit column; the program page prints no year) · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: Higher Learning Commission62semester credits$18,538Undergraduate tuition per credit hour, 2026-2027—
Southern New Hampshire UniversityAssociate of Science in Accounting · Online2026–2027 · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: New England Commission of Higher Education60semester credits$21,240Standard online undergraduate tuition$100
Fox Valley Technical CollegeAccounting Associate Degree (AAS) · OnlinePublished program estimate; year not stated · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: Higher Learning Commission63semester creditsNot confirmedA published program estimate is not a verified per-credit rateCompletion pace or enrollment schedule is needed—
Minnesota State College SoutheastAssociate of Applied Science in Accounting · Online2026–2027 · Official sourcesInstitutional accreditation: Higher Learning Commission60semester creditsNot confirmedNon-Minnesota applicable rate not confirmedApplicable tuition is not confirmed—

The estimate multiplies your remaining credits by each school’s published rate; the school notes below say what that rate covers. Known fee components are the mandatory charges we verified. — means no required fee amount is confirmed. No program here has a complete required-fee list we could verify, so no total is shown and these figures are not your full cost. Books, living costs, travel, and financial aid are not included, and future tuition increases are not modeled.

Fee units, residency eligibility, and placement conditions come from each school’s published terms:

Barton Community College: Credits are semester credits. The 64-credit map takes effect August 2026. Barton Online charges the same rate for every state: $160 tuition plus $10 standard fees per credit. Some course-specific expenses are not listed, so ask the school for its fee list before you budget.

York County Community College: Credits are semester credits. Online courses use the campus tuition rates. The New England Regional Student Program charges $144 per credit for matriculated CT, MA, NH, RI, and VT residents, and you need program approval to use it. Ask the college whether you qualify. A yearly student accident insurance charge and course-specific costs are separate from the rate.

Trine University: Credits are semester credits. The program page totals the degree as 'Associate in Accounting (62 hrs.)': 24 hours of general education, 8 hours of additional requirements and 30 hours of content, including 15 concentration hours. The legacy listing's 60 credits are not used. The programme is fully online and its courses also count toward Trine's BS in Business Administration with an Accounting major. Undergraduate tuition is $299 per credit hour for 2026-2027 (the same figure is printed for 2025-2026). Active-duty military tuition assistance is $250 per credit hour, an eligibility rate that is not applied here. Up to 45 credit hours may be transferred toward the associate degree. That is a ceiling, not a promise that your credits qualify. More than 200 courses use free textbooks. Trine publishes no mandatory-fee schedule for this degree, so no fee is added and its fee status stays partial.

Southern New Hampshire University: Credits are semester credits. You pay a $100 graduation conferral fee and no application fee. Course materials vary by course and are not included in the rate. The school does not list every required fee for this program, so ask for its fee list. The published transfer ceiling for the associate degree is 45 credits.

Fox Valley Technical College: Credits are semester credits. The program lists an online option and an estimated $12,200 tuition-and-fee program cost. The school says some textbook costs may be included and other materials excluded. That is a whole-program estimate rather than a per-credit rate for the 63-credit program, so ask for an itemized schedule and the cost of the credits you still need.

Minnesota State College Southeast: Credits are semester credits. The $209.10 tuition rate carries a $24 per-credit subtotal of technology ($14), health services ($2.25), student life/activity ($7.14) and student association ($0.61), plus a separate $25 per-credit online differential. The published $236.25 general estimate also includes parking. The fees page lists parking at $3.15, while the differentials page exempts online students from $2.50 parking. Which one applies is unresolved, so parking is left out here. Ask the college which differentials apply to you and what parking costs.

Which accounting associate degree fits your next step?

An accounting AAS focuses on job skills: financial statements, payroll and accounting software. An AS can also be the first half of a bachelor’s degree. The receiving college decides which credits count, so get a written transfer evaluation before you choose on price. An associate degree alone does not qualify you for a CPA license.

The table compares five programs with a published per-credit rate and one with only a program estimate. None publishes a complete required-fee list, so no total cost is shown. Every figure was checked on October 12, 2026 and is a published price, not an aid offer.

How the programs compare

ProgramPublished priceWhat to check
York County Accounting — 60 credits, online track2026–27 tuition: $96 Maine, $192 standard nonresident; $42/credit standard feeThe $144 New England price needs a matriculated student and approval.
Barton Technical Accounting Specialist — 64-credit AAS2026–27 online schedule: $160 tuition + $10 standard fees per credit, regardless of stateThe campus and Fort Riley prices cover different things.
Minnesota State College Southeast Accounting AAS — 60 credits, online option2026–27 schedule: $209.10 tuition; $236.25 standard tuition-and-fee estimate; $25/credit online differential listed separatelyAsk which differentials apply to you and whether residence matters.
SNHU Accounting AS — 60 credits, online2026–27 online tuition: $354/credit and $100 conferral feeCourse materials vary.
Fox Valley Accounting AAS — 63 credits, online optionPublished program estimate: $12,200This is a whole-program estimate, not a per-credit rate.
Trine Associate in Accounting — 62 credits, online2026–27 cost page: $299/credit (undergraduate, all degrees except RN to BSN)Up to 45 transfer credits; no mandatory-fee schedule is published, so fees stay unconfirmed.

Southeast’s published $236.25 per-credit estimate includes parking. Its fees page lists parking at $3.15, but its differentials policy says online students are not charged $2.50 parking. The $49 per credit counted in the table (known fees of $24 plus the $25 online differential) leaves parking out, so ask what you would be charged.

Other ways schools charge

Ashworth’s accounting tuition page prices semester payment options and mentions administrative and shipping costs. It publishes no whole-degree price.

Penn Foster publishes a $7,000–$7,500 tuition range depending on the first-semester payment plan, with a rate of up to $109 per credit that can change by semester.

For either school, ask for the cost of the credits you still need rather than relying on the range.

Lake Michigan College’s online Accounting Associate in Applied Science is a 61-credit program completed in five semesters of 7-week and 14-week courses, but the college bills tuition by contact hour rather than by credit: $192.50 per contact hour for students anywhere in the United States in 2026-2027, and contact hours may differ from credit hours for a course. Its 2026-2027 catalog adds a course’s lecture and lab hours together to get the contact hours that tuition is charged on (“Tuition is charged per contact hour”), so lab and work-experience courses bill more contact hours than their credits — two accounting electives, Accounting Co-Op I (3 (1-15)) and Foundations of Information Technologies (3 (2-2)), are listed that way, and the co-op adds a $35.00 course fee. Some other courses may include a flat course fee whose amount appears only in the class schedule. Ask the school what a contact-hour total for your plan of study would cost, and which course fees apply.

Questions to ask before you apply

  • Get the exact degree plan, delivery format and mandatory fee schedule for your intake. One online course listing does not mean the whole degree is online.
  • For a transfer goal, compare the associate curriculum with the receiving bachelor’s program, not just the number of transferable credits advertised.
  • Ask the financial aid office about grants and tuition waivers separately from the published price. Our FAFSA guide explains the application process.
  • Budget books, software and equipment yourself. They are outside these figures unless the published rate includes them.
  • For Fox Valley, ask what you would pay for the credits you still need.

Read our methodology for the details behind these numbers, or send a correction if a linked price or program has changed.

Are these schools accredited?

Yes. Every school in this comparison is institutionally accredited, according to the U.S. Department of Education's College Navigator or the school itself (checked October 2026).

  • Higher Learning Commission: Barton Community College, Fox Valley Technical College, Minnesota State College Southeast, Trine University
  • New England Commission of Higher Education: Southern New Hampshire University, York County Community College

Program-specific accreditation, such as for business or counseling programs, is separate; check it on each program's page.

Jobs and pay in accounting

National figures from O*NET OnLine for everyone in each occupation, not graduates of these programs. Some of these jobs require a license, experience or a different degree.

OccupationMedian annual pay (2025)Projected growth (2025-2035)
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks$50,670Decline (-1% or lower)
Accountants and Auditors$83,680Faster than average (5% to 6%)

Sources

Explore the official program pages and price information.

  1. College Navigator: Barton County Community College (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  2. College Navigator: Fox Valley Technical College (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  3. College Navigator: Minnesota State College Southeast (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  4. College Navigator: Southern New Hampshire University (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  5. College Navigator: Trine University (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  6. College Navigator: York County Community College (accreditation)National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · Checked 2026-10-15
  7. Ashworth accounting semester payment optionsAshworth College · Checked 2026-10-12
  8. Barton Technical Accounting Specialist degree mapBarton Community College · Checked 2026-10-12 · Effective August 2026
  9. Barton fully online programsBarton Community College · Checked 2026-10-12
  10. Barton tuition and fee breakdown, 2026–2027Barton Community College · Checked 2026-10-12 · 2026–2027
  11. Fox Valley Technical College Accounting AAS and estimated costFox Valley Technical College · Checked 2026-10-12
  12. Lake Michigan College — online Accounting AASLake Michigan College · Checked 2026-10-17
  13. Lake Michigan College — tuition and fees (2026-2027)Lake Michigan College · Checked 2026-10-17 · 2026-2027 Academic Year (Fall 2026, Spring 2027, Summer 2027)
  14. Lake Michigan College 2026-2027 catalog — BUSA 265 Accounting Co-Op ILake Michigan College (2026-2027 catalog) · Checked 2026-10-17 · 2026-2027
  15. Lake Michigan College 2026-2027 catalog — Course Information (How to Read Course Descriptions)Lake Michigan College (2026-2027 catalog) · Checked 2026-10-17 · 2026-2027
  16. Lake Michigan College 2026-2027 catalog — CIS 100 Foundations of Information TechnologiesLake Michigan College (2026-2027 catalog) · Checked 2026-10-17 · 2026-2027
  17. Minnesota State College Southeast tuition differentials and online parking noteMinnesota State College Southeast · Checked 2026-10-13
  18. Minnesota State College Southeast Accounting AASMinnesota State College Southeast · Checked 2026-10-12
  19. Minnesota State College Southeast tuition and differentialsMinnesota State College Southeast · Checked 2026-10-13 · 2026–2027
  20. Penn Foster accounting payment-plan pricingPenn Foster College · Checked 2026-10-12
  21. SNHU online AS in Accounting requirementsSouthern New Hampshire University · Checked 2026-10-12
  22. Trine University — Associate in Accounting (online)Trine University · Checked 2026-10-14
  23. Trine University — cost and investment (undergraduate tuition)Trine University · Checked 2026-10-14 · rate table columns '2025 - 2026 per credit hour' and '2026 - 2027 per credit hour'
  24. York County Community College Accounting degreeYork County Community College · Checked 2026-10-12
  25. York County tuition and fees, 2026–2027York County Community College · Checked 2026-10-12 · 2026–2027
  26. O*NET OnLine: Accountants and Auditors (13-2011.00)O*NET OnLine, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration · Checked 2026-10-15 · 2025 wage data; 2025-2035 projections
  27. O*NET OnLine: Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks (43-3031.00)O*NET OnLine, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration · Checked 2026-10-15 · 2025 wage data; 2025-2035 projections
  28. SNHU online tuition and fees, 2026–2027Southern New Hampshire University · Checked 2026-10-12 · 2026–2027
  29. SNHU online undergraduate transfer-credit policySouthern New Hampshire University · Checked 2026-10-12