College costs have been on a mostly upward trend for the last two decades. In addition to high tuition prices, paying for housing, food, transportation, books and other school-related fees can add thousands of dollars to college expenses.

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To cut costs and limit student debt, many families choose to send teens to in-state colleges. But data from the past 20 years shows that the average cost of tuition and fees for private and public National Universities has risen significantly since 2000 for both in-state and out-of-state students. National Universities are schools that are often research-oriented and offer bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees.

The charts below show 20 years of tuition changes, as reported to U.S. News by the 389 ranked National Universities included in the recently released 2021 Best Colleges rankings. Tuition and fees are displayed by the rankings edition year; for example, the data for the 2021 edition was gathered by U.S. News in 2020. Here's a quick breakdown:

The average tuition and fees at private National Universities have jumped 144%.

Out-of-state tuition and fees at public National Universities have risen 165%.

In-state tuition and fees at public National Universities have grown the most, increasing 212%.

For the few schools that did not submit current year tuition figures, U.S. News used the prior year's number when calculating averages. The latest tuition and fees data was collected in spring and summer 2020 and may not reflect cuts or discounts made in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Dollar amounts in these charts have not been adjusted for inflation. However, tuition and fees at four-year National Universities are significantly outpacing inflation. The total consumer price index inflation increased by around 50% from August 2000 to August 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The chart below shows the average tuition and fees for each year, starting with the 2001 edition of the Best Colleges rankings, which were released in 2000.