If you love working with young children, getting your early childhood education associates degree online will help you advance your career while teaching you the essential skills and knowledge to turn you into a true professional. Whether you are just starting out, or looking to bolster your credentials in early childhood, an online associate degree is a great way to get the training to work in this fast-growing occupation. This degree is perfect if you want to work in a daycare setting, assist in public schools, or work with community development organizations. All degrees are either AS or AA degrees which can be transferred into a bachelor’s degree.
We compared the 36 schools that provide an early childhood education associates degree online to find the 22 priced below the national average. Costs range from a little under $3,000 all the way up to over $36,000, so you can save yourself a bundle of money on your degree by choosing an accredited program that fits your budget. We’ve done the heavy lifting for you with this guide featuring the most up-to-date data for each program we rank.
Average Cost (In-state): ~$15,200
Least Expensive: Cerro Coso Community College ~$2,764
Most Expensive: Southwestern Assemblies of God University ~$36,420
Our data-driven research creates a truly reliable system of scientific rankings. There’s no fancy formulas here. We meticulously calculate total full-time tuition—including any fees—for the most accurate total cost. Our rankings cannot be bought, and therefore factually showcase the cheapest associate degrees in early childhood education online. The online degrees listed above the gray dividing line are official 2018 “Best Buys” and cost less than the national average.
Most Affordable Early Childhood Education Associate’s Degree Online
| Rank | School / Degree | State | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cerro Coso Community College | (CA) | $2,764.00 $15,484.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
2 | Clovis Community College | (NM) | $4,122.00 $6,858.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
3 | Pima Community College | (AZ) | $5,340.00 $13,230.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
4 | Eastern Wyoming College | (WY) | $5,472.00 $14,496.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
5 | Tallahassee Community College | (FL) | $6,049.80 $23,236.20 | In-State Out-of-State |
6 | State College of Florida-Manatee-Sarasota | (FL) | $6,168.80 $23,211.20 | In-State Out-of-State |
7 | Florida State College at Jacksonville | (FL) | $6,292.80 $13,113.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
8 | Great Basin College | (NV) | $6,307.13 $9,301.88 | In-State Out-of-State |
9 | College of Southern Nevada | (NV) | $6,535.00 $9,505.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
10 | Allen County Community College | (KS) | $7,040.00 | All Students |
11 | St. Petersburg College | (FL) | $7,985.25 $25,319.70 | In-State Out-of-State |
12 | Casper College | (WY) | $8,192.00 $20,224.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
13 | Barton County Community College | (KS) | $9,600.00 | All Students |
14 | Laramie County Community College | (WY) | $9,777.00 $18,801.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
15 | Carl Albert State College | (OK) | $9,932.40 $10,571.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
16 | Colorado Mountain College | (CO) | $11,000.00 $27,380.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
17 | Minnesota State College Southeast | (MN) | $12,137.40 | All Students |
18 | Southwestern Oregon Community College | (OR) | $14,062.00 | All Students |
19 | NHTI-Concord’s Community College | (NH) | $14,400.00 $30,900.00 | In-State Out-of-State |
20 | Georgia Military College | (GA) | $14,820.00 | All Students |
| School / Degree | State | Price | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Front Range Community College | (CO) | $15,847.16 $24,130.16 | In-State Out-of-State | |
 American Public University System | (WV) | $17,300.00 $15,100.00 | In-State/Out-Of-State Military | |
Western New Mexico University | (NM) | $17,813.25 $21,617.82 | In-State Out-of-State | |
Arkansas Tech University | (AR) | $18,135.00 $31,695.00 | In-State Out-of-State | |
Mayville State University | (ND) | $18,880.00 | All Students | |
Vanguard University of Southern California | (CA) | $19,200.00 | All Students | |
Granite State College | (NH) | $19,240.00 $21,700.00 | In-State Out-of-State | |
Clarion University of Pennsylvania | (PA) | $19,610.80 $22,168.40 | In-State Out-of-State | |
Montgomery County Community College | (PA) | $21,045.00 $30,439.00 | In-State Out-of-State | |
 Liberty University | (VA) | $24,296.00 $15,100.00 | In-State/Out-Of-State Military | |
Fisher College | (MA) | $26,606.58 | All Students | |
Concordia University-Saint Paul | (MN) | $26,880.00 | All Students | |
Post University | (CT) | $30,300.00 | All Students | |
Chaminade University of Honolulu | (HI) | $32,070.00 | All Students | |
Western Kentucky University | (KY) | $33,390.00 $15,750.00 | In-State/Out-Of-State Military | |
Southwestern Assemblies of God University | (TX) | $36,420.00 | All Students |
Accreditation & Licensing Note: As in all careers with state-specific licensure requirements, prospective applicants should contact the education department in their state of residence and ensure the desired program qualifies a graduate for teacher licensure. Not all programs listed lead to licensure. Applicants can also learn more by clicking the links to request information about each degree program. To qualify for a ranking, a program must be regionally accredited. Additional programmatic accreditation is noted in the rank table.
36 Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP)
Rankings Note: These online college rankings are based on a GetEducated Fall 2018 review of regionally accredited early childhood education associates degrees online. Total cost includes full-time tuition and fees and was valid at the time of collection and specific to the online learning program. School profiles for the online associate degree programs in our directory may reflect a slightly different cost based on different editorial update schedules. The published cost is an estimated sticker price for the entire online degree including fees. Actual costs may vary by student. Factors such as transfer credits, prerequisite courses, professional licensing and financial aid availability will affect final cost.
Editorial Note: Online schools do NOT pay to be included in any GetEducated online degree ranking. These rankings are editorially independent, open to any regionally accredited or candidate college that offers an associate’s degree that is available at least 80 percent through online learning and that is open to enrollment by the public. If your online college is regionally accredited and not currently reviewed by GetEducated, please contact us for inclusion.
These rankings of the cheapest online schools for early childhood education may NOT be re-posted online or reprinted in any format without a license from GetEducated ®. Consumer finance bloggers and writers can contact our editors for a free custom article on the best online associate’s in early childhood education for use on your website. Our mission: Help consumers GetEducated ® about the best online colleges for cost and credibility.