New York, US · 20 months · class of 982
Columbia MBA: cost, salary and payback
The highest cost of any MBA on this site once living is counted, and one of the few reports that shows how much less graduates earn outside the United States.
Paid back after graduation in
4.5 years
Total cost $436,060 · 10-year NPV $223,915
| Tuition and fees, whole program | $201,382 |
| Living budget | $84,678 |
| Salary given up, 20 months | $150,000 |
| Total cost | $436,060 |
| Salary after: median base salary | $175,000 |
| Signing bonus × share receiving it | $20,670 |
| 10-year net present value | $223,915 |
| Return on the cost (present values) | 52% |
US dollars at the ECB rate of the last update. Raises of 5% a year with the MBA and 3% without, discounted at 5%, before tax. How this is calculated.
Fees and budget read on October 13, 2026 · employment: Class of 2025 (school standard) · Built by Radif Partners · Method
- Tuition and fees
- $201,382
- Total cost, salary given up included
- $436,060
- median base salary
- $175,000
- Payback, reference person
- 4.5 years
Columbia Business School's full-time MBA costs $286,060 for the August entry, counting two years of tuition, fees, health insurance and the school's nine-month living budget at the first-year rate, more than any other program in our data; the school says second-year costs generally rise a few percent. For a person earning $90,000 today, the 20 months away add $150,000, for a total of $436,060. The class of 2025 reported a median base salary of $175,000, and 68.9% received a signing bonus with a median of $30,000. That repays the total 4.5 years after graduation and leaves a ten-year net present value of $223,915, number 4 of 40 in our overall ranking. What sets Columbia apart is the depth of its report: it gives salaries by finance segment and by region, and the regional figures show that the payback above applies to the 82% who stayed in the United States, not to those who left.
The same degree, a very different salary abroad
Only 8 schools in our data publish a salary for three regions or more, and Columbia is one of them. Graduates who stayed in the United States reported a median of $175,000. In Europe the median was $112,234, in Asia $95,976 and in Latin America $89,442. For an international student who plans to go home soon after the degree, those regional medians, not the headline figure, are the ones that decide the payback.
At the Asian median, the reference person would need 16.9 years to repay the same $436,060, and at the European median 11.5 years. The mini below switches between regions and industries with the salary the school reports for each.
Columbia: where the class went
Share of the class
33.2%
| Salary reported | $190,000 |
| Graduates, about | 326 |
| Payback with that salary | 3.9 years |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Banking, asset management and the January class
Finance took 35.4% of the class and consulting 33.2% at $190,000. Investment banking alone took 17.1%, asset management 6.8%, private equity 4.5% and venture capital 2.5%. On asset management, Columbia is number 3 of 10 in our ranking, and number 4 of 6 on venture capital. Industry shares in this report include sponsored students who return to their employer, while the salary figures exclude them, so the two do not describe exactly the same group.
The class is large, 982 students across two intakes, 224 of them in the January entry. The January track is accelerated and runs several months shorter, which means less salary given up and a shorter payback; the calculator above uses the August track.
Why the New York bill runs so high
Tuition is $93,908 for the first year, and the school's budget for nine months in New York, health insurance included, is $42,339. Both are counted twice. Above about $113,000 a year, your own salary for the 20 months becomes a bigger line than tuition. The finance ranking and comparison tool set Columbia against NYU Stern, across town.
Columbia: when the MBA pays back, for your salary
Payback after graduation
4.5 years
| Total cost with the salary given up | $436,060 |
| Salary after (median base salary) | $175,000 |
| 10-year NPV | $223,915 |
Same assumptions as the main calculator; US dollars.
Where Columbia stands in our rankings
- #4 of 40 · Any industry (whole class)
- #10 of 38 · Consulting
- #7 of 39 · Finance, all segments
- #7 of 12 · Investment banking
- #7 of 10 · Private equity
- #11 of 40 · Technology
- #28 of 39 · Working in the United States
- #17 of 18 · Working in Asia
Our fit score, reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA (method). Third-party rankings play no part in it.
What the Columbia MBA costs
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition, whole program (published yearly rate ×2.00) | $187,816 |
| Mandatory fees | $13,566 |
| Living budget, whole program | $84,678 |
| Salary given up: $90,000 a year for 20 months | $150,000 |
| Total cost, reference person | $436,060 |
Columbia employment report: Class of 2025
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median base salary | $175,000 |
| Signing bonus (median) | $30,000, received by 68.9% |
| Graduates who accepted an offer within three months | 90.4% |
Columbia graduates by industry
| Industry, as the school names it | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Services (total) | 35.4% | not published |
| Consulting | 33.2% | $190,000 |
| Technology (total) | 10.2% | not published |
| Media, Entertainment & Sports + Real Estate + Other | 9.9% | not published |
| Consumer Products (total) | 3.7% | not published |
| Healthcare (total) | 2.9% | not published |
| Manufacturing | 1.8% | $110,000 |
| Education / Government / Nonprofit | 1.2% | $100,000 |
| of which investment banking (investment banking) | 17.1% | $175,000 |
| of which private equity (private equity) | 4.5% | $175,000 |
| of which venture capital (venture capital) | 2.5% | $157,500 |
| of which asset management (asset management (Investment Management)) | 6.8% | $175,000 |
Where Columbia graduates went to work
| Region | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| US (US (total)) | 82% | $175,000 |
| Europe | 4% | $112,234 |
| Asia | 7% | $95,976 |
| Middle East | 2% | not published |
| Latin America | 5% | $89,442 |
Columbia graduates by job function
| Function | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Consulting (total) | 40.1% | not published |
| Consulting | 34.4% | $190,000 |
| Internal Consulting / Strategic Planning | 5.7% | $170,000 |
| Finance (total) | 37.6% | not published |
| Investment Banking | 19.1% | $175,000 |
| Private Equity | 6.6% | $170,000 |
| Investment Management | 4.8% | $150,000 |
| Corporate Finance | 2.1% | $140,800 |
| Venture Capital | 1.8% | $170,000 |
| Other Finance | 3.2% | $160,000 |
| Marketing (total) | 10.3% | not published |
| Brand / Product Management | 5.9% | $135,750 |
| Business Development | 2.8% | $148,000 |
| Product Marketing | 0.9% | $130,000 |
| Management (total) | 5.7% | not published |
| Operations / Production | 3.2% | $142,800 |
| General Management / LDP | 2.5% | $143,900 |
| Real Estate (total) | 3.7% | not published |
| Real Estate Asset Management / Investments | 2.1% | $155,000 |
| Law | 0.7% | $230,000 |
Employers named by Columbia
Boston Consulting Group (51) · McKinsey & Company (36) · JPMorgan Chase & Co. (22) · Amazon (21) · PwC (18) · Bain & Company (17) · Deloitte (14) · Goldman Sachs (11) · Bank of America (10) · Evercore (8)
Number of hires in brackets where the school gives it.
The Columbia class
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| International students | 41% |
| Women | 46% |
| Average years of work experience | 5 |
| GMAT average | 734 |
| Nationalities | 72 |
| Class size | 982 |