Philadelphia, US · 21 months · class of 888
Wharton MBA: cost, salary and payback
Two years in Philadelphia cost $270,882 before the salary you give up; the class of 2025 reported a $185,000 median base salary.
Paid back after graduation in
3.9 years
Total cost $402,342 · 10-year NPV $312,208
| Tuition and fees, whole program | $186,016 |
| Living budget | $84,866 |
| Salary given up, 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$26,040 |
| Total cost | $402,342 |
| Salary after: median base salary | $185,000 |
| Signing bonus × share receiving it | $14,400 |
| 10-year net present value | $312,208 |
| Return on the cost (present values) | 79% |
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 (MBA CSEA standard) · Built by Radif Partners · Method
- Tuition and fees
- $186,016
- Total cost, salary given up included
- $402,342
- median base salary
- $185,000
- Payback, reference person
- 3.9 years
The Wharton MBA costs $270,882 in tuition, university fees and the school's own living budget for the two years starting in 2026, before counting the salary you stop earning. For a person earning $90,000 today, the 21 months away add $157,500, the summer internship gives back about $26,040, and the total comes to $402,342. The class of 2025 reported a median base salary of $185,000, with a median signing bonus of $30,000 for the 48% who received one. On those figures the degree is repaid 3.9 years after graduation and leaves a ten-year net present value of $312,208. Wharton is the most finance-heavy school on this site: 38.2% of the class went into financial services, 13.4% into private equity alone.
A finance school that also feeds consulting
Wharton's report splits financial services into more segments than most schools, and the numbers explain its reputation. Of the class of 2025, 14.2% went into investment banking at a median $175,000, and 13.4% into private equity and buyouts at $200,000, the highest median of any large segment in the report. That places Wharton number 2 of 10 in our private equity ranking. Consulting still takes 28.2% of the class at $190,000, the same median as the large strategy firms pay at other top schools.
Technology is smaller than at the West Coast schools, 15.3% of the class, and pays less than finance and consulting, $163,500. Someone aiming for product management in California should compare with Berkeley Haas and Stanford GSB in the tech ranking.
Wharton: where the class went
Share of the class
28.2%
| Salary reported | $190,000 |
| Graduates, about | 250 |
| Payback with that salary | 3.7 years |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Where the cost of two years comes from
Tuition is $87,970 a year and university fees $5,038, for $175,940 and $10,076 over the program. The school's own budget for a single student adds $42,433 a year for rent, food, health insurance, books and transport, and that budget includes the university health plan, which many students forget to count. The summer between the two years is paid: the class of 2026 reported a median internship pay of $10,416 a month, which the calculator subtracts for about 2.5 months.
The salary you give up weighs more than any of these lines once you earn more than $101,000 a year, the point where 21 months of salary exceed the whole tuition. Type your own salary in the calculator at the top: above a certain level, the payback stretches quickly, because the median after the MBA does not move.
Wharton: when the MBA pays back, for your salary
Payback after graduation
3.9 years
| Total cost with the salary given up | $402,342 |
| Salary after (median base salary) | $185,000 |
| 10-year NPV | $312,208 |
Same assumptions as the main calculator; US dollars.
Almost everyone stays in the United States
94.2% of the graduates who took a job stayed in the United States; the report puts close to half of the class in New York City alone. The school counts 2.3% in Asia and 0.9% in Europe. For an international student who wants to return home after the degree, a two-year American program is a long and expensive detour unless the plan is to work a few years in the United States first: compare the regional rankings, such as working in Europe, before applying. The class entering in 2025 is 26% international, from 68 countries.
Wharton: what a scholarship changes
Payback with the scholarship
3.6 years
| Without it | 3.9 years |
| Total cost with it | $372,342 |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Where Wharton stands in our rankings
- #1 of 40 · Any industry (whole class)
- #11 of 38 · Consulting
- #3 of 39 · Finance, all segments
- #4 of 12 · Investment banking
- #2 of 10 · Private equity
- #10 of 40 · Technology
- #19 of 39 · Working in the United States
Our fit score, reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA (method). Third-party rankings play no part in it. For reference, Wharton was ranked 3 in the FT Global MBA 2026.
What the Wharton MBA costs
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition, whole program | $175,940 |
| Mandatory fees | $10,076 |
| Living budget, whole program | $84,866 |
| Salary given up: $90,000 a year for 21 months | $157,500 |
| Summer internship earned | −$26,040 |
| Total cost, reference person | $402,342 |
Wharton employment report: Class of 2025
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median base salary | $185,000 |
| Middle half of salaries | $165,000 to $192,000 |
| Signing bonus (median) | $30,000, received by 48% |
| Summer internship, per month (median) | $10,416 |
| Graduates who accepted an offer within three months | 87% |
Wharton graduates by industry
| Industry, as the school names it | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Services (total) | 38.2% | $175,000 |
| Consulting | 28.2% | $190,000 |
| Technology | 15.3% | $163,500 |
| Legal & Professional Services + Media, Entertainment & Sports + Real Estate | 5.2% | not published |
| Health Care | 3.8% | $155,850 |
| Retail | 2.1% | $165,000 |
| Manufacturing | 1.9% | $150,000 |
| Social Impact | 1.5% | $147,806 |
| Energy | 1.1% | $165,000 |
| of which investment banking (investment banking (Investment Banking/Brokerage)) | 14.2% | $175,000 |
| of which private equity (private equity (Private Equity/Buyouts/Other)) | 13.4% | $200,000 |
| of which venture capital (venture capital) | 2.8% | $170,000 |
| of which asset management (asset management (Investment Management)) | 5.3% | $175,000 |
Where Wharton graduates went to work
| Region | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| US (US Mid-Atlantic + US Midwest + US Northeast + US South + US Southwest + US West) | 94.2% | not published |
| Canada | 0.7% | not published |
| Europe | 0.9% | $119,728 |
| Asia | 2.3% | $180,000 |
| Middle East | 1% | $235,000 |
| Africa | 0.2% | not published |
| Latin America | 0.4% | not published |
| Oceania | 0.4% | not published |
Wharton graduates by job function
| Function | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Consulting/Strategy | 25.5% | $190,000 |
| Private Equity/Venture Capital - Investor | 11.6% | $182,500 |
| General/Project Mgmt/Mgmt Development | 9.6% | $155,000 |
| Investment Banking | 9.3% | $175,000 |
| Product Management | 6.7% | $170,000 |
| Investment Management/Portfolio Mgmt | 6.2% | $175,000 |
| Operations/Production Management/Supply Chain | 4% | $155,000 |
| Business Development | 3.8% | $170,000 |
| Management Information Systems/IT | 3.1% | $160,000 |
| Analytics/Data Science | 2.7% | $175,000 |
| Corporate Finance (Analysis/Treasury) | 2.7% | $159,500 |
| Legal Services | 2.6% | $235,000 |
| Product/Brand Marketing | 2.6% | $155,000 |
| Real Estate | 1.6% | $144,000 |
| Entrepreneurial Management | 1% | $155,000 |
| Restructuring | 0.7% | not published |
| Sales | 0.5% | not published |
The Wharton class
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| International students | 26% |
| Women | 44% |
| Average years of work experience | 5 |
| GMAT average | 735 |
| Nationalities | 68 |
| Class size | 888 |