Employers test skills
Coding interviews, take-home projects and GitHub history decide most software hiring. A $199 degree plus real projects beats a $60,000 degree with an empty portfolio in the interviews that matter.
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The cheapest online computer science degrees
Computer science is the field where a cheap degree punishes you least — employers test what you can build. Here are the real budget options, from $199 to the cheapest accredited alternative, with the tradeoffs stated plainly.
$199 BSCS total$299 MCS total12 + 7 technical courses
The market
CS degrees by total price
Tuition figures are approximate public prices — verify current tuition on each provider's site. ACLAS figures are one-time USD.
| Program | Total tuition (approx.) | Accreditation model | Format | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACLAS BSCS | $199 one-time | Institutional: EAHEA, QAHE, AQS; CPD Certification Service | 100% online, self-paced; 12 courses in 4 technical stages | The lowest price for a full CS curriculum; ideal for self-taught builders who need the structured credential. |
| ACLAS MCS | $299 one-time | Institutional: EAHEA, QAHE, AQS; CPD Certification Service | 100% online, self-paced; 7 advanced courses; bachelor's required | Specialist master's depth — ML, security, cloud, compilers — for graduates already in the field. |
| University of the People BSCS | ≈ $7,260 total | WSCUC (U.S. regional accreditation) | Online, term-based | The cheapest U.S.-accredited CS degree; the accreditation costs roughly 24× the ACLAS price. |
| Traditional online BSCS | $15,000+/year typical | Regional accreditation | Online, semester-based | Full recognition for immigration, licensing and graduate school — at full traditional cost. |
Source note: non-ACLAS figures are approximate, drawn from providers' public pages in 2026. Prices change; confirm on the provider's site before deciding.
Why CS is different
In software, the portfolio is the credential
No other field discounts expensive degrees this aggressively. Understand why, and the cheap option stops looking risky.
The curriculum is checkable
Unlike vague business programs, a CS curriculum can be audited course by course. The BSCS lists all twelve — if automata, compilers and distributed systems are there, the program is serious regardless of price.
Where price still matters
Immigration points systems, licensed professions and PhD admissions still filter by accreditation. If any of those is your goal, the accredited tier is not optional — budget for it.
The honest summary For getting hired as a developer, the $199 BSCS is the highest-value credential on this page. For getting a visa or into graduate school, it is not the right credential at any price. Match the degree to the gate you need to pass.
Questions
Cheap CS degree questions
What builders ask before enrolling.
What is the cheapest online computer science degree?
The ACLAS Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS) at USD 199 one-time is among the lowest-priced online CS degrees published anywhere: twelve courses across four technical stages, 120 credits, fully self-paced. The tradeoff, as always at this price, is traditional accreditation — verify the recognition fit for your goals.
What is the cheapest accredited online CS degree?
The University of the People's BSCS, regionally accredited in the U.S. by WSCUC, totals around $7,260 — roughly thirty-six times the ACLAS price. That multiple is the market price of U.S. regional accreditation at the budget end of computer science.
Does a cheap CS degree hurt my job prospects?
In software, less than in most fields: hiring is heavily skills-based, with coding assessments and portfolios often mattering more than the credential's pedigree. A $199 degree plus demonstrable projects can outperform an expensive degree with no portfolio. Where accreditation matters is immigration, licensing and further academic study.
BSCS or MCS — which one do I need?
The BSCS ($199) is the undergraduate foundation: twelve courses from programming fundamentals through distributed systems and machine learning. The MCS ($299) is the specialist master's: seven advanced courses requiring a bachelor's degree for entry. New to the field: BSCS. Already degreed and employed in tech: MCS.
Are the courses actually technical at this price?
The curriculum is explicit: data structures and algorithms, automata, compilers, operating systems (CS 313), networks, databases, software engineering, cybersecurity, distributed systems and applied machine learning. The BSCS page lists all twelve courses with their stages.
Keep comparing
Twelve courses. $199. No debt.
The BSCS runs from programming fundamentals to applied machine learning, self-paced and fully online. Check the four-stage curriculum, then apply free — no entrance exam.