If you're looking at game design schools in Alabama, the list is short: one ranked bachelor's program, at Samford University, in Birmingham, which sits 60 of 89 nationally. That doesn't make Alabama a dead end. Living costs sit roughly 11.2% lower than the national average, a public four-year college costs far less than a private one, and Florida and Georgia both have game design bachelor's programs within reach of a move.
Kevin ToFounder & EditorB.S. in Computer Science, Temple UniversityUpdated
1Game Design Bachelor's Ranked for 2027top score: Samford UniversityOur ranking
2Game-Related Programs in the State1 bachelor's, 1 associate, 0 graduateIPEDS
$32.2kMedian Net Pricebachelor's schools here, aided first-year studentsIPEDS
Samford University leads at 52.8.It is the only ranked program in Alabama, scored on completion, net price and size. It finishes 77% of its students and has a $32,176 net price.The Ranking ›
Software developers earn $122,540 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. About 17,450 people work as software developers in Alabama. In Alabama, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $51,860, which is 50% under the national median of $104,000. Living costs work in your favor in Alabama: BEA puts prices 11.2% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further.Pay ›
Living costs run below the U.S. average.Living costs work in your favor in Alabama: BEA puts prices 11.2% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further.Prices ›
Public in-state tuition averages $9,589.The Alabama Student Assistance Program is Alabama's main state grant. Public colleges cost more here than in most states, with aided in-state students paying $16,131 on average across 15, against $13,240 in the median state. Out of state, tuition averages $21,384.Costs ›
Alabama in brief
Key Facts About Studying Game Design in Alabama
Alabama has one ranked game design bachelor's program, and it's private. Samford University, in Birmingham, files its program as game design, scores 52.8, and graduates three students a year. Its net price is $32,176 and its completion rate is 77%, though both figures describe the whole school, not the game program.
Beyond that, the state is thin. Alabama has two game-related programs in total, spread across two colleges, plus one associate program and no graduate program. There's no public school with a ranked game design degree and no programming or simulation track, so every ranked option here is a design degree at a private campus.
Every score on this page is the same score the national rankings use, built on completion, net price and program size, from federal data. The methodology has the details.
Ranked in Alabama
The Game Design School in Alabama for 2027
Samford University leads, ranked 60 of 89 in the national game design ranking, with a completion rate of 77% and an average net price of $32,176. None of them is a public university. The best game design schools ranking shows how these compare with every school in the country.
The program: what stands out, the trade-off to weigh, and the figures behind the score. Completion, net price and earnings are school-wide; graduates a year is the program's own; the score is out of 100.
Birmingham, AL · Private nonprofit · Game design program
52.8
#60 of 89 nationally
Private
Samford University's Bachelor of Science in Game Design blends art, animation and programming. Coursework centers on character-focused 3D animation, modeling and texturing for game engines, digital sculpting and integrating assets into a live-rendered engine, all inside a simulated professional production environment.
Students finish with a culminating project such as an animated short or a video game. For Alabama residents the cost is the same as for anyone else: tuition is $39,000 because Samford is private. School-wide, aided first-years pay a net price of $32,176, against a $59,741 cost of attendance. About 3 students a year earn the degree in suburban Birmingham.
The major also asks students to bring a laptop that meets program requirements. Across the university, 77% of entering students complete within eight years, and 82% of applicants are admitted.
Programs reported to IPEDS, with graduates per year averaged 2022 to 2024. Associate and graduate programs aren't in the bachelor's ranking, so they carry no score here.
Game-related jobs in Alabama pay below the national median in most of the occupations that count game workers. Software developers, the BLS group covering game programmers, earn a median of $122,540, which sits $13,440 short of the U.S. figure. Computer programmers earn $93,800 ($6,590 shy of national).
$57,700–$79,460$58k–$79k$57,700 to $79,460, May 2024May 2024
110May 2025
$102,030
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$51,070
$39,030–$67,430$39k–$67k$39,030 to $67,430
1,760
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$93,800
$72,770–$114,000$73k–$114k$72,770 to $114,000
890
$100,390
Art directorsSenior art leads; rarely a first job
$77,220
$66,190–$98,240$66k–$98k$66,190 to $98,240
210
$114,850
Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025. The middle half earns between the 25th and 75th percentile. Figures tagged May 2024 are from that earlier BLS release, because BLS didn't publish one for Alabama in the current release.
Pay in Alabama's Largest Metro Areas
Metro area
Software developers
Web and digital interface designers
Special effects artists and animators
Price level
Birmingham
$125,410
$60,130
Not published
91.6
Huntsville
$128,080
Not published
$77,640
93.1
Mobile
$122,540
Not published
Not published
88.1
Median annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the state's largest metropolitan areas by total employment, all in Alabama. Price level is BEA's Regional Price Parity for 2024, where the U.S. average is 100. A cell marked with a dash means BLS (or BEA, for price level) didn't publish a figure for that metro area, usually because too few employers reported.
The gap is widest on the design and art side. Interface designers, whose BLS group takes in game designers and UI designers, earn $51,860 in the state, and graphic designers earn $51,070. BLS publishes no state median for special effects artists and animators, though it counts 110 of them working in Alabama, so animation work here is rare.
Where you live inside the state matters. Huntsville pays software developers $128,080 and Birmingham pays $125,410, both above the state median. Huntsville is also the only Alabama metro with a published animator figure, $77,640. Birmingham leads for computer programmers at $103,750, while Mobile pays graphic designers just $45,820.
Your paycheck goes further here than the median suggests. Alabama's cost of living is low: a price level of 88.8, about 11.2% under the U.S. figure. Graduates tend to start out testing games, assisting a designer, making interface art, or writing junior code. Art directors, at $77,220 statewide, are senior leads and rarely a first job.
About 17,450 people work as software developers in Alabama. In Alabama, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $51,860, which is 50% under the national median of $104,000. Living costs work in your favor in Alabama: BEA puts prices 11.2% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further.
The game design salary pages explain what each occupation covers and how game studios fit inside it.
Cost in Alabama
Paying for School in Alabama
Alabama has 15 public four-year colleges, and they're the cheap part of the picture. Average in-state tuition is $9,589, and aided residents are billed a net price near $16,131 on average. None of those public schools has a ranked game design bachelor's, but they're where you'd start if you pair a computer science degree with game projects.
Public colleges in AL
Figure
Public four-year colleges
15
Average in-state tuition
$9,589
Average out-of-state tuition
$21,384
Average net price, aided in-state students
$16,131
Means across Alabama's public four-year degree-granting colleges that offer undergraduate study: tuition from IPEDS for 2023-24 (14 colleges reporting), net price for 2022-23 (13 reporting). Net price is what first-year students with grant aid paid after grants.
Public colleges cost more here than in most states, with aided in-state students paying $16,131 on average across 15, against $13,240 in the median state.
Out-of-state students pay $21,384 in tuition at the same schools, an $11,795 premium. That premium is worth knowing about if you're weighing a move to another state's public school, because you'd face the same kind of markup there.
The Alabama Student Assistance Program, run by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, is a need-based grant. The state also belongs to the Academic Common Market, which can give you in-state tuition at an out-of-state public school when your major isn't offered at home. Georgia is the nearby member with public game programs.
State Aid in Alabama
Alabama's main need program for undergraduates is the Alabama Student Assistance Program, run by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education. In its own words: "ASAP is a need-based, state grant ranging from $300 to $5,000 per academic year." Fill out the FAFSA early, since many state programs award money until it runs out.
Tuition Exchanges
Alabama belongs to the Academic Common Market (ACM). In the program's own words, "Many students qualify for in-state tuition to study at out-of-state institutions.." It also says: "Not all colleges participate, not all programs are offered, and not every offered program is available to students in all states."
With one private option, the choice in Alabama starts with money. Samford University's net price is $32,176. Compare that with Wilmington University's online game design program at $14,267, or with an in-state public tuition of $9,589 for a related degree. Decide how much a game design title is worth to you before you sign for the higher number.
Samford University is a design-leaning program, so it fits you if you want to build levels, systems and narrative. If you lean toward code, look at computer science at a public Alabama school, since Huntsville and Birmingham both pay software developers well above the state's design pay.
Moving is the third route. Florida has four game design bachelor's programs and Georgia has two, and the Academic Common Market may cover the out-of-state premium for a Georgia public school. Ask the admissions office whether your specific major qualifies before you count on it.
Neighboring States
Neighboring stateFlorida4 ranked game bachelor's · 13 programs in allView the Florida guide ›
Neighboring stateGeorgia2 ranked game bachelor's · 6 programs in allView the Georgia guide ›
Neighboring stateTennessee1 ranked game bachelor's · 3 programs in allView the Tennessee guide ›
Neighboring stateMississippi2 related programs, no game bachelor'sView the Mississippi guide ›
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Is There a Ranked Game Design Bachelor's in Alabama?
Samford University is the top-ranked game design school in Alabama, 60 of 89 in our national ranking. It finishes 77% of its students and has an average net price of $32,176 for aided first-year students, both school-wide IPEDS figures, and the program graduates about 3 students a year. It's the only ranked game bachelor's in Alabama, out of 2 game-related programs in the state at every level. See its full profile in the state ranking.
How Well Does Coding Pay in Alabama?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $122,540 in Alabama, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). In Alabama, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $51,860, which is 50% under the national median of $104,000. Living costs work in your favor in Alabama: BEA puts prices 11.2% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further. About 17,450 people work as software developers in Alabama. See what game jobs pay in Alabama.
Which Alabama Metro Pays the Most for Game Programming?
Huntsville, AL pays software developers the most of Alabama's metros, a median of $128,080 (BLS May 2025), against $122,540 in Mobile, AL. Software developers is the occupation BLS counts game programmers in. The statewide median is $122,540. Higher metro pay usually comes with higher living costs, so compare both before you move for a job. See what game jobs pay in Alabama.
Is Alabama Cheap to Live in While Studying?
Alabama is cheaper than average to live in: overall prices run at 88.8 on BEA's Regional Price Parities, where the U.S. average is 100, and housing at 61.8. Housing pulls the cost down most, at 61.8 on BEA's housing index against 100 nationally. Public colleges cost more here than in most states, with aided in-state students paying $16,131 on average across 15, against $13,240 in the median state. See what game jobs pay in Alabama.
Can I Get In-State Tuition at a Georgia School?
Yes, through the Academic Common Market (ACM): Alabama is a member, and in the exchange's own words, "Many students qualify for in-state tuition to study at out-of-state institutions.." It also says: "Not all colleges participate, not all programs are offered, and not every offered program is available to students in all states." Each college decides which programs and how many seats take part, so check the specific game program before you count on a discount. For comparison, out-of-state tuition at Alabama's own public colleges averages $21,384 against $9,589 in state. See paying for school in Alabama.
2NCES, IPEDS Outcome Measures 2023 The completion factor: the share of all entering students, full-time, part-time and transfer, who earned an award within eight years. School-wide.
