Chicago's ranked list is all private, all in Illinois, and led by a school with an unusually large animation class. If you're weighing game design schools in Chicago, Columbia College Chicago is 4 miles from the center, graduates 161 students a year in animation and 47 in game design, and sits at 41 of 82 and 40 of 89. DePaul University and Elmhurst University fill out the rest. One public option, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, ranks higher but is 86 miles north.
Kevin ToFounder & EditorB.S. in Computer Science, Temple UniversityUpdated
8Game Programs Within 25 Milesgame design, programming, simulation and animation, all levelsIPEDS locations
11Game Programs Within 50 Milesat 9 collegesIPEDS locations
1Ranked Game Design Bachelor's Nearbyranked, within 50 miles; plus 3 animationOur ranking
Elmhurst University leads the metro at 64.2.4 ranked programs sit inside the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro. It beats the ranking's medians on both counts: 70% of its students finish, against 59%, and aided first-year students pay $22,760, against $26,150.The Ranking ›
Software developers earn $134,380 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. About 40,370 people work as software developers in the metro, close to the national share. In Chicago, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $87,920, which is 15% under the national median of $104,000.Pay ›
535 software and game publishers in the metro.Concentration 0.94, where 1.00 matches the U.S. Those publishers employ 29,114 people. The metro also has 2,552 custom programming studios and 425 film, video and animation production companies.Employers ›
In-state tuition starts at $7,128.6 public colleges nearby offer a game-related program. The highest in-state tuition nearby is $12,090, so where you enroll changes the bill a lot.Costs ›
A one-bedroom rents for $1,310 a month.The U.S. median one-bedroom is $1,301. Median rent in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro is $1,469 a month, close to the U.S. median of $1,487. The lowest on-campus room and board nearby is $11,858 a year at Elmhurst University.Living Costs ›
Ranked in Chicago
The Best Game Design Schools in Chicago, IL for 2027
The five ranked entries come from four schools. Columbia College Chicago appears twice, with scores of 61.2 for animation and 60.8 for game and interactive media design, a 56% school-wide completion rate and a net price of $29,790. DePaul University, also 4 miles from the center, scores 62.4 and graduates 65 a year, with a 67% completion rate and a $32,129 net price.
The suburban option is smaller. Elmhurst University is 14 miles out, scores 64.2, the best of the city's animation programs, and graduates 4 students a year. It finishes a higher share of students than Columbia (70%) and nets out lower ($22,760). The trade-off is a much smaller cohort.
Game design, game programming, simulation and animation programs are all scored the same way, on completion, net price and program size. On each card, completion is the school's 8-year award rate and net price its average for aided first-year students, both from IPEDS; grads a year is the program's own average, 2022 to 2024. Miles are straight-line from central Chicago.
Elmhurst, IL · Private nonprofit · Animation program · 14 miles
64.2
#36 of 82 in animation
14 miles from Chicago
Lowest net price in Chicago
Highest completion in Chicago
Animation
Private
Elmhurst sits in a suburban setting 14 miles from Chicago, and its Games and Animation major is a flexible digital media degree rather than a studio conservatory. The core mixes Intro to Art Software, Digital Storytelling, Introduction to Screenwriting and Coding for Creatives with a Digital Media Capstone and Portfolio Development. Students then pick at least three of six courses, including Computer 3D Modeling, Digital Animation Principles, Game Design Principles and Computer Game Design, plus two electives from across departments.
About 4 students a year graduate from the major. Elmhurst charges $42,495 in tuition, but aided first-years pay a net $22,760 university-wide, compared with a $64,049 sticker cost of attendance. The university has 3,997 students and admits 74% of applicants, and the SAT midpoint is 1125. Seventy percent of students complete within eight years, and graduates' earnings a decade after enrollment average $61,462 across every major.
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Animation program · 4 miles
62.5
#37 of 82 in animation
4 miles from Chicago
Animation
Private
DePaul's B.A. in Animation sits in the Jarvis College of Computing and Digital Media, 4 miles from the Chicago center, and places animation inside a broad liberal arts education. That makes it an unusually flexible degree, well suited to transfer students and double majors. Students work with Cintiq labs, 3D printing, stop motion stages, motion capture, motion control and sound studios. Graduates have been hired at DreamWorks Animation, LAIKA, Warner Bros. Animation, Blizzard Entertainment and Walt Disney Animation Studios, among other companies. The program is STEM-designated.
About 65 students a year graduate from the program. Published tuition is $44,601, and school-wide net price for aided first-years is $32,129 against a $69,027 cost of attendance. Across the university, 21,210 students are enrolled, 67% finish within eight years, and earnings ten years after enrollment average $68,751 across all majors.
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Animation program · 4 miles
61.3
#41 of 82 in animation
4 miles from Chicago
Largest program in Chicago
Animation
Private
The B.A. in Animation here lets students select a concentration in computer animation or traditional animation, which covers hand-drawn work and stop motion, with room for cinema visual effects and alternative forms. As part of the Unreal Academic Partner Program, students train in Unreal Engine along with MetaHuman Creator and Twinmotion. Alumni include an environment artist who works on Tomb Raider games at Crystal Dynamics.
The campus is 4 miles from the Chicago center, and with about 161 graduates a year this is a large animation program. School-wide net price for aided first-years is $29,790, published tuition is $32,272 and cost of attendance before aid is $59,907. Across the college, 5,570 students are enrolled, 89% of applicants are admitted and 56% complete within eight years. Earnings ten years after enrollment average $42,195 across all majors.
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Game design program · 4 miles
60.9
#40 of 89 nationally
4 miles from Chicago
Private
Columbia College Chicago sits 4 miles from the Loop's center of the city it is named for, so Chicago students can live at home or move into the city's campus. Its Game and Interactive Media BA has students building games from the first semester with industry-standard tools, then choosing a concentration in game design, game programming, software development or UX/UI.
The program is large, graduating about 47 students a year. Tuition is $32,272 for everyone, and the net price for aided first-year students is $29,790 school-wide. Across the college, 56% of entering students complete within eight years, and the admit rate is 89%.
The college enrolls 5,570 students, and cost of attendance before aid is $59,907. Ten-year earnings for graduates of all majors across the college are $42,195.
The rest of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro and the nearby areas are covered on the Illinois and Indiana pages.
StateIllinois1 ranked game bachelor's · 12 programs in allView the Illinois guide ›
Also in the metroIndiana1 ranked game bachelor's · 3 programs in allView the Indiana guide ›
More ways in
Other Game Programs in Chicago
7 more programs inside the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro offer a way into game work without a ranked bachelor's. These associate, graduate and certificate programs aren't in the bachelor's ranking, so they carry no score. Grads a year is the program's IPEDS average, 2022 to 2024, and admission is the college's fall 2024 rate (College Scorecard).
Chicago game pay lands near the national numbers, and a few roles run higher against Illinois. Software developers, who include game programmers, make $134,380 at the median, only $1,600 under the national mark and $2,270 over the state's. Computer programmers show the biggest state edge: $99,750 in the metro against $72,540 for Illinois, a gap of $27,210.
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$66,490
$52,030–$83,590$52k–$84k$52,030 to $83,590
6,590
$62,560
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$99,750
$66,710–$131,590$67k–$132k$66,710 to $131,590
650
$72,540
$100,390
Art directorsSenior art leads; rarely a first job
$104,570
$80,230–$134,860$80k–$135k$80,230 to $134,860
2,560
$103,550
$114,850
Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metropolitan area. The middle half earns between the 25th and 75th percentile.
The creative side runs lower nationally. Animators and effects artists earn $83,200, $18,830 under the national median, and the interface design line reads $87,920, $16,080 under. Art directors earn $104,570. Graphic design is the exception at $66,490, $3,530 above the national median. If you're choosing a path on pay alone, the programming-leaning degrees clearly win in Chicago.
Living costs are middling by big-city standards. Everyday prices score 103.6 and housing 112 on a scale that puts the country at 100.
About 40,370 people work as software developers in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro, close to the national share. In Chicago, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $87,920, which is 15% under the national median of $104,000. Prices in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro run 3.6% above the U.S. average on BEA's index, which takes a bite out of both pay and a student budget.
Chicago's strongest hiring base for game graduates isn't game studios. The contract and co-development shops (custom programming studios) run at 1.3 times the national concentration, counting 2,552 businesses and 38,883 employees. Design is stronger still: graphic design is at 1.6 times the national concentration.
Industry
What it covers
Businesses
Employees
Concentration
Software and game publishers
Software publishers (game publishers and studios are filed here)
535
29,114
0.94
Custom programming studios
Custom computer programming services (contract and co-development studios)
2,552
38,883
1.25
Film, video and animation production
Motion picture and video production (animation and VFX studios)
425
2,186
0.45
Graphic design firms
Graphic design services
719
2,394
1.59
Establishments and March payroll employees in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro, County Business Patterns 2023. Concentration is the industry's share of metro employees divided by its share nationally: 1.00 matches the U.S., 2.00 is twice as concentrated.
Census doesn't count game studios as their own industry. Most are counted under software publishers, and in this metro that category sits at 94% of the national concentration across 535 businesses. Film, video and animation production is thinner, at 45% of the national concentration. Studios exist here, though publishers sit a little under the national level.
By occupation, art directors are more common in the metro than nationally (location quotient 1.66) and so are graphic designers (1.15). Software developers are less common than nationally (0.82), and computer programmers even more so (0.24). Special effects artists and animators are at 0.94, slightly below the national mix. If you want pure programming for games, expect to look beyond the metro's programmer jobs, and be open to adjacent work in art direction or design.
How Common Game-Adjacent Jobs Are in Chicago
Occupation
Jobs per 1,000
Location quotient
Software developers
8.94
0.82
Web and digital interface designers
0.33
0.45
Special effects artists and animators
0.12
0.94
Graphic designers
1.46
1.15
Computer programmers
0.14
0.24
Art directors
0.57
1.66
BLS OEWS May 2025. Jobs per 1,000 of all metro jobs; a location quotient above 1.00 means the occupation is more common in the metro than nationally.
Talent pipeline
How Many Game Graduates Chicago Produces
Chicago schools turn out 349 game-related graduates a year within 50 miles, 281 of them at the bachelor's level, and every one of those colleges sits inside the metro. Set against 42,390 core jobs, that works out to 0.8%. Columbia College Chicago supplies the bulk: 161 from its animation and interactive technology program and 47 more from game and interactive media design. DePaul University adds 65 at the bachelor's level and 20 at the master's.
The largest of them by graduates a year are the programs in the ranking and the other programs above, led by Columbia College Chicago with about 161 a year.
Read that 0.8% with some care. Most of those core jobs are ordinary software and web roles, not game jobs, so the real competition for studio seats is smaller than the ratio implies. Graduates also leave: some go to studios in other cities, and some of those jobs get filled by people who never studied games. It tells you the local pipeline is dominated by one college, not that the job market is easy or hard.
Cost near Chicago
Paying for School in Chicago
Every public college within 50 miles is in Illinois, and all are two-year schools. The tuition figures are published sticker prices. City Colleges of Chicago-Harold Washington College lists $12,090 for in-state students and $15,150 for others. Moraine Valley Community College is $7,968 and $9,312, and Elgin Community College is $7,128 and $9,504. Net prices run far lower than those numbers: $3,555 at Harold Washington and $1,704 at Moraine Valley.
The public colleges within 50 miles that offer a game-related program, all in Illinois. Tuition is the published undergraduate rate for 2023-24 (IPEDS IC), before aid; net price is the school-wide average for aided first-year students, 2022-23 (IPEDS SFA).
Illinois students may qualify for the Monetary Award Program, administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Check which of the private schools above accept it. There isn't an undergraduate regional tuition exchange here. Columbia College Chicago's sticker price is $32,272.
State Aid in Illinois
Illinois's main need program for undergraduates is the Monetary Award Program, run by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. In its own words: "The Monetary Award Program (MAP) provides grant assistance to eligible students demonstrating financial need." The Illinois page covers state aid and public college costs in more detail.
Tuition Exchanges
No regional undergraduate tuition exchange covers Illinois, so public schools in other states charge their full nonresident rate.
State line
Studying Across the State Line From Chicago
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro spans Illinois and Indiana, so a public college a short drive away can charge you nonresident tuition.
State
In-state tuition
Nonresident tuition
Gap
Illinois
$10,150
$15,646
$5,496
Indiana
$8,373
$22,693
$14,320
Average published undergraduate tuition at each state's public four-year colleges, 2023-24 (IPEDS IC).
No single regional tuition exchange covers all of these states, so expect the nonresident rate across the line unless a college offers its own discount.
Living costs
Living in Chicago as a Student
Rent here is close to the national norm. Chicago's metro median is $1,469, with the U.S. at $1,487, only $18 under the U.S. figure. A one-bedroom runs $1,310, so twelve months comes to $15,720, and a two-bedroom at $1,485 comes to $743 per person if you split it. Housing prices overall sit at a level of 112 against a national 100, so the city isn't cheap in the way rent alone suggests.
Monthly rent
Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro
U.S.
All rentals, median
$1,469
$1,487
One bedroom, median
$1,310
$1,301
Two bedrooms, median
$1,485
$1,490
Median gross rent (rent plus utilities the tenant pays), American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, tables B25064 and B25031.
On campus, Elmhurst University is the cheapest of the three colleges reporting room and board, at $11,858. Columbia College Chicago asks $16,838, and DePaul University is the priciest at $18,468.
Median rent in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro is $1,469 a month, close to the U.S. median of $1,487.
Each college's own yearly estimates for a full-time undergraduate, 2023-24 (IPEDS IC). Off-campus is for a student not living with family.
The community colleges, including Harold Washington College, College of DuPage and Joliet Junior College, have no campus housing, so you'd rent. Their off-campus living estimates run from $7,650 at Elgin Community College to $17,200 at Moraine Valley Community College. Starting at one of them is the lower-cost entry point on these estimates.
Choosing
How to Choose a Game Design Program in Chicago
Only one of the five ranked programs is a game design degree, and that program belongs to Columbia College Chicago, while the other four are animation, with nothing in programming or simulation. A student who wants to write gameplay code needs a computer science route rather than a ranked game program, and a student who wants to design or draw has Columbia and DePaul as the realistic choices.
Private is the only bachelor's route in the data, so the choice is among private schools. Elmhurst University nets lowest at $22,760, Columbia College Chicago $29,790 and DePaul University $32,129. The community colleges are the public option.
DePaul University is 4 miles from the center, as is Columbia College Chicago, straight-line, so a city address works for either. Elmhurst at 14 miles and Naperville at 24 suit a commute from the suburbs. Living in the city keeps you near local studios, which is useful when you look for internships.
Admission is rarely the hard part here: 6 of the 9 colleges on this page admit anyone with a high school diploma, and among the rest fall 2024 admission ran from 74% at Elmhurst University to 89% at Columbia College Chicago. None requires SAT or ACT scores.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Where Can I Find the Best Game Design Schools Near Chicago?
Elmhurst University has the top-ranked program in Chicago, an animation bachelor's scoring 64.2. It beats the ranking's medians on both counts: 70% of its students finish, against 59%, and aided first-year students pay $22,760, against $26,150. It is small, about 4 graduates a year, which can mean closer faculty contact but fewer electives each term. DePaul University is next at 62.5, one of 4 ranked programs in the metro. See the ranked programs.
What Do Game Industry Jobs Pay in the Chicago Area?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $134,380 in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). In the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro, web and digital interface designers, where game designers are counted, earn $87,920, which is 15% under the national median of $104,000. Prices in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro run 3.6% above the U.S. average on BEA's index, which takes a bite out of both pay and a student budget. See what game jobs pay in Chicago.
Are There Cheap Ways to Start a Game Design Degree in Illinois?
In-state tuition at public colleges near Chicago starts at $7,128 a year, at Elgin Community College, and runs up to $12,090 at City Colleges of Chicago-Harold Washington College. Nonresidents pay $9,504 at Elgin Community College. 6 public colleges within 50 miles offer a game-related program, and private colleges charge every student the same tuition. After grants, Moraine Valley Community College has the lowest average net price nearby, $1,704, under the $13,240 public average in the median state. See paying for school in Chicago.
How Far Are Chicago's Game Design Schools From Downtown?
4 ranked programs sit inside the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro, and 7 associate, graduate or certificate programs add other ways in. Elmhurst University scores highest, at 64.2. The top program is 14 miles from central Chicago, close enough to commute if housing nearby is out of reach. 8 game-related programs sit within 25 miles of central Chicago and 11 within 50, counting every level. The rest of the metro and the nearby areas are on the Illinois and Indiana pages. See the ranked programs.
How Much Is Rent in Chicago for a Student?
Median rent in the Chicago, Naperville and Elgin metro was $1,469 a month in 2024, $18 below the U.S. median of $1,487 (Census ACS). A one-bedroom runs $1,310. On-campus room and board at nearby colleges starts at $11,858 a year at Elmhurst University, which bundles meals and avoids a lease. Housing is the expensive part: BEA puts it at 112 against a U.S. average of 100. See living in Chicago as a student.
How Hard Is It to Get Into a Game Design School Near Chicago?
Admission is rarely the hard part here: 6 of the 9 colleges on this page admit anyone with a high school diploma, and among the rest fall 2024 admission ran from 74% at Elmhurst University to 89% at Columbia College Chicago. None requires SAT or ACT scores. Starting at an open-admission college and transferring after two years is the most reliable way in. The nearest open-admission option is City Colleges of Chicago-Harold Washington College, 5 miles from central Chicago. The median published rate among them is 76%. Each program card shows its college's admission rate where one is reported. See how to choose a program.
Keep exploring
Related Pages
CityMilwaukee, WI86 mi from Chicago · 15 programs within 100 miles · 1 ranked game bachelor'sView the Milwaukee guide ›
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.
