What Are the Largest Online Colleges?

We ranked the 25 biggest schools in 2022 by online undergraduate enrollment and show how competitive their graduate salaries are.

WGU consistently ranks as one of the largest online colleges and is a relative dinosaur for online learning, having been founded in 1997. WGU's tenure in the online education space is likely a draw for students, as the school has a strong background in distance education. WGU maintains strong salary outcomes for bachelors degrees, which may be contributing to its near six-figure population of students. They offer competency-based education, which the school says measures mastery of a skill rather than time spent in a classroom, allowing students to move forward at the pace that suits their learning abilities.

Southern New Hampshire University, which maintains a campus in Manchester, New Hampshire, trails WGU by over 10,000 online undergraduates. But if we counted its on-campus undergrads, the school would be ahead of WGU by over 10,000. SNHU also has over 20,000 masters and doctoral students.

The University of Phoenix is one of the better-known online universities, in part because it was one of the first. The University of Phoenix was founded in 1976, and started offering online courses in 1989. Since then, the online student population has all but taken over the school. It offers above-average salary outcomes, but there are other universities on this list that may offer a better value proposition, depending on major and degree.

Also located in the Phoenix area is Strayer University, which is similar to the University of Phoenix, but does not offer associates’ degrees. It also offers almost exclusively online classes. However, it has an overall bachelors Salary Score that is 11 points higher.

Grand Canyon University is the first school so far that has a more equitable mix of on-campus and online students. But it still leans towards online students, which make up two-thirds of the school’s overall enrollment. GCU is also located in Phoenix but trails the previous schools by tens of thousands of online learners. However it just barely bests them when it comes to bachelors Salary Scores.

Only slightly smaller, but with significantly better career outcomes is the American Public University System. It is an all-online school that tends to cater towards learners interested in pursuing, or have already begun a career in, public or military service. Again, worth noting its Salary Scores for associates and bachelors degrees are exceptional.

This school may be smaller than some competitors, but it has much to offer. Its Salary Score for bachelors degrees is excellent, at 86. It’s another school that offers a mix of online and on-campus learning. But the on-campus part is located a half-hour outside of Washington, D.C, presumably making it a popular choice for distance learners in the Beltway.

Liberty University is perhaps the best-known religious university in America. It was founded as a private Evangelical institution in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1971. Now it offers online degrees and over a quarter of its undergraduate population is following that path. While Liberty's Salary Scores for both their associate and bachelor's degrees are above average, they are lower than many of the school's included on this list.

Arizona State University is one of the few schools in the top ten that has a higher share of on-campus students compared to online. Nearly two-thirds of its undergraduates are on-campus. But, as a testament to its sheer overall size, that still leaves over 33,000 students learning online. ASU offers a more competitive associates degree than its bachelors degree, which is hovering around average.

Though only founded in 2018, Purdue is another recognizable name as a major online school. It is almost exclusively online, with just a handful of students studying on-campus. However both of its degrees’ Salary Scores hover around average, putting them behind many of the other schools on this list.