How Much Does a High School Diploma Cost?

Updated September 2026 · All prices checked against the sources listed at the end on September 13, 2026

There is no single price, because “a high school diploma” means four different things depending on who is asking. A teenager in a public school pays nothing for the credential. An adult finishing school later pays anywhere from nothing to about $1,600. Someone taking the GED pays roughly $120 to $164 in test fees. Someone who already graduated and just wants the paper again pays their old district about $10 to $35.

What a high school diploma costs, by route

Is a high school diploma free?

For a student enrolled in a public high school, yes. Public education is tax-funded and there is no separate fee for the diploma itself. What costs money is everything around it: activity fees, sports, a yearbook, a cap and gown, and in some districts a graduation fee covering the ceremony and the diploma cover.

Private school bundles the diploma into tuition. The National Center for Education Statistics puts average tuition at private secondary schools at $15,420 a year in 2020–21, the most recent year published. That is an average across a wide spread, with parochial schools well below it and independent day schools well above.

Finishing high school as an adult

This is where the real cost question sits, and where the answers vary most. There are three broad routes, and one of them is often free.

Public adult programs: $0 to about $100 a term

School districts and community colleges run high school completion programs priced like public education rather than like a product. Spokane Community College in Washington charges $25 per quarter, grants credit for coursework already finished and for military and life experience, and notes that many students qualify for financial help.

A second free route runs through public libraries. Career Online High School is offered at no cost to eligible adults through participating library systems, and the California State Library reports more than 5,600 graduates since 2015 and an average completion time of 13 months. Students earn an accredited diploma plus a career certificate, and the library funds the scholarship.

Neither route advertises the way private programs do, which is why people assume the only option is one they have to buy. The district’s adult education office and the local library are the cheapest first calls.

Accredited online high schools: about $990 to $1,639

Private online schools charge tuition, usually with a monthly plan. Prices checked on September 13, 2026:

Two details move the final number more than the headline price. Transfer credits: Penn Foster reduces tuition by $20 for each high school course transferred in, up to 15 credits, and Excel awards credit for GED subjects already passed. Speed: on a monthly plan, finishing in six months instead of ten is a straightforward saving.

Full-time online high school for teenagers is priced differently again. Excel’s 2026–27 plans run from $1,950 to $9,750 a year depending on credits and curriculum, and are free in states that fund a voucher or education savings account.

What to check before paying

• The school is recognized by the state’s department of education and not only by an accreditor nobody has heard of.
• The accreditor is real, since Cognia, DEAC and the regional accreditors are the names on legitimate programs.
• The total cost is stated, including any fee for the final transcript or for graduation.
• The program requires actual coursework. A site offering a diploma for a flat fee and a “life experience assessment”, with no classes, is selling a piece of paper, not an education.

For the wider decision about which route fits, see how to get a high school diploma.

GED and HiSET: what the tests cost

An equivalency credential is not a high school diploma, but most employers, colleges and the military treat it as one. It is usually the cheapest route for an adult ready to test.

GED

GED Testing Service prices the exam per subject, and each state sets its own fee, roughly $30 to $40 a subject nationally, or about $120 to $160 for all four if every subject is passed first time. California charges $41 per subject at a test center or online, so $164 for the full battery, with a $15 test-center fee for retakes.

Around that sit optional costs, such as GED Ready practice tests at $6 to $7 per subject and prep classes ranging from free at an adult education center to several hundred dollars privately. GED Testing Service’s own estimate is that most people spend $120 to $200 in total. Some states subsidise the exam, and some employers cover it through GEDWorks.

More on the process itself is in how to get a GED certificate and how to study for the GED.

HiSET

Several states use the HiSET instead of, or alongside, the GED. It has five subtests instead of four, and the price is assembled from three parts: the ETS test fee, a state administration fee and a test-center or remote-proctor fee. Colorado’s 2026 pricing shows how that stacks up:

Retakes in Colorado are usually just the center or proctor fee, with the full test fee charged again on the first and fourth attempts. Other states set different state fees and a few waive the first attempt entirely, so the state page is the only reliable source.

Which credential a state offers, and how the two compare, is covered in high school equivalency diploma or GED.

What a replacement diploma costs from your school

For someone who already graduated, the cost is small and the wait is not. Fees are set district by district:

• Tennessee handles duplicate diplomas for public high schools at the state level: $10, plus a 2.29% convenience fee for online orders, non-refundable. The state does not keep transcripts, which come from the school or district.
• Houston ISD notes that each campus sets its own policy, but most charge $30 to $35 and take 6 to 8 weeks.
• Dallas ISD quotes 4 to 6 weeks for a diploma replacement.

Three things are worth knowing before paying:

1. The reissued diploma carries today’s officials, not the ones who signed the original. Most districts reprint on the current template, with current signatures and the current seal.
2. A transcript is the document that proves anything. Houston ISD says so directly. Diplomas are commemorative items, and an official transcript is what an employer or college should receive. Transcripts are often free, and Houston ISD provides them at no charge for five years after graduation.
3. Some districts do not reissue at all. Where that is the case, a transcript or a letter of graduation is the substitute.

Step-by-step versions of this process, including what to do when the school has closed, are in replacing a lost diploma, obtaining a high school diploma after graduation and how to find your high school diploma online.

What a replica diploma costs, and what it is not

The smaller costs people forget

• Graduation fees. Cap, gown, ceremony and diploma cover, usually bundled into one school charge.
• Rush and shipping fees. Expedited processing costs extra, and on a 6-to-8-week queue it is sometimes the only way to hit a deadline.
• Books and materials. Included in Penn Foster’s and The American Academy’s stated prices, and not automatically included elsewhere.
• Retakes. A failed GED subject costs $0 to $40 to sit again, depending on the state.
• Transcript copies. Free to about $15 each, and usually needed more than once.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a new high school diploma cost?

If “new” means a replacement of one already earned, $10 to $35 from the school or district that issued it, with a wait of four to eight weeks. If it means earning one now as an adult, anywhere from $0 through a public adult program or a library scholarship to about $1,639 at a private online school.

Can you pay for a high school diploma?

Tuition can be paid to an accredited school that then requires coursework, and a replacement copy can be bought from the district that issued the original. The credential itself cannot be bought. Sites offering a diploma for a flat fee with no classes are diploma mills, and what they sell carries no weight with employers, colleges or the military.

Is the GED cheaper than finishing a diploma?

Usually it is. The GED runs $120 to $164 in test fees against roughly $990 to $1,639 at a private online school. But a public adult program or a library-funded Career Online High School place can cost less than the GED and ends in a diploma instead of an equivalency, so cost alone is a poor way to choose.

How much is a high school transcript?

Often nothing. Many districts issue official transcripts free, at least for recent graduates, and Houston ISD does so for five years after graduation. Where there is a charge it is typically a few dollars up to about $15, sometimes through a third-party service such as Parchment or ScribOrder.

Does a replacement diploma look like the original?

Not exactly. Most districts reprint on the current template, with the signatures of whoever holds the offices today and the current seal, rather than recreating the version issued in the graduation year.

Cost in summary

Nobody pays for the diploma. They pay for the schooling, the testing or the paperwork. Finishing as an adult costs between nothing and about $1,600, depending mostly on whether a public or library-funded option exists locally. Testing out costs $120 to $243. Replacing a lost copy costs $10 to $35 and a month or two of waiting. Check in that order, from the district adult education office to the local library, the state equivalency page and then private tuition.

For what the next credential up is worth, see the cost of a college diploma, average salary by education level and how long a degree takes.

Sources

1. GED Testing Service, How Much Does Getting a GED Cost? Fees, Courses & Materials: $30–$40 per subject, $120–$160 total, retakes $0–$40, GED Ready $6–$7 per subject. Accessed September 13, 2026.
2. GED Testing Service, California GED policy: $41 per subject at a test center and online, and a $15 test-center retake fee. Accessed September 13, 2026.
3. GED Testing Service, Price & State Rules: pricing and testing rules are set by area. Accessed September 13, 2026.
4. HiSET / ETS, Colorado HiSET fees: $32.50 per computer-delivered subtest ($18 test + $10 center + $7.50 state), $162.50 for five, paper $35.50, at home $48.50. Accessed September 13, 2026.
5. HiSET / ETS, HiSET requirements by state. Accessed September 13, 2026.
6. Spokane Community College, Get Your High School Diploma: $25 per quarter. Accessed September 13, 2026.
7. California State Library, Career Online High School: no cost through participating public libraries, 5,600+ graduates since 2015, 13-month average completion. Accessed September 13, 2026.
8. Penn Foster High School, Tuition and Payment Options: $1,639 standard, $1,089 paid in full (promotion ending September 15, 2026), $1,399 on the $55-a-month auto-pay plan, and a $20 tuition reduction per transferred course, maximum 15. Accessed September 13, 2026.
9. Excel High School, Tuition & Program Cost: adult traditional diploma $99 a month to a maximum of 10 months, competency-based $495 for five months plus $70 a month, up to $985, and 2026–27 teen plans $1,950–$9,750 a year. Accessed September 13, 2026.
10. The American Academy, Tuition: $1,099 diploma program with no material fees, and $238 per semester course. Accessed September 13, 2026.
11. Tennessee Department of Education, Duplicate Diploma and Education Verification: $10 plus a 2.29% online convenience fee, and the state does not maintain transcripts. Accessed September 13, 2026.
12. Houston Independent School District, Student Record FAQs: most campuses charge $30–$35 for a diploma copy and take 6–8 weeks, transcripts free for five years after graduation, diplomas described as commemorative items. Accessed September 13, 2026.
13. Dallas Independent School District, Student Records Services: diploma replacements take 4–6 weeks. Accessed September 13, 2026.
14. National Center for Education Statistics, Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 205.50: average private secondary school tuition $15,420 in 2020–21 (National Teacher and Principal Survey). Accessed September 13, 2026.