USA has the most affordable living expenses when compared to other countries. The estimated cost of living for a student who wants to live on campus would be $9,000 – $12,000 per year (Varied by Location & Experience in top ranked universities), which includes the expenses of room, board, food, travel and accommodation. Whereas, for students who want to live off-campus would be between $500 to $1000 per month. Urban Cities are typically expensive, and living is around $ 1000 per month. Most of the Graduate students from India prefer living off-campus because they can manage to cut down living expenses. Apart from these expenses, there would be some miscellaneous expenses which involve transportation, laptop, entertainment, etc.
It is important to understand the return on your investment and value for your money. The tuition fee for graduate/ post graduate programs varies with the universities, ranging from $15,000 to $30,000 per year. Some of the IVY league and private universities are expensive. However, most of the universities offer merit-based scholarships depending upon students UG percentage and GRE Scores.