Where To Apply

The cheapest universities in Adelaide for international students

Adelaide is among the cheapest capital cities to live in and is a designated regional area for skilled migration, which adds points and widens state-nomination options. The university landscape changed in 2026 when two long-established institutions merged into Adelaide University, so catalogues and fee schedules are still settling. Confirm figures with the university directly.

Adelaide has universities across the full price range, and where you study inside the city matters less for cost than which institution and course you pick. This list ranks the Adelaide universities by estimated first-year budget, cheapest first.

The budget figure is the cheapest international tuition on record for each university plus our Adelaide living-cost estimate plus a rough setup allowance. Tuition varies a lot by course, so treat the order as a guide and check your specific program.

The AUKUS submarine program is a real, if narrow, graduate opportunity

South Australia's naval shipbuilding expansion under the AUKUS submarine program is expected to employ up to 5,000 people in the industry by 2030, with several thousand of those direct shipyard roles, plus dedicated graduate, apprentice, and traineeship places being created specifically to build the workforce. For engineering, manufacturing, and some computing graduates, it's a genuine, growing local employer base that didn't exist at this scale a few years ago, and it's a reasonable reason to weight an Adelaide engineering degree higher than the tuition figure alone suggests.

The caveat matters: many direct defence-industry roles require Australian citizenship or a security clearance that citizenship alone can satisfy, which most international graduates won't hold straight out of a degree. Check the citizenship and clearance requirements for a specific role before treating this as your PR-to-career plan, rather than assuming a defence-adjacent Adelaide degree opens defence-industry doors on its own.

  1. Adelaide University

    A$49,000 first-year budgetAdelaide, SA. Tuition from A$19,000 a year.

  2. Australian Institute of Business

    A$54,000 first-year budgetAdelaide, SA. Tuition from A$24,000 a year.

  3. Kaplan Business School

    A$58,000 first-year budgetMulti-campus (Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane). Tuition from A$26,000 a year.

  4. Flinders University

    A$66,000 first-year budgetAdelaide, SA. Tuition from A$36,000 a year.

The 2026 Adelaide University merger and what it means for fees

The University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia merged into Adelaide University at the start of 2026, and current international applicants should expect some fee schedules, program names, and application pages to still be settling as the merged institution consolidates its catalogue. Where a program you're comparing existed at both legacy universities, confirm you're looking at the current merged-institution fee, not a legacy page that hasn't been updated yet.

Adelaide's cost advantage is real and holds regardless of the merger: South Australia is consistently one of the cheaper state capitals to rent in, and the whole of South Australia is classified as a regional area for skilled migration, adding points and opening state-nomination pathways on top of the raw living-cost saving.

How this list was built

We took every published university with a campus in Adelaide, used its lowest international tuition (university-wide or its cheapest program), added the Adelaide living-cost estimate and about AUD 4,000 in setup costs, and sorted low to high.

Frequently asked questions

Does the Adelaide University merger affect my existing offer or enrolment?

If you already hold an offer from the University of Adelaide or the University of South Australia, contact the merged institution directly to confirm how your specific program, fees, and start date are being carried across, since the transition timeline can vary by faculty. Don't assume a legacy offer letter still reflects the current fee.

Is Adelaide a safe, welcoming city for international students?

Adelaide is generally regarded as one of the more liveable and lower-stress Australian capitals to study in, with a smaller international-student population than Sydney or Melbourne but an established support ecosystem across its universities. That smaller scale also means a less crowded rental and part-time job market than the bigger cities.

Are the AUKUS submarine program jobs open to international graduates?

Some are, but many direct defence-industry and shipyard roles require Australian citizenship or a security clearance that only citizens or permanent residents can readily obtain. Treat it as a strong reason to study engineering or a related field in Adelaide rather than a guaranteed job outcome for an international graduate specifically, and check the citizenship requirement for any role before counting on it.

How does Adelaide's regional-migration status compare to Perth's?

Both give access to the same broad category of regional points and 491/190 nomination pathways, since the whole of South Australia (like the whole of Western Australia) is classified as regional. The specific state-nomination criteria and occupation priorities differ between South Australia and Western Australia, so check each state's current list rather than assuming they're identical.

How far is Adelaide from Sydney and Melbourne?

About a two-hour flight to Melbourne and a bit over two hours to Sydney, closer than Perth's isolation but still enough that regular travel adds up. Both routes have frequent direct flights, which makes weekend visits or interstate interviews reasonably practical.

Other decision guides

We use essential cookies to run this site, and analytics cookies only if you accept them. Privacy policy