I generally don’t use the COA figure because there isn’t some formula that schools use to be comparable. For instance, some schools will show “Books and Supplies” as $600/year others as $1400/year and others some other amount. Same for “Other” expenses under living arrangements. Some schools include generous amounts for transportation and miscellaneous expenses while others don’t. I’ve seen schools list something like $1500 and others $4k or $6k, even in similar cost-of-living areas. Since it’s a bit of the wild west out there in COA-land, I find that using tuition & fees plus room & board as listed in one source (which is provided to College Navigator by the colleges themselves) is an easier apples to apples comparison for costs.