Ignore the sticker price: How have college prices really changed?

Public discussions regarding rising college costs typically focus on the listed cost of attendance (COA), or “sticker price.” Sticker prices for four-year colleges and universities are in the tens of thousands of dollars per year and have risen substantially over the past several decades. High and rising college sticker prices are the subject of considerable attention.  

But what matters to students and their families is not the sticker price but rather the amount they actually have to pay. Because of the availability of financial aid, most pay less than the sticker price. The average amount students actually pay (the “net price”) has evolved quite differently over time from the sticker price: it has recently stabilized and even fallen in the last few years. But the average net price is only relevant for families with average finances. What about everyone else?