Colleges with the Highest GI Bill BAH Rates
College Recon
Highest GI Bill MHA Rates Across the US
Which cities have the highest GI Bill BAH rates in the US?
As a part of your Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit you will receive a Monthly Housing Allowance. The Monthly Housing Allowance is equal to the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) for an E-5 with dependents.
Your BAH (or MHA) depends on a lot of different factors, including area of the country where the school is located. That’s why we’ve come up with a list of cities and the colleges and universities with the highest BAH in the US.
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Cities With The Highest BAH Rates
You may know that San Francisco has the highest BAH in the country (the BAH for San Francisco is $4,329 per month). But what other cities make the list?
Here is a partial list of the cities with the highest GI Bill BAH rates in the country. The figures show the BAH for an E-5 with dependents for these cities based on 2020/2021 school year rates.
- San Francisco, CA BAH = $4,398
- Santa Clara County, CA BAH = $3,828
- New York, NY BAH = $3,738
- Oakland, CA BAH = $3,465
- Long Island, NY BAH = $3,738
- Westchester County, NY BAH = $3,162
- Nantucket, MA BAH = $3,021
- Boston, MA BAH = $3,075
- Marin/Sonoma, CA BAH = $3,012
- Los Angeles, CA BAH = $2,997
- Honolulu, HI BAH = $2,814
- San Diego, CA BAH = $2,601
- Seattle, WA BAH = $2,574
- Camp Pendleton, CA BAH = $2,574
- Monterey, CA BAH = $2,541
- Juneau, AK BAH = $2,457
Do You Get Full BAH If You Attend Online Classes Exclusively?
You will receive BAH as a veteran attending online college, schools or distance learning programs as a full-time student.
The current MHA or Post 9/11 GI Bill BAH rate for online schools is $916.50 for the 2020 academic year (Aug 1, 2020 – Jul 31, 2021).
This is determined by taking half of the national BAH average. However, GI Bill payment rates may be increasing for some online courses, those that are considered hybrid. Learn more here.
RELATED: Online Colleges for the Military
Now that we know which cities have the highest BAH, here’s the list of the schools with the highest BAH.
The Colleges and Universities With the Highest BAH Rates
Below each military housing area is a partial list of schools in that area.
San Francisco, CA – BAH is $4,614
San Francisco State University
Golden Gate University-San Francisco
San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Please go here for more detailed housing info for San Francisco
Santa Clara County, CA – BAH is $4,289
New York, NY – BAH is $3,234
Metropolitan College of New York
Oakland, CA – BAH is $3,243
University of California – Berkeley
Long Island, NY – $3,465
Long Island University (LIU) Brentwood
Westchester County, NY $3,150
SUNY – Westchester Community College
Nantucket, MA – $3,024
Boston, MA – $3,024
University of Massachusetts – Boston
Marin/Sonoma, CA – $3,234
Los Angeles, CA – $3,114
University of Southern California (USC)
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)
California State University – Los Angeles
Honolulu, HI – $2,913
San Diego, CA – $2,850
University of California San Diego (UCSD)
Seattle, WA – $2,748
University of Washington – Seattle
Camp Pendleton, CA – BAH is $2,589
Monterey, CA – BAH is $2,508
California State University – Monterey Bay
Juneau, AK – $2,454
University of Alaska – Southeast
How is BAH Determined For The Post-9/11 GI Bill?
The calculation for BAH (or MHA) depends on a few factors including:
- zip code of the school (military housing area)
- your GI Bill eligibility
- if you are a full-time or part-time student
- equal to paygrade of E-5 with dependents
As BAH is partially determined where the school is located, it is important to know the city that the school is in.
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- Beyond the Post 911 GI Bill: Additional Money for Veterans
- VET TEC GI Bill Program Update
