Chicago Booth and Wharton offer world-class MBA programs. The top-ranking programs - one known as a Finance school and the other as a Consulting powerhouse are tough to compare with just the post-MBA salary or cost. We have taken up the challenge of sizing up the two MBA programs on 10 factors - Location, Ranking, Cost, Funding (Scholarships and Fellowships), Class Profile, Curriculum, Experiential Learning, International Learning Opportunities, Post-MBA Opportunities, and Alumni Network.
1. Location
Booth is based in Chicago, the third-largest city in the US, with a $689 billion economy boosted primarily by manufacturing, transport, healthcare, finance, and pharmaceutical industries.
Chicago is home to 10 Fortune 500 companies (Boeing, Exelon, McDonald’s), the Federal Reserve Bank, and five major financial exchanges - Chicago Stock Exchange (CHX), the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the Chicago Board of Trade, and the NYSE Arca. 378 start-ups have sprung in the past 5-years, with 34% being women-owned, making it significantly ahead of other top-tier cities in terms of women’s representation. The presence of 6,151 technology companies is further boosting Chicago’s economic growth.
Wharton’s location in Philadelphia makes it a talent conduit for local industries, especially the 13 Fortune 500 firms located in its vicinity - GlaxoSmithKline, GE Healthcare, Siemens Medical Solutions, and Comcast. 30% of Philadelphia’s tech workforce are women, ranking third in the US for its representation of women in STEM. The city is known for healthcare and biotechnology, and financial services, with the Philadelphia Stock Exchange in proximity.
Wharton also has a campus in San Francisco, Fontainebleau, France, and Singapore through a partnership with INSEAD.
Fortune 500 Companies: Philadelphia > Chicago
Healthcare Industry: Philadelphia > Chicago
Derivative Market: Chicago > Philadelphia
Finance: Chicago > Philadelphia
Startups (Technology): Chicago > Philadelphia
Women Representation (Technology): Chicago ~ Philadelphia
2. Rankings
Chicago Booth’s rankings range from 1 (US News) to 7 (FT Rankings), whereas Wharton’s rankings range from 1 (FT Rankings) to 9 (Bloomberg). As per F1GMAT’s own rankings based on the total cost and total salary of MBA programs, Chicago Booth ranks #1 with an annual salary of $190,000 (a 6% increase from the previous year). Wharton was 3rd with an annual salary of $185,000 (a 3% increase from the previous year).
Booth and Wharton tie with an average rank of 4, but taking into consideration F1GMAT’s ranking, Booth’s average rank rises to 3, but Wharton’s average rank falls to 4. It is to be noted that The Economist’s 2021 rankings did not feature either schools or any of the other M7 schools.
| Ranking | Chicago Booth | Wharton |
|---|---|---|
| FT MBA 2022 | 7 | 1 |
| US News Best Business Schools 2023 | 1 | 2 |
| Bloomberg Best B-Schools 2021-22 | 4 | 9 |
| The Economist | - | - |
| Average Rank | 4 | 4 |
Ranking: Booth > Wharton
3. Cost
Booth Full-time MBA is a 21 Month Program compared to the 20-Month Wharton Full-time MBA (inclusive of a 3.5-month internship that is recommended to all students).
Chicago Booth’s annual tuition and fees are lower at $76,215 compared to Wharton’s $83,230. The full-time program tuition costs nearly $150,000 at Chicago Booth and $167,000 at Wharton.
Accommodation costs at Chicago Booth ($22,185) is a marginal $1,000 higher than Wharton’s ($21,720).
Health insurance costs at Chicago Booth ($6,852) are $3,000 higher than at Wharton’s ($3,874).
Miscellaneous costs at Wharton are higher at $6,640 than Booth’s $2,675. The total recommended budget for Chicago Booth is $230,000, whereas, for Wharton, it is $240,000.
Tuition Fee: Wharton > Chicago Booth
Room and Boarding: Wharton ~ Chicago Booth
Healthcare/Insurance: Chicago Booth > Wharton
Transportation: Chicago Booth > Wharton
Total Cost: Wharton > Chicago Booth
| Costs | Chicago Booth MBA | Wharton MBA |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition fee | $74,919 | $83,230 |
| Additional Fees | $1,296 | - |
| Room and Boarding | $22,185 | $21,720 |
| Healthcare/ Insurance | $6,852 | $3,874 |
| Miscellaneous Expenses | $3,359 | $6,640 |
| Loan Fees | $2,748 | $2,748 |
| New Laptop | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Transportation | $1,944 | $945 |
4. Class Profile
Wharton received more applications from prospective MBA students for the 2023 graduating class, leading by 2,300 as compared to Chicago Booth’s 5,037 applications. Wharton’s admissions committee was slightly more selective, with an enrollment rate of 12.2% compared to Booth’s 12.3%, but Wharton’s class size was larger by a third compared to Booth’s class size. Wharton’s diversity was overall greater than Booth’s, with women’s representation peaking at the highest in the country, at 52%, and LGBTQ+ representation being higher by 2%.
Chicago Booth offered its students a greater international mix, with international students representing 39% of the class as opposed to Wharton’s 36%.
However, 83 countries were represented within Wharton’s class of 2023 as compared to Booth’s 56 countries, offering further international spread.
The average GMAT score at Wharton was much more competitive at 740, a lead by 8 points compared to Booth’s 732. Wharton’s average GPA was 3.6 compared to Booth’s 3.54. Both programs required an average work experience of 5 years.
Acceptance Rate: Chicago Booth ~ Wharton
International %: Chicago Booth > Wharton
Women %: Wharton > Chicago Booth
Class Size: Wharton > Chicago Booth
Application Volume: Wharton > Chicago Booth
Average GMAT: Wharton > Chicago Booth
Work Experience: Chicago Booth ~ Wharton
| Class Profile | Chicago Booth MBA Class Profile 2023 | Wharton MBA Class Profile 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Application Volume | 5037 | 7338 |
| Class Size | 620 | 897 |
| Acceptance Rate | 12.3% | 12.22% |
| Women Representation | 42% | 52% |
| International Student Representation | 39% | 36% |
| LGBTQ+ Representation | 5% | 7% |
| GMAT Average | 732 | 740 |
| GRE Average (Verbal/Quant) | 163/162 | 162/162 |
| GPA | 3.54 | 3.6 |
| Pre-MBA Work Experience | 5 years | 5 years |
Pre-MBA Undergraduate Degrees: The pre-MBA undergraduate degrees for both schools are a replica of each other. Both, Wharton and Booth, recruited 27% of students with a business major, followed by 33% of STEM (Wharton), and in the case of Booth, the combination of Engineering and Physical Sciences also added to 33%. The remaining 40% was represented by Humanities majors (Wharton) and, in the case of Booth, by Economics, Liberal Arts, and other majors.
Pre-MBA (Business Major): Booth ~ Wharton
Pre-MBA (STEM): Booth ~ Wharton
Pre-MBA (Humanities): Wharton > Booth
Recommended Downloads
Read the Second Part of the Series - Booth vs Wharton MBA (Curriculum, Experiential Learning and International Learning Opportunities)
Read the Third Part of the Series - Booth vs Wharton MBA: Post-MBA Salary, Scholarships and Fellowships
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