Best Part-Time MBA Programs To Compare In 2026

A part-time MBA can be one of the smartest ways to keep moving forward in your career without stepping away from your job. You keep earning, keep building experience, and apply what you’re learning in real time. That’s exactly why these programs appeal to working professionals who want the value of an MBA without the full-time break.

If you’re searching for the best part-time MBA programs, the strongest options usually have a few things in common: flexible schedules, a well-regarded MBA brand, strong career support, and a format that makes it realistic to balance work, school, and life. Recent rankings and admissions coverage consistently keep programs like Berkeley Haas, Northwestern Kellogg, Chicago Booth, NYU Stern, and UCLA Anderson near the top of the conversation, with schools like Texas McCombs also standing out for working-professional formats.

Key Takeaways

• The best part-time MBA programs are designed for working professionals, which means schedule flexibility matters just as much as ranking.
• Top programs usually stand out for a mix of brand strength, strong alumni networks, career value, and realistic evening or weekend formats.
• Cost varies a lot, so it’s important to compare the full program price, not just the school name or ranking.
• The right part-time MBA depends on your priorities, whether that’s prestige, location, networking, schedule, or employer support.
• If affordability and flexibility matter most, University of the People offers a strong online MBA alternative with a tuition-free model that can fit around work and life.

Why Choose A Part-Time MBA?

A part-time MBA makes sense if you want to keep advancing professionally while earning the degree. That’s the core advantage. You don’t have to pause your income, and you don’t have to give up the momentum you’ve already built at work.

It also tends to work especially well for students who want immediate application. What you learn in strategy, finance, operations, leadership, or analytics can often be used at work right away. For many professionals, that’s one of the biggest advantages over a full-time program.

What Makes A Great Part-Time MBA?

The best part-time MBA programs usually stand out in four areas.

First, the schedule has to be realistic. Evening, weekend, or hybrid formats are what make these programs possible for working professionals. Second, the curriculum still needs to feel like a real MBA, not a diluted version of one. Third, you want access to the kind of network, faculty, and recruiting value that actually makes the investment worthwhile. And finally, the pricing structure needs to be something you can compare honestly, because part-time programs aren’t cheap just because they’re flexible.

Top Part-Time MBA Programs To Compare

These are some of the strongest programs to compare right now if you want a part-time MBA from a well-known school with a format built for working professionals.

University Of Chicago Booth School Of Business

Chicago Booth remains one of the biggest names in the part-time MBA space. Its Evening MBA and Weekend MBA are especially strong if you want flexibility without giving up access to the same core Booth MBA brand and curriculum. Booth says its part-time format offers weeknight classes from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday blocks, with students typically taking two courses per quarter and graduating in about 36 months.

It’s also relatively transparent on cost. For the 2025–26 academic year, Booth lists tuition at $8,735 per 100-unit course, plus one-time fees including a $1,450 administrative services fee, $500 student activity fee, and $81 transcript fee.

This is a strong fit if you want one of the most established and flexible part-time MBA formats in the market.

Berkeley Haas Evening & Weekend MBA

Berkeley Haas is one of the first programs people look at when they want a top-tier part-time MBA that doesn’t feel like a compromise. Its Evening & Weekend MBA is built to deliver the full MBA experience on a schedule designed around working professionals. Haas frames it as a complete MBA experience that can be pursued on an evening or weekend track.

On cost, Haas says program fees for 2025–26 are $3,972 per unit, with a minimum of 42 units required for graduation. Its broader cost page shows the estimate rising to $4,190 per unit for 2026–27, which is a useful reminder that these programs can get more expensive quickly.

This is a particularly strong option if you want a highly regarded West Coast brand and a schedule designed for professionals who need to keep working.

Northwestern Kellogg Evening & Weekend MBA

Kellogg’s part-time MBA has long been one of the strongest options in this category, especially if leadership development and flexibility matter to you. The program is designed around evening and weekend study, and Kellogg positions it as a rigorous MBA for ambitious professionals who want to keep growing on the job while earning the degree.

Kellogg is also one of the clearer examples of how total cost can vary by path. It lists total tuition of $130,076 for the accelerated option and $172,036 for the traditional option, before adding one-time fees and estimated books and supplies.

This is a strong fit if you want a top business school with a respected part-time format and enough flexibility to choose a faster or more traditional pace.

NYU Stern Part-Time MBA

NYU Stern is one of the most compelling part-time MBA options if you want a strong brand, an urban professional network, and a clear evening-based structure. Its Manhattan part-time MBA is a 60-credit program, and Stern says the rough estimate of total tuition and fees on a three-year schedule is about $180,739. It also offers a weeknight option, with classes meeting Monday through Thursday from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. ET, plus an accelerated two-year path for students who want a faster route.

This is an especially strong option if you’re based in New York or want the network and access that come with studying in that market while continuing to work.

UCLA Anderson Fully Employed MBA (FEMBA)

UCLA Anderson’s FEMBA is one of the best-known part-time MBA formats on the West Coast. It’s designed for professionals who want the same MBA degree while continuing to work, and Anderson says the typical length is 33 months, with room to accelerate or extend depending on your situation. The curriculum includes 82 academic units across core, electives, and capstone work.

On cost, Anderson lists a 2025–26 per-unit fee of $1,844, assessed across the 82-unit program.

This can be a very strong fit if you want a respected MBA in Southern California and like the idea of a structured part-time program with meaningful elective depth.

Texas McCombs Working Professional MBA Options

Texas McCombs deserves a place in the conversation because it offers multiple working-professional MBA formats rather than just a single part-time option. Its Austin Evening MBA runs over 21 months with Monday and Tuesday evening classes, while its Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston programs use alternating weekend formats for working professionals.

The Dallas and Houston working-professional MBA options currently list a total program cost of $141,000, billed in semester installments. McCombs also notes that these part-time or executive formats use an all-in pricing model that bundles tuition, mandatory fees, and certain program elements into one structure.

This is a strong option if you want a respected business school with a practical format and a clear focus on professionals who are actively working while studying.

How To Compare These Programs

The fastest way to make this article useful is to compare programs through the lens of your life, not just rankings.

If you want maximum flexibility, look closely at schedule design first. Booth and Kellogg are especially strong if you want more choice in how you pace the program. If you want a highly structured part-time experience that still delivers the same core MBA degree, Haas, Anderson, and Stern all stand out. If geography matters, Stern is especially compelling in New York, while UCLA Anderson and Berkeley Haas stand out on the West Coast, and Texas McCombs is particularly attractive for professionals in Texas.

You should also compare the cost format, not just the school name. Some programs charge by unit or credit. Others present a total-program estimate. That makes side-by-side comparisons harder unless you slow down and calculate the full likely cost.

A Flexible Alternative To Traditional Part-Time MBA Programs

If cost, schedule rigidity, or location are your biggest concerns, a traditional top-ranked part-time MBA may not be the best fit, even if the name carries prestige.

That’s where University of the People stands out. UoPeople offers a flexible online MBA with a tuition-free model, so instead of paying traditional tuition, students pay a $60 application fee and $450 per MBA course assessment fee. That makes it a dramatically more accessible option than many part-time MBA programs that can cost well into six figures.

For working professionals who want a respected, fully online MBA they can fit around their life, UoPeople offers an impressive combination of affordability, flexibility, and real opportunity.

The Bottom Line

The best part-time MBA programs are not just the ones with the biggest names. They’re the ones that let you keep growing professionally while making the degree realistic to complete.

If prestige, network, and elite positioning are your top priorities, Booth, Haas, Kellogg, Stern, UCLA Anderson, and Texas McCombs all deserve a serious look. If flexibility and cost matter more than a traditional campus format, a lower-cost online MBA alternative may be the smarter move.

The best next step is to narrow your list by schedule first, cost second, and brand third. For most working professionals, that gets you closer to the right answer much faster than rankings alone.

FAQs

What are the best part-time MBA programs right now?

Some of the strongest programs to compare right now include Chicago Booth, Berkeley Haas, Northwestern Kellogg, NYU Stern, UCLA Anderson, and Texas McCombs. These schools consistently stand out for schedule design, brand strength, and working-professional formats.

Are part-time MBA programs worth it?

They can be, especially if you want to keep earning while studying and can apply what you learn directly at work. The value usually depends on the strength of the network, the flexibility of the schedule, and whether the cost makes sense for your goals.

Can you work full-time during a part-time MBA?

Yes, and that’s exactly what these programs are built for. Evening, weekend, and executive-style schedules are designed so students can keep working while completing the MBA.

How much do the best part-time MBA programs cost?

It varies a lot. Some programs publish per-unit or per-credit pricing, while others publish total-program estimates. Among the schools above, the cost can range from well over $100,000 to around $180,000, depending on the school and path.

Is an online MBA better than a part-time MBA?

Not automatically. A traditional part-time MBA may give you more in-person networking and a more established campus-based brand experience. An online MBA may be better if you care most about flexibility, affordability, and studying from anywhere. The better option depends on what you need the degree to do.