Best 100% Online Master's in Taxation Programs in 2027

• Highest Score73.1 out of 100

  University of Akron

  Taxation, MTax

  Ohio · M.Tax

  University of Akron's M.Tax Review
• Lowest Price$556.75 per credit

  Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

  Master of Science in Accountancy with a Specialization in Taxation

  Illinois · M.S.A.

  Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's M.S.A. Review
• Highest Graduate Earnings$170,796 median earnings

  Villanova University

  Master of Laws in Taxation

  Pennsylvania · LL.M.

  Villanova University's LL.M. Review
• Strongest CredentialsAACSB stated by the school; prepares for CPA

  St. John's University-New York

  Taxation, Master of Science

  New York · M.S.

  St. John's University-New York's M.S. Review

Programs delivered fully online where the school states no campus or residency requirement.

• Delivery is fully online
• No campus visits or residencies
• Ranked on the shared methodology

Scores are the weighted sum of eight factors (Tax Specialization 15%, Tax Subject Coverage 15%, Hands-On Tax Practice 10%, Cost 20%, Graduate Earnings 10%, Credential Alignment 10%, Track Record 10%, Program Reputation 10%), version 2.0. The methodology page shows the rubric for each factor.

Choose Live Classes or Recorded Lectures in a 100% Online Program

The biggest difference among fully remote programs is when class happens. Villanova's Master of Taxation holds online classes in the evening, and they're synchronous and live each week. You log in at set times with your instructor and classmates, which gives you a standing appointment if your work hours are fixed.

Other programs let you set your own hours. The University of San Francisco's Master of Legal Studies in Taxation is online and asynchronous, with regular optional meetings with your professors. Bryant's Master of Science in Taxation lets you set your own pace inside each 10-week course, with occasional Zoom classes.

A few schools offer both. Golden Gate's Master of Science in Taxation holds classes by web conference with live video and as asynchronous sessions, so you pick the delivery that suits how you learn. Ask whether recordings are available when a live session conflicts with work, and pick the style that matches the hours you can actually protect.

Plan Your Study Around Tax Season

If you work in tax, busy season can swallow your evenings. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) notes that overtime hours are typical at certain periods of the year, such as quarterly audits or tax season. Several fully remote programs build their calendars around it.

Minnesota's Master of Business Taxation takes a break during the traditional tax season, March 1 to April 15. The school's aim is that students working in the taxation field can maintain their work commitments.

Grand Valley State's schedule is set to avoid tax busy season, February 20 through April 30. San Francisco's condensed seven-week semesters avoid the U.S. tax busy season too.

Evening classes, like Villanova's, also leave your workday alone the rest of the year. Pick the program whose quiet weeks match your own. If your busy season runs on a different calendar, ask how the break would line up with your workload. Our tax accountant career guide goes deeper on the job itself.

Compare Pace and Workload Across Fully Remote Programs

Fully remote programs also differ in how much they ask of you at one time. Villanova's Master of Taxation follows an eight-week format that lets you concentrate on one course at a time and still finish in two years, so your evenings stay predictable.

Taft's Master of Science in Taxation is delivered entirely online through an independent study format, with three semesters a year across six eight-week terms. Minnesota's Master of Business Taxation takes one to three years, full time or part time, so you can speed up or slow down as work allows.

A steady one-course rhythm suits a fixed work week, while a flexible term count suits a job whose busy stretches move around. Ask each school how many courses you can carry at once, what happens if you skip a term, and how the pace changes if you move between full time and part time. Take those answers back to your own calendar before you apply.

Compare Total Price and Fees at Fully Remote Programs

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville charges $556.75 per credit hour with all fees included, and the rate is the same for in-state and out-of-state students. That's easy to compare against any school that bills fees on top of tuition, and it spares you from hunting through a fee schedule.

Taft's Master of Science in Taxation comes to $600 a credit and $18,000 in total tuition. Bryant lists $2,379 per three-credit course, which comes to $23,790 in tuition for the program. Its total cost is $24,365 once a $495 orientation course and an $80 application fee are added.

Taft states a total up front, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville folds its fees into the rate, and Bryant itemizes an orientation course and an application fee. Because pricing is built three different ways, line programs up by total rather than by rate. Our public university master's in taxation list is a good place to start comparing state schools.