While the best path to economic mobility is still a college degree, higher education remains unaffordable for many of those who could benefit the most. America’s public flagship institutions hold enormous potential for offering an affordable pathway to a high-quality bachelor’s degree. However, the analysis of the net price at these institutions for different types of students finds that many flagships are failing to live up to this promise. Using output from institutional net price calculators for first-year students from different socioeconomic backgrounds and comparing these prices to how much students and their families can afford, the authors find enormous gaps in affordability for all but the wealthiest students.