America's Elite Colleges and Universities 2025-2026
Ranked by performance, not by reputation
America's Elite Colleges and Universities 2025-2026
Ranked by performance, not by reputation
The Elite 24
1. Princeton University
Category: medium university; Location: Mideast (New Jersey); Setting: Small City; Enrollment: 5579; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $3,750,669 (highest); Adjusted median SATs: 1532; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 93 (Fall 2022); Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-high; Student to faculty ratio: 5.1:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 87.8; Retention rate: 98%; Return on investment: very high; Rate of producing future PhDs: high; Graduation rate: 97.6%; Athletic excellence: moderate
2. California Institute of Technology
Category: small college; Location: Far West (California); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 1023; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $1,682,826; Adjusted median SATs: ND; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 86.4; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-low; Student to faculty ratio: 2.9:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 98.3; Retention rate: 97.4%; Return on investment: very high; Rate of producing future PhDs: highest; Graduation rate: 94.4%; Athletic excellence: very low
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Category: medium university; Location: New England (Massachusetts); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 4571; Campus historical & architectural significance: low; Endowment per student: $2,086,500; Adjusted median SATs: 1553 (highest); Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 96; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 3.1:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 88.1; Retention rate: 99% (highest); Return on investment: very high; Rate of producing future PhDs: very high; Graduation rate: 96%; Athletic excellence: high
4. Stanford University
Category: medium university; Location: Far West (California); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 7841; Campus historical & architectural significance: moderate; Endowment per student: $2,135,335; Adjusted median SATs: 1530; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 97.8; Socioeconomic diversity: low; Student to faculty ratio: 5.6:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 88.1 (Fall 2022); Retention rate: 98.2%; Return on investment: very high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 91.9%; Athletic excellence: very high
5. Harvard University
Category: medium university; Location: New England (Massachusetts); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 7755; Campus historical & architectural significance: highest; Endowment per student: $2,133,974; Adjusted median SATs: 1532; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 94; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 7.2:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 89.4; Retention rate: 98%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 98% (highest); Athletic excellence: moderate
6. Yale University
Category: medium university; Location: New England (Connecticut); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 6811; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $2,714,107; Adjusted median SATs: 1513; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 96; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 5.3:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 88.5; Retention rate: 98.8%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 95.7%; Athletic excellence: moderate-low.
7. University of Chicago
Category: medium university; Location: Great Lakes (Illinois); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 7540; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $590,518; Adjusted median SATs: 1528 (Fall 2023); Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 97 (Fall 2023); Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 4.8:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 94.7; Retention rate: 99% (highest); Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: high; Graduation rate: 95.9%; Athletic excellence; moderate-high
8. Swarthmore College
Category: small college; Location: Mideast (Pennsylvania); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 1627; Campus historical and architectural significance: low; Endowment per student: $1,593,734; Adjusted median SATs: 1510; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 89; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 7.4:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 92.7; Retention rate: 94%; Return on investment: moderate-high; Rate of producing future PhDs: very high; Graduation rate: 92.3%; Athletic excellence: low
9. Johns Hopkins University
Category: medium university; Location: Mideast (Maryland); Setting: large city; Enrollment: 5617; Campus historical & architectural significance: low; Endowment per student: $593,965; Adjusted median SATs: 1535; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 100 (highest); Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 5.9:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 96 (Fall 2022); Retention rate: 98.1%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 93.8%; Athletic excellence: very high
10. Pomona College
Category: small college; Location: Far West (California); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 1638; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $1,810,914; Adjusted median SATs: 1508; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 90; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 7.2:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 90.9; Retention rate: 97.5%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: high; Graduation rate: 93%; Athletic excellence: low
11. Harvey Mudd College
Category: small college; Location: Far West (California); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 915; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $497,864; Adjusted median SATs: 1521; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class 92; Socioeconomic diversity: ND; Student to faculty ratio: 8.4:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 92.2; Retention rate: 96%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: high; Graduation rate: 92%; Athletic excellence: low
12. Williams College
Category: small college; Location: New England (Massachusetts); Setting: Town; Enrollment: 2060; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $1,708,205; Adjusted median SATs: 1508; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 88.4; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 6.9:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 96.1; Retention rate: 96.9; Return on investment: moderate-high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 93.6%; Athletic excellence: moderate-high
13. Amherst College
Category: small college; Location: New England (Massachusetts); Setting:Small City; Enrollment: 1907; Campus historical & architectural significance: low; Endowment per student: $1,858,417; Adjusted median SATs: 1510; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 93; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-high; Student to faculty ratio: 6.85:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 93.8; Retention rate: 97.3%: Return on investment: moderate-high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 94%; Athletic excellence: high
14. University of California-Berkeley
Category: large university; Location: Far West (California); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 32,475; Campus historical & architectural significance: highest Endowment per student: $71,929; Adjusted median SATs: ND; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: ND; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 18.7:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: ND; Retention rate: 96.8%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 93%; Athletic excellence: moderate-high
15. University of Pennsylvania
Category: large university; Location: Mideast (Pennsylvania); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 10,768; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $875,155; Adjusted median SATs: 1530; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 91; Socioeconomic diversity: low; Student to faculty ratio: 7.5:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 91.7; Retention rate: 98.8%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-low; Graduation rate: 96.5%; Athletic excellence: low
16. Duke University
Category: medium university; Location: Southeast (North Carolina); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 6417; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $705,638; Adjusted median SATs: 1534; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 92.6; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 5.1:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 92.9; Retention rate: 98%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 96%; Athletic excellence: high
17. Vanderbilt University
Category: medium university; Location: Southeast (Tennessee); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 7143; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $786,230; Adjusted median SATs: 1516; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 90; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-high; Student to faculty ratio: 7.6:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 94.2; Retention rate: 96%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-low; Graduation rate: 93.5%; Athletic excellence: moderate-low
18. Brown University
Category: medium university; Location: New England (Rhode Island); Setting: Midsize City; Enrollment: 7273; Campus historical & architectural significance: moderate; Endowment per student: $615,612; Adjusted median SATs: 1528; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 89; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 5.8:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 93.4; Retention rate: 98.8%; Return on investment: moderate-high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 95.7%; Athletic excellence: low
19. Rice University
Category: medium university; Location: Southwest (Texas); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 4562: Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $993,688; Adjusted median SATs: 1529; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 89; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 5.8:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 90.1; Retention rate: 97.4%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate-high; Graduation rate: 94.6%; Athletic excellence: very low
20. Washington University in St. Louis
Category: medium university; Location: Plains (Missouri); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 7897; Campus historical & architectural significance: high; Endowment per student: $797,649; Adjusted median SATs: 1512; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 86; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-low; Student to faculty ratio: 7.0:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 80.3; Retention rate: 95%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 94%; Athletic excellence: high
21. Bowdoin College
Category: small college; Location: New England (Maine); Setting: Town; Enrollment: 1846; Campus historical & architectural significance: NA; Endowment per student: $1,397,968; Adjusted median SATs: 1486; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 85.1; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-high; Student to faculty ratio: 8.7:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 95.8; Retention rate: 96.8%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 95.3%; Athletic excellence: moderate
22. University of Notre Dame
Category: medium university; Location: Great Lakes (Indiana); Setting: Large Suburb; Enrollment: 8923; Campus historical & architectural significance: moderate; Endowment per student: $1,399,873; Adjusted median SATs: 1476; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 92; Socioeconomic diversity: high; Student to faculty ratio: 8.2:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 85.9; Retention rate: 99% (highest); Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs; moderate-low; Graduation rate: 95%; Athletic excellence: moderate
23. Dartmouth College
Category: medium university; Location: New England (New Hampshire); Setting: Town; Enrollment: 4367; Campus historical & architectural significance: low; Endowment per student: $1,234,823; Adjusted median SATs: 1517; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 93; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate-low; Student to faculty ratio: 6.5:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 90.4; Retention rate: 98.4%; Return on investment: moderate-high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 95%; Athletic excellence: very low
24. Columbia University
Category: medium university; Location: Mideast (New York); Setting: Large City; Enrollment: 8899: Campus historical & architectural significance: moderate; Endowment per student: $477,934; Adjusted median SATs: 1528; Percent of students in top tenth of HS class: 94; Socioeconomic diversity: moderate; Student to faculty ratio: 6.1:1; Percent of instructional faculty with doctorate or terminal degree: 75.3; Retention rate: 98%; Return on investment: high; Rate of producing future PhDs: moderate; Graduation rate: 96%; Athletic excellence: low