2026 College Guide Rankings

Since 2005, the Washington Monthly has ranked colleges based on what they do for the country. It’s our answer to U.S News & World Report, which relies on crude and easily manipulated measures of wealth, exclusivity, and prestige. We rank schools based on their contribution to the public good in four broad categories: access, affordability, outcomes, and promoting public service.

How we rank All 2026 rankings Download the full data

What we measure

Access

Ranks colleges by how well they provide access to nonwealthy students. Among other metrics, it tracks how many students are on federal Pell Grants for low-to-middle-income families and compares that to how many Pell recipients those schools might be expected to enroll based on test scores, admission rates, and statewide family income.

Affordability

Ranks colleges by their affordability. It includes the net price of the institution, or the amount that students with family incomes below $75,000 pay, minus aid. It also tracks how much debt graduates leave with.

Outcomes

Ranks colleges by the academic and financial outcomes they provide to students. It tracks the percentage of students graduating within eight years and compares that to statistical predictions. It compares graduation rates between wealthy and nonwealthy students. It also tracks the incomes that students make in their early careers and compares that to their peers’ early-career incomes. Additionally, the outcomes category ranks colleges by the numbers of graduates who go on to receive PhDs.

Service

Ranks how well colleges do in promoting public service. It tracks numbers of graduates who enter AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps, of ROTC cadets on campus, and of students who enroll in service-oriented majors like social work. Among other statistics, it also tracks colleges’ commitment to encouraging voting participation.

The Rankings – West

Rank	School	State	Type	Net price	Earnings 4 yrs out	Graduates’ debt	8-yr grad rate	Access rank	Affordability rank	Outcomes rank	Service rank
1	CA State University–Northridge	CA	Public	$6,270	$59,664	$13,872	71%	2	12	50	52
2	CA State University–Los Angeles	CA	Public	$3,793	$59,756	$13,000	68%	3	2	46	139
3	CA State University–Fresno	CA	Public	$5,531	$59,992	$14,505	70%	12	13	71	44
4	CA State University–Long Beach	CA	Public	$7,146	$63,140	$14,289	83%	5	17	110	50
5	Western Governors University	UT	Private	$10,469	$87,445	$11,116	53%	1	9	84	125
6	CA State University–Sacramento	CA	Public	$8,427	$64,511	$15,000	71%	11	28	77	40
7	California State Univ.–Fullerton	CA	Public	$4,515	$63,753	$13,750	80%	4	5	107	107
8	CA State Univ.–San Bernardino	CA	Public	$4,862	$55,441	$14,715	71%	18	10	45	49
9	Brigham Young University	UT	Private	$10,784	$77,018	$11,069	84%	13	11	9	174
10	Pomona College	CA	Private	$6,721	$77,544	$11,782	95%	104	3	5	37
11	Arizona State University	AZ	Public	$10,927	$66,968	$19,500	68%	9	65	154	17
12	Stanford University	CA	Private	$154	$136,959	$12,000	97%	86	1	3	187
13	CA State University–Stanislaus	CA	Public	$4,613	$58,952	$13,540	70%	34	4	24	106
14	Claremont McKenna College	CA	Private	$12,511	$110,798	$13,500	92%	102	33	4	85
15	Harvey Mudd College	CA	Private	$20,333	$137,100	$25,000	93%	127	150	1	77
16	CA State Univ.–Dominguez Hills	CA	Public	$4,934	$58,922	$13,807	69%	19	7	30	182
17	University of CA–Berkeley	CA	Public	$8,583	$96,018	$13,000	94%	24	14	38	145
18	CA State University–Chico	CA	Public	$11,399	$65,228	$16,552	74%	40	51	49	22
19	California Institute of Tech.	CA	Private	$1,101	$152,843		94%	155	8	2	185
20	Cal Poly Maritime Academy	CA	Public	$13,241	$108,757	$24,965	69%	145	119	7	6
21	University of California–Davis	CA	Public	$10,261	$73,086	$13,000	89%	22	23	166	39
22	University of California–LA	CA	Public	$8,620	$77,677	$14,000	93%	26	22	145	34
23	CA State University–San Marcos	CA	Public	$7,677	$67,891	$17,350	68%	38	41	60	38
24	CA State Univ.–Monterey Bay	CA	Public	$10,081	$62,324	$12,750	73%	49	19	56	42
25	CA State University–Bakersfield	CA	Public	$4,788	$59,109	$16,600	63%	31	25	57	104
26	Grand Canyon University	AZ	Private	$19,671	$74,343	$22,114	46%	6	126	133	79
27	Cal Poly Pomona	CA	Public	$9,013	$71,138	$16,000	78%	14	37	127	137
28	San Jose State University	CA	Public	$11,005	$89,614	$15,000	77%	21	38	109	115
29	University of WA–Tacoma	WA	Public	$6,202	$82,515	$14,615	74%	44	15	28	121
30	Heritage University	WA	Private	$10,876	$62,898	$14,573	58%	54	34	14	110
31	San Francisco State University	CA	Public	$10,425	$67,804	$15,371	67%	25	39	119	94
32	Portland State University	OR	Public	$12,021	$62,060	$20,500	57%	37	81	91	20
33	University of CA–Riverside	CA	Public	$10,183	$64,926	$17,500	80%	10	52	183	129
34	Utah State University	UT	Public	$10,948	$63,484	$14,340	57%	47	31	106	28
35	University of CA–San Diego	CA	Public	$9,113	$83,130	$15,500	90%	16	32	160	120
36	Univ. of California–Merced	CA	Public	$9,739	$65,410	$16,144	72%	17	42	141	116
37	San Diego State University	CA	Public	$10,353	$68,268	$15,000	82%	32	35	128	86
38	Brigham Young University–ID	ID	Private	$4,555	$56,787	$13,969	58%	33	6	55	190
39	Westminster University	UT	Private	$20,754	$72,401	$22,250	68%	124	131	16	5
40	Prescott College	AZ	Private	$21,259	$49,339	$16,300	51%	50	95	23	48
41	University of WA–Seattle	WA	Public	$7,079	$82,515	$14,615	84%	66	20	156	18
42	University of California–Irvine	CA	Public	$8,811	$74,438	$15,000	87%	15	30	197	126
43	Washington State University	WA	Public	$9,362	$73,467	$19,500	65%	51	57	108	29
44	Cal Poly Humboldt	CA	Public	$9,877	$51,571	$18,000	64%	55	53	92	51
45	University of NV–Las Vegas	NV	Public	$9,573	$62,637	$19,450	53%	30	59	142	82
46	University of WA–Bothell	WA	Public	$6,545	$82,515	$14,615	79%	53	16	114	88
47	University of Redlands	CA	Private	$22,851	$75,863	$26,000	67%	100	172	42	3
48	University of San Diego	CA	Private	$18,605	$85,309	$22,940	81%	148	128	74	2
49	Western Washington Univ.	WA	Public	$13,889	$58,560	$18,500	71%	90	69	116	11
50	Soka University of America	CA	Private	$11,979	$53,646	$15,650	89%	169	45	8	138
51	Evergreen State College	WA	Public	$21,449	$44,424	$20,500	57%	91	120	10	73
52	Northern Arizona University	AZ	Public	$11,895	$60,629	$19,000	60%	43	66	136	45
53	University of CA–Santa Barbara	CA	Public	$9,952	$70,323	$13,993	87%	36	27	100	169
54	University of Montana	MT	Public	$14,785	$50,928	$22,400	46%	56	111	202	1
55	University of CA–Santa Cruz	CA	Public	$11,081	$67,085	$16,666	80%	35	50	158	98
56	Colorado State University	CO	Public	$12,982	$67,911	$20,000	70%	108	84	117	14
57	Whitman College	WA	Private	$20,434	$56,804	$18,437	89%	142	109	47	16
58	Southern CA Inst. of Technology	CA	For-profit	$29,124	$65,954	$10,798	82%	29	92	20	204
59	Pacific Lutheran University	WA	Private	$15,917	$63,671	$22,578	72%	93	116	37	33
60	Scripps College	CA	Private	$14,742	$75,301	$13,500	85%	151	43	35	81
61	Pitzer College	CA	Private	$16,939	$69,786	$16,750	86%	173	72	40	27
62	Colorado College	CO	Private	$12,458	$56,959	$18,257	87%	162	63	69	21
63	University of Denver	CO	Private	$22,342	$78,504	$21,844	76%	156	136	68	4
64	CA State University–East Bay	CA	Public	$8,613	$72,596	$16,544	69%	42	40	79	172
65	Lewis & Clark College	OR	Private	$20,265	$57,262	$19,500	74%	123	113	86	15
66	University of Arizona	AZ	Public	$13,491	$67,420	$19,620	63%	27	83	151	122
67	Occidental College	CA	Private	$19,051	$68,467	$23,000	83%	120	129	26	25
68	Reed College	OR	Private	$15,492	$44,518	$21,500	78%	175	110	85	8
69	CA State Univ.–Channel Islands	CA	Public	$8,711	$59,304	$15,000	72%	57	29	66	181
70	Central Washington University	WA	Public	$12,437	$63,444	$19,500	62%	110	71	61	72
71	Eastern Washington University	WA	Public	$9,370	$60,781	$19,500	59%	83	58	101	71
72	Gonzaga University	WA	Private	$23,307	$80,896	$24,454	87%	168	158	21	10
73	CO Technical Univ.	CO	For-profit	$15,924	$60,707	$29,832	22%	7	169	132	188
74	University of Nevada–Reno	NV	Public	$13,208	$67,498	$18,922	61%	76	70	171	19
75	University of Southern CA	CA	Private	$15,804	$95,739	$18,000	93%	46	79	65	149
76	University of Wyoming	WY	Public	$8,539	$61,749	$18,000	62%	146	49	134	41
77	University of Portland	OR	Private	$25,144	$80,459	$21,370	81%	121	148	89	12
78	University of Utah	UT	Public	$10,807	$75,345	$19,000	70%	74	61	124	93
79	Seattle University	WA	Private	$25,671	$79,426	$19,883	76%	137	139	115	7
80	University of Oregon	OR	Public	$16,512	$62,174	$20,139	74%	80	104	102	69
81	Sonoma State University	CA	Public	$10,493	$65,997	$16,705	69%	96	47	52	170
82	Naropa University	CO	Private	$21,587	$41,627	$24,712	52%	41	152	33	135
83	Whitworth University	WA	Private	$18,553	$61,291	$25,000	73%	109	144	13	97
84	NM Inst. of Mining and Tech	NM	Public	$5,988	$85,232	$19,085	58%	184	44	12	183
85	NM State Univ.–Main	NM	Public	$7,037	$54,874	$17,095	55%	111	36	164	84
86	University of Northern CO	CO	Public	$14,876	$56,930	$20,470	58%	191	99	130	13
87	University of the Pacific	CA	Private	$18,386	$81,820	$19,500	75%	58	106	95	113
88	Willamette University	OR	Private	$18,670	$54,450	$21,500	74%	113	118	64	68
89	Metropolitan State U. Denver	CO	Public	$13,168	$60,186	$21,500	38%	84	97	168	31
90	University of NM–Main	NM	Public	$14,298	$59,818	$18,450	57%	78	74	172	56
91	Cal Poly San Luis Obispo	CA	Public	$9,466	$90,662	$18,500	87%	89	54	78	163
92	Fresno Pacific University	CA	Private	$12,228	$63,285	$23,146	66%	71	105	59	136
93	University of La Verne	CA	Private	$24,305	$64,109	$23,500	63%	61	154	129	26
94	University of Phoenix–Phoenix	AZ	For-profit	$13,130	$61,486	$31,553	27%	8	168	194	184
95	Oregon State University	OR	Public	$14,400	$71,799	$21,221	67%	63	102	150	92
96	Touro College Los Angeles	CA	Private	$16,764	$67,614	$25,000	50%	81	134	18	156
97	California Lutheran University	CA	Private	$21,320	$69,695	$21,669	76%	106	130	54	95
98	Fort Lewis College	CO	Public	$16,075	$46,601	$18,389	47%	94	88	131	89
99	AZ Coll. of Nursing–Las Vegas	NV	For-profit	$29,660	$38,251	$9,500	31%	39	80	211	59
100	Saint Martin’s University	WA	Private	$18,991	$71,704	$22,500	64%	133	125	22	124
101	University of Colorado–Boulder	CO	Public	$14,297	$76,850	$19,500	73%	87	89	105	128
102	Santa Clara University	CA	Private	$30,108	$108,517	$19,162	91%	160	151	11	108
103	University of Idaho	ID	Public	$11,577	$60,330	$21,982	62%	189	94	94	53
104	Azusa Pacific University	CA	Private	$19,458	$71,925	$23,219	72%	117	133	122	30
105	Brookline College–Phoenix	AZ	For-profit	$30,073	$41,962	$9,500	56%	65	85	190	75
106	New Mexico Highlands Univ.	NM	Public	$12,925	$55,864	$11,399	49%	180	24	152	112
107	Linfield University	OR	Private	$22,463	$81,180	$25,000	75%	152	159	48	47
108	University of Providence	MT	Private	$17,472	$88,535	$18,750	62%	195	96	29	123
109	Seattle Pacific University	WA	Private	$20,035	$70,115	$24,000	66%	88	142	87	78
110	St. John’s College	NM	Private	$17,408	$37,727		63%	101	121	67	117
111	Saint Mary’s College of CA	CA	Private	$21,323	$74,325	$23,691	77%	149	146	36	87
112	Simpson University	CA	Private	$24,542	$59,198	$18,750	69%	112	123	15	178
113	Neumont Coll. Of Comp. Science	UT	For-profit	$28,718			59%	23	188	39	204
114	University of San Francisco	CA	Private	$32,806	$91,483	$23,000	76%	85	186	82	32
115	Mount St. Mary’s Univ.–LA	CA	Private	$22,972	$79,546	$25,949	63%	45	173	165	55
116	University of Colorado–Denver	CO	Public	$12,319	$74,059	$20,500	50%	170	86	176	35
117	Chamberlain Univ.–Nevada	NV	For-profit	$32,402	$97,262	$20,919	72%	129	177	51	59
118	Idaho State University	ID	Public	$14,251	$58,142	$20,039	54%	166	93	148	58
119	Warner Pacific University	OR	Private	$18,940	$65,093	$25,000	47%	64	145	83	131
120	West Coast Univ.–Los Angeles	CA	For-profit	$50,496	$110,100	$32,946	81%	62	215	6	57
121	Montana State Univ.–Northern	MT	Public	$11,539	$60,505	$18,500	39%	186	60	111	102
122	Dominican University of CA	CA	Private	$32,889	$95,437	$27,000	75%	139	196	88	9
123	University of Hawaii–Hilo	HI	Public	$10,508	$49,763	$20,500	43%	165	68	76	146
124	Menlo College	CA	Private	$23,318	$79,903	$21,750	60%	163	141	31	101
125	Chamberlain Univ.–Arizona	AZ	For-profit	$34,562	$97,262	$20,919	70%	114	183	63	59
126	Univ. of Montana–Western	MT	Public	$14,118	$44,338	$21,000	52%	154	100	97	105
127	Colorado School of Mines	CO	Public	$20,508	$100,252	$23,000	84%	118	137	27	168
128	Rocky Mountain College	MT	Private	$15,277	$60,523	$26,000	51%	159	135	144	36
129	Pacific University	OR	Private	$26,737	$62,363	$23,223	70%	183	170	99	24
130	Boise State University	ID	Public	$17,097	$64,791	$20,500	58%	132	108	178	74
131	Chaminade Univ. of Honolulu	HI	Private	$28,523	$59,437	$23,250	51%	48	176	175	80
132	University of Puget Sound	WA	Private	$29,261	$59,684	$25,000	76%	178	185	43	70
133	Thomas Aquinas College	CA	Private	$19,939	$49,755	$18,000	84%	157	103	25	202
134	Western Oregon University	OR	Public	$16,700	$54,346	$20,609	54%	136	107	96	160
135	Eastern Oregon University	OR	Public	$12,606	$55,565	$20,500	46%	176	87	75	180
136	University of Hawaii–Manoa	HI	Public	$10,645	$61,903	$18,500	65%	144	56	181	133
137	Whittier College	CA	Private	$23,271	$57,988	$24,937	67%	95	163	123	96
138	Humphreys–Stockton/Modesto	CA	Private	$6,324	$56,489	$35,500	52%	92	164	73	143
139	Eastern NM University–Main	NM	Public	$5,415	$54,827	$16,500	49%	211	26	138	142
140	Montana Technological Univ.	MT	Public	$14,067	$79,369	$18,750	60%	198	75	153	109
141	Regis University	CO	Private	$17,944	$81,785	$25,000	57%	188	140	149	46
142	Embry-Riddle Aero.–Prescott	AZ	Private	$36,599	$93,582	$23,666	68%	141	194	44	83
143	Brigham Young Univ.–Hawaii	HI	Private	$15,101		$9,413	69%	212	18	93	191
144	University of Hawaii–West Oahu	HI	Public	$7,758	$53,969	$14,500	52%	203	21	118	197
145	Platt College–Aurora	CO	For-profit	$41,182			81%	204	195	19	59
146	Northwest University	WA	Private	$17,304	$58,404	$20,891	61%	167	112	147	103
147	Western New Mexico Univ.	NM	Public	$9,254	$54,074	$23,000	46%	185	90	159	118
148	Southern Oregon University	OR	Public	$13,672	$52,911	$20,332	54%	200	91	112	140
149	University of the Southwest	NM	Private	$17,777	$51,952	$21,303	38%	98	115	170	134
150	Univ. of CO–Colorado Springs	CO	Public	$12,258	$62,980	$20,000	48%	105	76	189	144
151	George Fox University	OR	Private	$23,063	$69,145	$24,250	71%	131	153	80	132
152	National Paralegal College	AZ	For-profit	$15,420	$49,547	$24,853	44%	103	127	62	204
153	Montana State Univ.–Billings	MT	Public	$13,567	$55,549	$18,209	35%	197	67	182	114
154	Montana State University	MT	Public	$18,412	$65,157	$22,500	56%	153	122	201	43
155	Los Angeles Film School	CA	For-profit	$32,550	$33,557	$25,250	47%	28	192	113	203
156	Oregon Institute of Technology	OR	Public	$11,568	$87,138	$22,500	53%	196	98	120	150
157	Concordia University–Irvine	CA	Private	$23,992	$83,064	$24,247	63%	171	160	81	119
158	Westmont College	CA	Private	$22,343	$64,044	$23,250	72%	134	149	155	99
159	West Coast Univ.–Ontario	CA	For-profit	$47,075	$110,100	$32,946	73%	59	214	32	59
160	Adams State University	CO	Public	$10,859	$52,621	$19,500	37%	174	64	157	179
161	Vanguard Univ. of So. California	CA	Private	$17,855	$65,874	$22,000	63%	126	117	137	167
162	California Baptist University	CA	Private	$23,258	$68,600	$26,063	61%	60	174	143	166
163	Western Colorado University	CO	Public	$11,957	$50,666	$20,250	50%	213	78	204	23
164	Carroll College	MT	Private	$17,318	$59,396	$25,757	69%	199	143	169	54
165	Univ. of Advancing Technology	AZ	Private	$21,653	$54,762	$28,812	46%	52	182	72	201
166	Amer. InterCont. Univ.–Online	IL	For-profit	$14,410	$50,399	$31,000	15%	20	171	208	196
167	Pepperdine University	CA	Private	$39,836	$84,459	$23,510	85%	135	200	17	159
168	Bushnell University	OR	Private	$19,809	$59,969	$23,500	58%	122	138	126	165
169	West Coast Univ.–Orange County	CA	For-profit	$31,676	$110,100	$32,946	78%	67	206	125	67
170	Corban University	OR	Private	$18,597	$48,593	$22,625	56%	161	124	121	162
171	Utah Tech University	UT	Public	$13,325	$55,624	$15,000	41%	181	48	191	176
172	Lewis-Clark State College	ID	Public	$11,819	$58,274	$18,500	49%	210	62	146	152
173	CO State University–Pueblo	CO	Public	$10,414	$55,898	$21,500	42%	202	82	193	111
174	University of Alaska–Anchorage	AK	Public	$11,455	$68,777	$20,210	33%	207	73	205	76
175	Woodbury University	CA	Private	$27,536	$66,794	$26,960	65%	69	187	53	204
176	University of Alaska–Fairbanks	AK	Public	$7,726	$67,252	$20,291	39%	208	55	162	175
177	Loyola Marymount University	CA	Private	$32,047	$78,039	$19,500	82%	177	162	90	155
178	La Sierra University	CA	Private	$29,673	$57,898	$27,000	47%	79	191	185	90
179	Walla Walla University	WA	Private	$19,101	$68,868	$26,842	66%	194	155	98	158
180	Otis College of Art and Design	CA	Private	$41,223	$50,900	$27,000	69%	70	205	70	153
181	Northwest Nazarene University	ID	Private	$25,584	$60,040	$23,750	60%	179	167	180	91
182	Point Loma Nazarene University	CA	Private	$34,848	$72,880	$22,990	77%	128	189	103	148
183	University of Alaska Southeast	AK	Public	$6,411	$61,954	$19,111	38%	215	46	167	161
184	College of Idaho	ID	Private	$17,378	$52,628	$24,500	61%	192	132	174	141
185	Colorado Mesa University	CO	Public	$12,617	$58,601	$22,000	42%	187	101	195	171
186	Lincoln University	CA	Private	$28,597			70%	209	166	41	189
187	Chapman University	CA	Private	$35,421	$73,336	$20,500	82%	125	184	135	173
188	Biola University	CA	Private	$24,168	$61,363	$23,875	69%	147	156	177	157
189	Los Angeles Pacific University	CA	Private	$21,498	$68,736	$18,750	46%	116	114	199	198
190	Colorado Christian University	CO	Private	$22,265	$58,576	$28,312	31%	107	181	198	164
191	DigiPen Institute of Tech.	WA	For-profit	$34,227	$93,273	$27,000	56%	140	201	58	204
192	American Univ. of Health Sciences	CA	For-profit	$25,963	$120,258	$40,326	76%	72	209	196	59
193	ArtCenter College of Design	CA	Private	$43,158	$74,009	$31,000	77%	68	210	34	204
194	Pacific Union College	CA	Private	$22,382	$88,027	$27,500	44%	205	179	186	100
195	William Jessup University	CA	Private	$24,890	$55,374	$23,700	62%	182	161	163	194
196	Hawaii Pacific University	HI	Private	$27,206	$58,128	$22,000	41%	190	157	203	127
197	Hope International University	CA	Private	$26,655	$53,687	$23,000	44%	150	165	188	186
198	Nevada State University	NV	Public	$12,822	$73,626	$19,691	36%	206	77	215	130
199	Eagle Gate College–Murray	UT	For-profit	$28,087	$49,128	$43,021	58%	143	211	139	59
200	California College of the Arts	CA	Private	$39,623	$53,517	$27,000	73%	138	204	140	153
201	Provo College	UT	For-profit	$30,263	$51,307	$41,733	64%	97	212	184	59
202	Pacific Northwest Coll. of Art	OR	Private	$33,727		$25,000	46%	82	193	179	204
203	Northwest University–Online	WA	Private	$25,864	$58,404	$20,891	43%	214	147	161	192
204	California Institute of the Arts	CA	Private	$37,939	$35,256	$25,000	70%	158	202	187	151
205	University of Silicon Valley	CA	For-profit	$27,282	$56,708	$31,000	49%	77	198	192	204
206	University of Arizona–Global	AZ	Public	$27,033	$56,883	$31,250	20%	73	199	210	177
207	Rocky Mt. Coll. of Art & Design	CO	Private	$26,527	$41,363	$31,000	31%	75	197	206	199
208	Laguna Coll. of Art and Design	CA	Private	$37,911	$48,922	$27,000	62%	115	203	173	204
209	National University	CA	Private	$26,347	$81,115	$25,000	41%	193	178	213	147
210	DeVry University–Ontario	CA	For-profit	$32,440	$63,172	$24,807	24%	99	190	209	200
211	Arizona Christian University	AZ	Private	$29,756	$51,181	$23,000	44%	164	180	212	193
212	New York Film Academy	CA	For-profit	$39,770	$29,902	$16,000	65%	201	175	200	204
213	Newschool of Arch. & Design^^	CA	Private	$49,073	$74,029	$31,000	62%	172	213	104	204
214	CA Aeronautical University	CA	For-profit	$36,180	$47,702	$30,705	44%	130	207	207	204
215	Academy of Art University	CA	For-profit	$37,222	$50,255	$31,000	27%	119	208	214	195

How to read the table. Click any column header to sort. Search by school, state or type (Public, Private, For-profit). Net price is for families earning under $75,000, after aid. Earnings are four years after graduation; graduation rate is within eight years. For category ranks, 1 is best. A dash means no data.