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CollegeRanker

The 2026 Outcomes Audit of American Higher Education

In America, your economic future now depends more on the state you study in than the prestige of the college you choose.

We graded all 50 states and DC across 3,128 degree-granting institutions on graduate earnings, social mobility, and cost. Built on the U.S. College Scorecard and Opportunity Insights mobility research, not reputation surveys.

105%
Earnings gap between the top and bottom state
Louisiana
Leads the nation in social mobility
$48,342
Median graduate earnings, 10 years out
Read the 2026 report Download the data (CSV)
The Hidden Geography of Economic Mobility Outcomes Index
New York — Outcome 86 (A) New Jersey — Outcome 78 (A) California — Outcome 76 (A-) Illinois — Outcome 75 (A-) Massachusetts — Outcome 71 (A-) Connecticut — Outcome 70 (A-) Pennsylvania — Outcome 70 (A-) Maryland — Outcome 69 (B+) North Dakota — Outcome 68 (B+) Rhode Island — Outcome 67 (B+) Louisiana — Outcome 64 (B+) Colorado — Outcome 63 (B+) Minnesota — Outcome 62 (B+) Nebraska — Outcome 62 (B+) Wisconsin — Outcome 62 (B+) Washington — Outcome 61 (B) Iowa — Outcome 59 (B) Virginia — Outcome 59 (B) Delaware — Outcome 58 (B) Texas — Outcome 56 (B) Indiana — Outcome 55 (B) Oregon — Outcome 55 (B) Vermont — Outcome 55 (B) South Dakota — Outcome 54 (B) Hawaii — Outcome 52 (B) Mississippi — Outcome 52 (B) New Mexico — Outcome 52 (B) Wyoming — Outcome 52 (B) Michigan — Outcome 51 (B-) Idaho — Outcome 50 (B-) Maine — Outcome 48 (B-) Florida — Outcome 46 (B-) Montana — Outcome 45 (B-) New Hampshire — Outcome 45 (B-) Oklahoma — Outcome 45 (B-) Arkansas — Outcome 42 (C+) Kansas — Outcome 40 (C+) Tennessee — Outcome 39 (C+) Ohio — Outcome 38 (C+) Georgia — Outcome 37 (C+) Missouri — Outcome 36 (C+) Alabama — Outcome 35 (C+) Kentucky — Outcome 34 (C+) Utah — Outcome 34 (C+) North Carolina — Outcome 33 (C) West Virginia — Outcome 33 (C) Nevada — Outcome 32 (C) South Carolina — Outcome 27 (C) Arizona — Outcome 12 (C-) Alaska — insufficient data District of Columbia — Outcome 68 (B+)
Lower Higher Explore the live map →

Trust & Source Ledger · built on the nation's core higher-education datasets

30M+ tax records · Zero surveys · 100% public data

3,128
Schools analyzed
152
Degrees tracked
205
Careers tracked
30M+
Tax records analyzed
1,130
Rankings published
51
States + DC
Live · CollegeRanker outcomes data

The Academic Map of the American Dream

Every college moves students a different distance.

Two numbers decide whether a college changes lives: how many low-income students it lets in — access — and how many of them reach the top income quintile — success. The schools that transform the country most do both. Most famous ones do only the second.

Engines of the American Dream high access + high success 0% 10% 20% 30% 0% 20% 40% 60% Access — % of students from the bottom 20% Success — % who reach the top 20% CUNY BaruchPaceFlorida IntlGeorgia StatePennMITHarvardPrinceton
Redder = higher overall mobility Larger = more students

Each dot is one college. CUNY Baruch enrolls 28% low-income students and sends 47% of them to the top — while Harvard sends 58% to the top but enrolls just 3%. Data: Opportunity Insights Mobility Report Card & U.S. Dept. of Education. How we measure →

What this measures

What we measure, and what the rankings don't.

Every grade on this site is a measured outcome from public data. None of it is reputation, and none of it is for sale.

Sources: College Scorecard · Opportunity Insights · NCES IPEDS · BLS

  • Reputation surveys Federal earnings records
  • Admissions selectivity Mobility impact — who actually rises
  • Sticker price Net price by income, and ROI
  • Prestige and brand What graduates go on to earn

The National Story

The United States, in 50 education economies

Full report →

Higher education is not one national system. It is fifty. Each card is a state's outcome grade, ranked by our Outcomes Index™. Open any one for its full report.

The Lead

Today's highest-signal findings

All rankings →

Social Mobility

12.9%

CUNY Bernard M Baruch College

Today's highest-mobility colleges

Schools that move the most students from the bottom income quintile to the top.

View breakdown →

Return on Investment

18×

Princeton University

Best-value universities

Earnings returned for every $1 of annual net price.

View breakdown →

Graduate Earnings

$143K

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Highest graduate earnings

Median earnings a decade after enrollment, from federal tax records.

View breakdown →

Degrees

$229,300

Medicine (MD)

Fastest-paying degrees

Programs with the strongest median salary outcomes across all levels.

View breakdown →

Original Research

The latest from our data desk

All research →

Economic connectedness vs. low-income success

267%

Low-income students at colleges in the top quartile of economic connectedness are 267% more likely to reach the top income quintile than peers at the least-connected schools.

n = 1,503 Read the analysis →

Net price vs. graduate earnings

34%

The most expensive quartile of colleges costs 373% more than the most affordable — but their graduates earn just 34% more.

n = 4,409 Read the analysis →

Graduation rate vs. earnings

11%

Colleges in the top quartile for graduation rate produce graduates who earn 11% more than the bottom quartile.

n = 4,319 Read the analysis →

Findings refreshed 2026-06-06 · 5,745 institutions in the research universe.

The Flagship Report · 2026 Annual Edition

The State of American Higher Education Outcomes for 2026

Which states, and which schools, actually turn tuition into earnings and upward mobility. Built on federal tax records and Opportunity Insights research, refreshed for 2026.

3,128
Institutions
51
States + DC
$48K
Median earnings
Read the 2026 Report

Top Earnings by State

  1. 1 Rhode Island $70K
  2. 2 Connecticut $60K
  3. 3 Pennsylvania $58K
  4. 4 Massachusetts $57K
  5. 5 Illinois $56K

Top Mobility by State

  1. 1 Louisiana 3.5%
  2. 2 New York 3.2%
  3. 3 New Mexico 2.6%
  4. 4 New Jersey 2.5%
  5. 5 California 2.5%

What CollegeRanker shows you

  • Median Earnings

    10 years after enrollment

  • Debt vs Income

    Repayment burden by program

  • Mobility Rate

    Bottom quintile → top quintile

  • Employment Outcomes

    Completion & post-grad work

Based on federal and research datasets: College Scorecard, Opportunity Insights mobility, IPEDS.

Social mobility

Low-income students who climb to the top income quintile (Q1→Q5)

  1. CUNY Bernard M Baruch College 12.9%
  2. CUNY Lehman College 10.2%
  3. CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice 9.7%
  4. MCPHS University 9.3%
  5. Pace University 8.4%
  6. CUNY Brooklyn College 8.1%
  7. CUNY Hunter College 7.5%
  8. United Talmudical Seminary 7.2%

Live from our data · U.S. Dept of Education & Opportunity Insights. How we measure →

Start your search by what matters to you

The data, unfiltered

What will you earn?

Every dot is a U.S. college — placed by what it costs against what its graduates earn a decade later. Pick a major to see the schools that produce it. This is the whole argument behind CollegeRanker, on one chart.

—
Median earnings · 10 yrs
—
Median net price · yr
—
Colleges shown
—
Out-earn the typical worker
Public Private nonprofit U.S. median worker (~$48K)
Calculate your ROI →

Compare Engine

Compare any two schools instantly

Outcomes, debt, and mobility side by side. Pick two schools and see the gap.

Loading 6,000+ schools...

Degree Intelligence

Degrees, by the Outcomes They Produce

We score every degree on five measures: salary, growth, AI resilience, education barrier, and competition. Of 152+ degrees tracked, 56 rate as AI-resilient (score 70+), 26 project 20%+ job growth, and 47 break $100K median salary. Browse the leaders below.

All 152 →

Career Intelligence

Where Degrees Lead

We score every career on five measures: salary, growth, AI resilience, education barrier, and competition. Of 205+ careers tracked, 87 rate as AI-resilient (score 70+), 20 project 20%+ job growth, and 64 break $100K median salary. Browse the leaders below.

All 200+ →

Cite & share

Share the story of America's higher-education outcomes.

Every figure on this site traces back to public federal data, and you are welcome to cite it. Download the full 50-state dataset, take the report, and pull the angle that fits your story.

Download state data (CSV) Get the report (PDF)

Please cite: CollegeRanker, The State of American Higher Education Outcomes for 2026. collegeranker.com/states

Five angles, ready to quote

  • Inequality & Mobility
  • Economic ROI
  • Public Accountability
  • National Contrast
  • AI Resilience
  • 50-state outcome scorecard with letter grades
  • Earnings, mobility, value, and graduation by state
  • The AI-resilience index, state by state
  • The six-type geography of higher-ed outcomes

Chart embeds and an API are on the way. Need a specific cut? Talk to Studio →

Methodology

Published, sourced, and reproducible.

Every weight and formula is published, and every number traces to a public dataset. You can rebuild our results yourself. Here is what they are built on:

U.S. Dept. of Education — College Scorecard

Standardized earnings, debt, completion, and net-price reporting built from federal aid and tax records.

Opportunity Insights — Mobility Research

Raj Chetty's team tracked 30M+ students through anonymized tax records to measure who actually moves up the income ladder.

NCES IPEDS

Enrollment, graduation, and institutional characteristics reported by every Title IV school in the country.

BLS — Occupational Outlook

Median wages and 2023–2033 growth projections behind our degree and career outlook scores.

See the full methodology and weights →

Ready to Start?

Pick your starting point — explore the rankings, or find the degree behind the career you want.

Explore Rankings Find My Degree
The State of American Higher Education Outcomes for 2026 — report cover Download PDF

The 2026 Annual Report

The State of American Higher Education Outcomes

Every state graded on what graduates earn, how far they climb, and what college really costs — the hidden geography of economic mobility, in one report.

Download the report Explore the live data →

Free · 21 pages · 5,745 institutions · 100% federal data, no surveys