The best college in Texas also ranks among the top 10 in America, a recent analysis shows.
Niche, previously called College Prowler, is a ranking and review site intended to help students of all ages find schools that best suit them. For the "2026 Best Colleges in America," nearly half a million student reviews were collected on more than 1,000 higher education institutions across the nation. In addition to gathering numerical data like student population, acceptance rate and annual net cost, Niche "grades" schools on 15 measures important to students — from student life and safety to party scenes and campus food.
Did your school rank among the best in Texas? Here's what Niche found.
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Top 10 Texas colleges: 2026 report cards
Rank | School | Overall grade | Academics | Value | Diversity | Campus | Athletics | Party scene | Professors | Location | Dorms | Campus food | Student life | Safety |
1 | A+ | A+ | A+ | A+ | A | B+ | A | A+ | A+ | A | A | A+ | B- | |
2 | A+ | A+ | A | A | A | A+ | A+ | A | A+ | B- | A | A+ | C+ | |
3 | A+ | A | A- | A- | A- | A | A | A+ | B+ | B | A | A+ | B- | |
4 | A+ | A+ | A- | A | B | B+ | B | A+ | A- | B | C- | B+ | B- | |
5 | A | A | B | A- | A+ | A | A | A- | A- | A+ | B | A+ | B | |
6 | A | A | B- | A- | A+ | A- | A+ | A+ | A+ | A- | B+ | A+ | B | |
7 | A | A | B+ | A- | A | A | A+ | A+ | B | B | A | A+ | C | |
8 | A- | A- | A- | A | B | A- | A | A+ | B- | B | A | A- | C- | |
9 | A- | B+ | A- | A- | A- | B+ | B | A | B+ | B+ | A | A- | B- | |
10 | A- | A | C+ | A- | A- | A+ | B | A- | C | B+ | B+ | A | C+ |
Rice University ranks among 2026 top 10 US colleges
Texans may not be surprised to learn that the prestigious Rice University was recognized among Ivy League institutions. The private research university has an undergraduate student body of just 4,574, the result of the competitive environment that accepts just 8% of applicants.
Here is Niche's list of the top 10 colleges in America:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut
Stanford University in Stanford, California
Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire
Columbia University in New York, New York
Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee
Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey
California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, California
Rice University in Houston, Texas
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