by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. Our ranking highlights 127 schools for Men’s Baseball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, College Factual evaluates each program using a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Learn more about these schools below:
Northwestern University earned the #1 spot in this year's ranking for Men's Baseball. Located in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 997, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 87%. Team revenue averages $60,849 per participant, against $80,977 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53,919.
University of Notre Dame ranked #2 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Located in Notre Dame, IN, University of Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 83% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $80,279, with expenses of about $80,279 per participant. Athletic aid averages $34,391 per athlete.
University of Chicago is one of the top schools for Men's Baseball, at #3. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $10,653 in revenue per athlete, compared with $10,653 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Case Western Reserve University landed the #4 spot for Men's Baseball. Case Western Reserve University is a private not-for-profit school based in Cleveland, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $12,116, compared with $12,116 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor landed the #5 spot for Men's Baseball. Based in Ann Arbor, MI, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor is a public institution. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor records an NCAA APR of 990, alongside a GSR of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 87%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $20,226, with expenses of about $95,067 per participant. Athletic aid averages $28,650 per athlete.
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Located in Bowling Green, OH, Bowling Green State University-Main Campus is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 64%. Team revenue averages $28,027 per participant, compared with $27,645 spent per athlete. The school awards about $16,840 in athletic aid per athlete.
Ohio State University-Main Campus placed #7 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Located in Columbus, OH, Ohio State University-Main Campus is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 987, with a Graduation Success Rate of 95%. Its federal graduation rate is 58%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $104,407, with expenses of about $104,407 per participant. Athletic aid averages $27,151 per athlete.
Denison University landed the #8 spot this year. Based in Granville, OH, Denison University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $11,472 per participant, compared with $11,472 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Indiana University-Bloomington came in at #9 in this year's ranking. Based in Bloomington, IN, Indiana University-Bloomington is a public institution. Indiana University-Bloomington records an NCAA APR of 989, alongside a GSR of 96%. The federal graduation rate stands at 50%. The program generates about $85,172 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $85,172 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $23,161.
Western Michigan University placed #10 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. This public school is set in Kalamazoo, MI. Western Michigan University records an NCAA APR of 992, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 91%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $27,973, against $27,973 in expenses. The school awards about $19,248 in athletic aid per athlete.
Ball State University landed the #11 spot this year. This public school is set in Muncie, IN. The team's NCAA APR score is 995, alongside a GSR of 96%. About 56% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $38,897, against $38,897 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $16,206 per athlete.
Michigan State University landed the #12 spot this year. Located in East Lansing, MI, Michigan State University is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 991, alongside a GSR of 85%. The federal graduation rate stands at 86%. The program generates about $61,930 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $61,930 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $22,500.
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee landed the #13 spot this year. This public school is set in Milwaukee, WI. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 993, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 88% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $30,262 per participant, against $30,262 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $10,273 per athlete.
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. Located in Cincinnati, OH, University of Cincinnati-Main Campus is a public institution. University of Cincinnati-Main Campus records an NCAA APR of 991, with a Graduation Success Rate of 95%. Its federal graduation rate is 52%. Team revenue averages $77,461 per participant, against $77,461 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $20,882 per athlete.
Kalamazoo College ranked #15 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Kalamazoo, MI. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,466, compared with $9,466 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Kent State University at Kent did well this year, earning the #16 position. Located in Kent, OH, Kent State University at Kent is a public institution. Kent State University at Kent records an NCAA APR of 996, and a 91% Graduation Success Rate. About 68% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $45,834, against $45,834 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $13,976 per athlete.
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology did well this year, earning the #17 position. Based in Terre Haute, IN, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $6,986 per participant, against $6,278 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Bradley University came in at #18 in this year's ranking. Bradley University is a private not-for-profit school based in Peoria, IL. Bradley University records an NCAA APR of 985, and a 96% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 78%. The program generates about $41,654 in revenue per athlete, compared with $41,654 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $16,583 per athlete.
Calvin University placed #19 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Located in Grand Rapids, MI, Calvin University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $7,618 in revenue per athlete, compared with $7,618 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign placed #20 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. This public school is set in Champaign, IL. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 985, and a 95% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 54%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $17,790, with expenses of about $107,573 per participant. Athletic aid averages $25,398 per athlete.
University of Illinois Chicago ranked #21 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. Based in Chicago, IL, University of Illinois Chicago is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 982, alongside a GSR of 97%. The federal graduation rate stands at 70%. The program generates about $31,462 in revenue per athlete, compared with $31,462 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $15,167.
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse landed the #22 spot this year. Based in La Crosse, WI, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse is a public institution. The program generates about $13,740 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $12,838 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Cedarville University did well this year, earning the #23 position. Cedarville University is a private not-for-profit school based in Cedarville, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $13,094, with expenses of about $13,094 per participant. Athletic aid averages $5,791 per athlete.
Oberlin College came in at #24 in this year's ranking. Based in Oberlin, OH, Oberlin College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,934, with expenses of about $7,934 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Milwaukee School of Engineering did well this year, earning the #25 position. Located in Milwaukee, WI, Milwaukee School of Engineering is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $8,312 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $8,312 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Not far behind, these colleges also placed near the top this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology weighs a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.