by our College Data Analytics Team
For student athletes, the right college balances academics with athletics. This list ranks 31 schools for Men’s Baseball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To help you decide, 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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Here are the top-ranked colleges for student athletes:
Northwestern University tops our 2026 ranking of the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Based in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 997, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 87% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $60,849 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $80,977 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53,919.
University of Chicago is one of the top schools for Men's Baseball, at #2. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $10,653 per participant, against $10,653 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Bradley University earned the #3 place for student athletes. Located in Peoria, IL, Bradley University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 985, and a 96% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 78%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $41,654, compared with $41,654 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $16,583 per athlete.
University of Illinois Chicago earned the #4 place for student athletes. 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%. Team revenue averages $31,462 per participant, against $31,462 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $15,167 per athlete.
Illinois State University landed the #5 spot for Men's Baseball. Located in Normal, IL, Illinois State University is a public institution. Illinois State University records an NCAA APR of 986, alongside a GSR of 94%. The federal graduation rate stands at 58%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $34,058, against $34,058 in expenses. The school awards about $13,477 in athletic aid per athlete.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Based in Edwardsville, IL, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 987, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 60%. Team revenue averages $20,735 per participant, compared with $20,735 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $8,334 per athlete.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign landed the #7 spot this year. Located in Champaign, IL, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 985, with a Graduation Success Rate of 95%. About 54% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $17,790 per participant, against $107,573 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $25,398 per athlete.
North Central College placed #8 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Located in Naperville, IL, North Central College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $11,611, compared with $6,229 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Illinois Wesleyan University came in at #9 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Bloomington, IL. The program generates about $3,868 in revenue per athlete, compared with $3,868 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Lewis University came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Lewis University is a private not-for-profit school based in Romeoville, IL. Team revenue averages $14,212 per participant, with expenses of about $14,212 per participant. The school awards about $9,669 in athletic aid per athlete.
Illinois Institute of Technology landed the #11 spot this year. Located in Chicago, IL, Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $4,207 in revenue per athlete, compared with $4,207 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Elmhurst University landed the #12 spot this year. Located in Elmhurst, IL, Elmhurst University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $7,185 per participant, with expenses of about $5,551 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Illinois Springfield did well this year, earning the #13 position. University of Illinois Springfield is a public school based in Springfield, IL. Team revenue averages $12,211 per participant, with expenses of about $12,211 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $4,768.
Northern Illinois University ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. This public school is set in Dekalb, IL. Northern Illinois University records an NCAA APR of 977, with a Graduation Success Rate of 81%. The federal graduation rate stands at 54%. Team revenue averages $25,620 per participant, against $25,470 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $16,138.
Eastern Illinois University placed #15 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. This public school is set in Charleston, IL. Eastern Illinois University records an NCAA APR of 975, alongside a GSR of 96%. Its federal graduation rate is 50%. Team revenue averages $21,055 per participant, against $21,055 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $7,653.
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale came in at #16 in this year's ranking. Based in Carbondale, IL, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 959, with a Graduation Success Rate of 91%. About 59% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $34,306 in revenue per athlete, compared with $34,306 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $11,525 per athlete.
Knox College ranked #17 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Galesburg, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $2,519, compared with $4,574 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Aurora University ranked #18 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. Aurora University is a private not-for-profit school based in Aurora, IL. Team revenue averages $8,334 per participant, against $8,334 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
McKendree University landed the #19 spot this year. Located in Lebanon, IL, McKendree University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,978, compared with $8,978 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $6,695 per athlete.
Western Illinois University did well this year, earning the #20 position. Western Illinois University is a public school based in Macomb, IL. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 970, with a Graduation Success Rate of 91%. Its federal graduation rate is 52%. The program generates about $22,748 in revenue per athlete, against $22,748 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $10,303 per athlete.
Illinois College placed #21 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball. Located in Jacksonville, IL, Illinois College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,692, against $4,692 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
North Park University ranked #22 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Chicago, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $5,935, with expenses of about $5,935 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $32.
Millikin University came in at #23 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Decatur, IL. Team revenue averages $6,199 per participant, compared with $6,199 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Concordia University-Chicago did well this year, earning the #24 position. Based in River Forest, IL, Concordia University-Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $10,666 in revenue per athlete, compared with $10,363 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Roosevelt University landed the #25 spot this year. Based in Chicago, IL, Roosevelt University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $16,507 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $16,507 per participant. Athletic aid averages $8,633 per athlete.
These programs also stood out among the best 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
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.