by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. We have ranked 20 colleges for Women’s Cross Country by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, College Factual weighs 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:
Leading the list is Loyola Marymount University, our #1 college for Women's Cross Country. This private not-for-profit school is set in Los Angeles, CA. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $40,439, with expenses of about $40,439 per participant. The school awards about $40,056 in athletic aid per athlete.
Stanford University landed the #2 spot for Women's Cross Country. Located in Stanford, CA, Stanford University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 992. The program generates about $48,826 in revenue per athlete, compared with $48,826 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $42,012.
California Institute of Technology is one of the top schools for Women's Cross Country, at #3. Based in Pasadena, CA, California Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,897, compared with $7,897 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Saint Mary's College of California landed the #4 spot for Women's Cross Country. This private not-for-profit school is set in Moraga, CA. The team's NCAA APR score is 993. The program generates about $18,498 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $18,498 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $18,999.
Santa Clara University earned the #5 place for student athletes. This private not-for-profit school is set in Santa Clara, CA. The team's NCAA APR score is 988. The program generates about $17,233 in revenue per athlete, compared with $17,233 spent per athlete. The school awards about $19,355 in athletic aid per athlete.
Chapman University did well this year, earning the #6 position. Based in Orange, CA, Chapman University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $3,856 in revenue per athlete, compared with $3,856 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of California-Irvine did well this year, earning the #7 position. This public school is set in Irvine, CA. The team's NCAA APR score is 995. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $1,295, with expenses of about $1,295 per participant. The school awards about $13,955 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of California-Santa Barbara placed #8 among the best colleges for Women's Cross Country. Located in Santa Barbara, CA, University of California-Santa Barbara is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 992. Team revenue averages $9,721 per participant, with expenses of about $9,721 per participant. Athletic aid averages $11,355 per athlete.
University of the Pacific landed the #9 spot this year. Based in Stockton, CA, University of the Pacific is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 968. The program generates about $24,125 in revenue per athlete, compared with $24,125 spent per athlete. The school awards about $21,596 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Redlands landed the #10 spot this year. Located in Redlands, CA, University of Redlands is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $6,381 per participant, against $6,630 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
California Lutheran University placed #11 among the best colleges for Women's Cross Country. This private not-for-profit school is set in Thousand Oaks, CA. Team revenue averages $2,945 per participant, compared with $2,945 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Sonoma State University ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Women's Cross Country. Sonoma State University is a public school based in Rohnert Park, CA. The program generates about $27,655 in revenue per athlete, compared with $27,655 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $3,732 per athlete.
California State University-San Bernardino ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Women's Cross Country. Based in San Bernardino, CA, California State University-San Bernardino is a public institution. The program generates about $27,973 in revenue per athlete, against $27,520 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $5,698 per athlete.
University of California-Merced came in at #14 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in Merced, CA. Team revenue averages $8,666 per participant, with expenses of about $8,666 per participant. Athletic aid averages $1,179 per athlete.
University of La Verne came in at #15 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in La Verne, CA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $3,569, against $3,680 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
California State University-Chico ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Women's Cross Country. California State University-Chico is a public school based in Chico, CA. Team revenue averages $9,257 per participant, with expenses of about $6,505 per participant. Athletic aid averages $2,367 per athlete.
California State University-Los Angeles came in at #17 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in Los Angeles, CA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $11,510, with expenses of about $11,510 per participant. Athletic aid averages $3,687 per athlete.
California Baptist University came in at #18 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Riverside, CA. California Baptist University records an NCAA APR of 941. The program generates about $5,786 in revenue per athlete, compared with $4,147 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $23,790 per athlete.
San Francisco State University ranked #19 on our 2026 list for Women's Cross Country. Located in San Francisco, CA, San Francisco State University is a public institution. The program generates about $10,595 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $10,595 per participant. Athletic aid averages $2,480 per athlete.
California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt did well this year, earning the #20 position. Located in Arcata, CA, California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt is a public institution. Team revenue averages $9,849 per participant, compared with $11,366 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $4,418 per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. Programs are scored on 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.
