by our College Data Analytics Team
For student athletes, the right college balances academics with athletics. Our ranking highlights 58 programs for Men’s Crew by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
So you can compare your options, 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:
Leading the list is Stanford University, our #1 college for Men's Crew. Based in Stanford, CA, Stanford University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $53,699, compared with $53,699 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $42,012.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology is one of the top schools for Men's Crew, at #2. This private not-for-profit school is set in Cambridge, MA. Team revenue averages $20,438 per participant, against $20,438 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of California-Berkeley came in at #3 on this year's ranking for Men's Crew. This public school is set in Berkeley, CA. The program generates about $43,524 in revenue per athlete, compared with $37,185 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $21,267 per athlete.
Boston University earned the #4 place for student athletes. Boston University is a private not-for-profit school based in Boston, MA. Team revenue averages $54,666 per participant, with expenses of about $54,666 per participant. Athletic aid averages $27,954 per athlete.
Northeastern University is one of the top schools for Men's Crew, at #5. Northeastern University is a private not-for-profit school based in Boston, MA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $49,974, against $49,974 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $24,558.
Colgate University came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Based in Hamilton, NY, Colgate University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $25,958, compared with $25,958 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $22,658.
Georgetown University landed the #7 spot this year. Located in Washington, DC, Georgetown University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $17,659 per participant, compared with $17,659 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $14,232 per athlete.
Williams College ranked #8 on our 2026 list for Men's Crew. Located in Williamstown, MA, Williams College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $7,066 in revenue per athlete, compared with $7,066 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Harvard University placed #9 among the best colleges for Men's Crew. Harvard University is a private not-for-profit school based in Cambridge, MA. Team revenue averages $20,991 per participant, against $20,991 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Yale University came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Located in New Haven, CT, Yale University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $28,178, against $28,178 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Washington-Seattle Campus came in at #11 in this year's ranking. University of Washington-Seattle Campus is a public school based in Seattle, WA. Team revenue averages $19,742 per participant, against $82,510 in expenses. The school awards about $26,539 in athletic aid per athlete.
Tufts University landed the #12 spot this year. Located in Medford, MA, Tufts University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $7,423 in revenue per athlete, compared with $7,139 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Columbia University in the City of New York placed #13 among the best colleges for Men's Crew. Located in New York, NY, Columbia University in the City of New York is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $35,226 per participant, against $35,226 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Princeton University came in at #14 in this year's ranking. Located in Princeton, NJ, Princeton University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $17,981 per participant, against $17,981 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Syracuse University landed the #15 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Syracuse, NY. Team revenue averages $26,114 per participant, with expenses of about $41,316 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $33,068.
Santa Clara University ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Men's Crew. This private not-for-profit school is set in Santa Clara, CA. The program generates about $14,341 in revenue per athlete, compared with $14,341 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $19,355.
University of Pennsylvania landed the #17 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Philadelphia, PA. The program generates about $15,255 in revenue per athlete, compared with $15,255 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Brown University did well this year, earning the #18 position. Based in Providence, RI, Brown University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $22,020 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $22,020 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Wisconsin-Madison placed #19 among the best colleges for Men's Crew. Located in Madison, WI, University of Wisconsin-Madison is a public institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,278, compared with $35,460 spent per athlete. The school awards about $21,586 in athletic aid per athlete.
Dartmouth College landed the #20 spot this year. Located in Hanover, NH, Dartmouth College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $17,867 per participant, against $17,867 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Hamilton College placed #21 among the best colleges for Men's Crew. Based in Clinton, NY, Hamilton College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $10,473, against $10,473 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Gonzaga University placed #22 among the best colleges for Men's Crew. This private not-for-profit school is set in Spokane, WA. The program generates about $16,884 in revenue per athlete, compared with $15,929 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $14,963.
Bates College did well this year, earning the #23 position. Located in Lewiston, ME, Bates College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,718, with expenses of about $6,738 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
College of the Holy Cross ranked #24 on our 2026 list for Men's Crew. Based in Worcester, MA, College of the Holy Cross is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $11,421 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $11,421 per participant. Athletic aid averages $17,801 per athlete.
Drexel University did well this year, earning the #25 position. Drexel University is a private not-for-profit school based in Philadelphia, PA. Team revenue averages $33,152 per participant, against $33,152 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $25,843.
Not far behind, these colleges also placed near the top this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled 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
See our data sources and methodologies.