by our College Data Analytics Team
For student athletes, the right college balances academics with athletics. This list ranks 33 schools for Women’s Softball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
So you can compare your options, College Factual scores each program on 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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University of Chicago tops our 2026 ranking of the best colleges for Women's Softball. Based in Chicago, IL, University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $13,901 per participant, against $13,901 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Northwestern University earned the #2 place for student athletes. Based in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Northwestern University records an NCAA APR of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 92% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $70,074, against $145,522 in expenses. The school awards about $53,919 in athletic aid per athlete.
Loyola University Chicago earned the #3 place for student athletes. This private not-for-profit school is set in Chicago, IL. Loyola University Chicago records an NCAA APR of 1000, and a 94% Graduation Success Rate. About 94% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $65,448, compared with $65,448 spent per athlete. The school awards about $23,325 in athletic aid per athlete.
Illinois Wesleyan University earned the #4 place for student athletes. Based in Bloomington, IL, Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,089, with expenses of about $9,089 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
North Central College came in at #5 on this year's ranking for Women's Softball. Located in Naperville, IL, North Central College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $11,264 per participant, against $9,015 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale landed the #6 spot this year. Based in Carbondale, IL, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 76% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $46,001 in revenue per athlete, against $46,001 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $11,525.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign placed #7 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. Located in Champaign, IL, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, and a 94% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 56%. Team revenue averages $22,800 per participant, compared with $87,935 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $25,398 per athlete.
Lewis University did well this year, earning the #8 position. Based in Romeoville, IL, Lewis University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $26,560 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $26,560 per participant. Athletic aid averages $9,669 per athlete.
University of Illinois Chicago did well this year, earning the #9 position. Located in Chicago, IL, University of Illinois Chicago is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 997, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 93%. Team revenue averages $51,785 per participant, against $51,785 in expenses. The school awards about $15,167 in athletic aid per athlete.
Eastern Illinois University landed the #10 spot this year. This public school is set in Charleston, IL. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 83% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $35,021, against $35,021 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $7,653 per athlete.
Lake Forest College came in at #11 in this year's ranking. Based in Lake Forest, IL, Lake Forest College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,746 in revenue per athlete, against $6,746 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
DePaul University placed #12 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. Located in Chicago, IL, DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution. DePaul University records an NCAA APR of 997, with a Graduation Success Rate of 94%. Its federal graduation rate is 74%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $81,970, with expenses of about $81,970 per participant. Athletic aid averages $23,928 per athlete.
Illinois State University landed the #13 spot this year. Based in Normal, IL, Illinois State University is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 997, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 73%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $49,317, compared with $49,317 spent per athlete. The school awards about $13,477 in athletic aid per athlete.
Bradley University ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Peoria, IL. Bradley University records an NCAA APR of 993, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 90% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $36,486, against $36,486 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $16,583 per athlete.
University of Illinois Springfield placed #15 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. University of Illinois Springfield is a public school based in Springfield, IL. Team revenue averages $18,952 per participant, compared with $18,952 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $4,768 per athlete.
Knox College placed #16 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. Located in Galesburg, IL, Knox College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,248, compared with $8,054 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Elmhurst University did well this year, earning the #17 position. Elmhurst University is a private not-for-profit school based in Elmhurst, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,570, against $4,570 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Northern Illinois University ranked #18 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This public school is set in Dekalb, IL. Northern Illinois University records an NCAA APR of 997, with a Graduation Success Rate of 91%. Its federal graduation rate is 71%. Team revenue averages $38,362 per participant, with expenses of about $38,362 per participant. Athletic aid averages $16,138 per athlete.
McKendree University placed #19 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. Located in Lebanon, IL, McKendree University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $27,286 per participant, against $27,286 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $6,695 per athlete.
Illinois College ranked #20 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. Located in Jacksonville, IL, Illinois College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $8,556 per participant, with expenses of about $8,556 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Millikin University did well this year, earning the #21 position. This private not-for-profit school is set in Decatur, IL. The program generates about $10,340 in revenue per athlete, compared with $10,340 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Western Illinois University came in at #22 in this year's ranking. Western Illinois University is a public school based in Macomb, IL. The team's NCAA APR score is 997, and a 88% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 72%. Team revenue averages $27,416 per participant, with expenses of about $27,416 per participant. The school awards about $10,303 in athletic aid per athlete.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did well this year, earning the #23 position. This public school is set in Edwardsville, IL. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 980, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 68%. Team revenue averages $31,567 per participant, compared with $31,567 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $8,334 per athlete.
North Park University landed the #24 spot this year. North Park University is a private not-for-profit school based in Chicago, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,501, against $8,501 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $32 per athlete.
Aurora University landed the #25 spot this year. Based in Aurora, IL, Aurora University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $4,765 in revenue per athlete, compared with $4,765 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid 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. Rankings consider 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.