by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. This list ranks 39 colleges 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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Explore the leading programs below:
Leading the list is Case Western Reserve University, our #1 college for Women's Softball. Case Western Reserve University is a private not-for-profit school based in Cleveland, OH. The program generates about $16,622 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $16,622 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Denison University landed the #2 spot for Women's Softball. Based in Granville, OH, Denison University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $13,646, compared with $13,646 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Miami University-Oxford landed the #3 spot for Women's Softball. Based in Oxford, OH, Miami University-Oxford is a public institution. Miami University-Oxford records an NCAA APR of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 78%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $69,300, compared with $69,300 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $17,790 per athlete.
Kent State University at Kent earned the #4 place for student athletes. Located in Kent, OH, Kent State University at Kent is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 93%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $55,658, with expenses of about $55,658 per participant. Athletic aid averages $13,976 per athlete.
Cedarville University landed the #5 spot for Women's Softball. Located in Cedarville, OH, Cedarville University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $17,200, compared with $17,200 spent per athlete. The school awards about $5,791 in athletic aid per athlete.
Oberlin College ranked #6 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Oberlin, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $12,562, compared with $12,562 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Ohio State University-Main Campus did well this year, earning the #7 position. Ohio State University-Main Campus is a public school based in Columbus, OH. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 994, alongside a GSR of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 84%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $113,577, against $113,577 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $27,151.
Kenyon College did well this year, earning the #8 position. Located in Gambier, OH, Kenyon College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,354 in revenue per athlete, compared with $6,354 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Ohio Northern University ranked #9 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. Located in Ada, OH, Ohio Northern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $12,409, compared with $12,409 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
John Carroll University did well this year, earning the #10 position. Based in University Heights, OH, John Carroll University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $7,266 per participant, compared with $7,266 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of Dayton ranked #11 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Dayton, OH. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 996, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 83% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $30,064, against $58,073 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $13,913 per athlete.
The College of Wooster landed the #12 spot this year. The College of Wooster is a private not-for-profit school based in Wooster, OH. Team revenue averages $13,417 per participant, compared with $11,629 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Ohio University-Main Campus came in at #13 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in Athens, OH. Ohio University-Main Campus records an NCAA APR of 997, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. About 63% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $48,171 in revenue per athlete, against $48,171 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $17,284.
Youngstown State University ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This public school is set in Youngstown, OH. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, and a 94% Graduation Success Rate. About 79% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $28,415 in revenue per athlete, compared with $28,415 spent per athlete. The school awards about $8,634 in athletic aid per athlete.
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus did well this year, earning the #15 position. Bowling Green State University-Main Campus is a public school based in Bowling Green, OH. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 997, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 59%. The program generates about $28,668 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $30,204 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $16,840.
University of Toledo ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. Located in Toledo, OH, University of Toledo is a public institution. University of Toledo records an NCAA APR of 998, and a 87% Graduation Success Rate. About 54% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $45,427 in revenue per athlete, compared with $45,427 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $21,660.
Franciscan University of Steubenville landed the #17 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Steubenville, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $4,900, compared with $4,449 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Cleveland State University did well this year, earning the #18 position. Located in Cleveland, OH, Cleveland State University is a public institution. The federal graduation rate stands at 65%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $21,910, with expenses of about $24,535 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $8,645.
Baldwin Wallace University ranked #19 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. This private not-for-profit school is set in Berea, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,980, with expenses of about $6,980 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Ashland University placed #20 among the best colleges for Women's Softball. Located in Ashland, OH, Ashland University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $12,333 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $12,333 per participant. Athletic aid averages $5,808 per athlete.
Walsh University ranked #21 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. Based in North Canton, OH, Walsh University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $11,284 per participant, with expenses of about $9,757 per participant. The school awards about $5,087 in athletic aid per athlete.
Otterbein University came in at #22 in this year's ranking. Located in Westerville, OH, Otterbein University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $4,967 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $4,389 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Capital University ranked #23 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. Based in Columbus, OH, Capital University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $6,279 per participant, against $6,279 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Mount Union ranked #24 on our 2026 list for Women's Softball. University of Mount Union is a private not-for-profit school based in Alliance, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,892, with expenses of about $6,892 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Ohio Wesleyan University landed the #25 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Delaware, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,301, with expenses of about $7,301 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
These programs also stood out among the best this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled 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.