By Esther Wickham
The Center Square

Princeton University claimed the nation’s top spot for universities and best school overall in WalletHub’s 2026 Best Colleges rankings.

The WalletHub report analyzed 800 higher-education institutions, categorizing them separately as universities and colleges across seven key dimensions: student selectivity, cost and financing, faculty resources, campus safety, campus experience, educational outcomes and career outcomes.

The report relied on 30 metrics, each graded on a 100-point scale. A score of 100 represented optimal performance and conditions for undergraduates during and after enrollment.

With only a 4% acceptance rate, No. 1-ranked Princeton in New Jersey has the best student-to-faculty ratios in the country, with one faculty member for every five students, according to the report.

The school has high-quality teaching, too, leading to a 97% graduation rate, the best in the nation, the report added.

The top colleges have a personalized education experience in providing small class sizes, with one faculty member for every seven to nine students, WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said.

The top college and 19th best school overall for 2026 is Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, which The Center Square previously reported that the state’s residents spend an average of $55,144 per year on education. This includes in-state tuition and fees for a full-time undergraduate degree, on-campus room and board, books, supplies and other campus expenses.

“The best colleges also offer very safe campuses and have plenty of opportunities for enrichment through things like NCAA athletics or study abroad programs,” Lupo said. “Graduates from the top schools get significant salary bumps compared to the general population, with the median salary 10 years after enrolling around $80,000 or more.”

Yet many graduates nationwide struggle with debt and underemployment, Lupo told The Center Square. “A lot of students are coming out with degrees that maybe are not going to place them in a profession that’s going to compensate them enough to pay down the student loan debt. You see a great number of college graduates moving back in with their parents, taking side jobs, working part-time jobs.”

Princeton alumni defy that trend: Their median salary 10 years after enrollment exceeds $110,000, ranking eighth-highest in the study.