This back-to-school season, the cost and value of higher education are top of mind.
In a time when going to college can put you in hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, and as more tech moguls share that they skipped university altogether, it could be worth considering a public school.
Every state has some sort of public school system, though they’re not all created equal. Just as private schools have the Ivy League, some state schools stand above the rest — Forbes now releases its own list of “Public Ivies” each year.
Public schools are also generally cheaper than private schools, especially if you stay in-state. But even paying out-of-state tuition at some public schools can cost half as much as the most expensive colleges charge.
We used US News & World Report’s ranking of best national universities to identify the top 25 public schools in the country. The list does not include liberal arts colleges focused on undergraduate education or regional universities with limited doctoral programs, although those are typically private schools.
Its ranking evaluated 434 US colleges across multiple metrics, including graduation rates, debt loads, average salaries, and admissions rates, among others, using data reported by schools and third-party sources.
College rankings have faced scrutiny over the years, with critics of US News & World Report’s lists arguing that they can pressure schools to perform well on certain metrics to boost their standing. Skeptics have also questioned the ranking methodology, saying it may fail to capture key, less quantifiable factors that add to a school’s quality.
US News has defended the rankings as a helpful resource, while admitting comparing colleges “can be challenging,” and the lists “don’t capture every nuance.”
“But we reject our critics’ paternalistic view that students are somehow incapable of discerning for themselves from this information which school is the best fit,” US News & World Report executive chairman and CEO Eric Gertler wrote in 2023 for the Wall Street Journal.
Here are the 25 best public universities across the US.
25. University of California, Merced
National rank: #57 (tie)
UC Merced, which opened in 2005, is the newest school in the UC system. It’s around 80 miles west of Yosemite National Park and has an enrollment of around 9,000 students, including undergraduates and graduates.
It’s a top performer in US News’ social mobility ranking, which means the university admits a large number of economically disadvantaged students and distributes Pell Grants to help them afford higher education.
21 (tie). Florida State University
National rank: #51 (tie)
Florida State University, located in Tallahassee, Florida’s capital city, was founded in 1851. It has an enrollment of about 33,000 undergraduate students.
FSU is known as the home of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, the only magnet-powered lab in the country and one of just 12 in the world.
21 (tie). Texas A&M University
National rank: #51 (tie)
Texas A&M is located in College Station, about 90 miles northwest of Houston, and was founded in 1876, 150 years ago this year. It has an enrollment of 61,000 undergraduate students.
Aside from its academics, Texas A&M is also known for its close ties to President George H. W. Bush. His presidential library is located on campus, and the school of government and public service is named after him. His gravesite is also on campus, near his library.
21 (tie). Virginia Tech
National rank: #51 (tie)
The town of Blacksburg is home to Virginia Tech, or the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, founded in 1872.
Virginia Tech has about 31,000 undergraduate students enrolled. It ranks No. 6 for the best industrial/manufacturing engineering program.
21 (tie). College of William & Mary
National rank: #51 (tie)
The second school on this list (but not the last) located in Virginia is the College of William & Mary, which is in Williamsburg. It’s named for King William III and Queen Mary II, who ruled England from 1689 to 1702.
The college itself was founded in 1693, making it the second-oldest college in the US. About 7,000 undergraduates are enrolled.
It ranked highly for its commitment to teaching undergrads rather than focusing on graduate-level research.
19 (tie). Purdue University
National ranking: #46 (tie)
Purdue is located in West Lafayette, Indiana, about 65 miles northwest of Indianapolis, with about 45,000 undergraduates calling this campus home. It was founded in 1869.
Purdue is famously called the “Cradle of Astronauts,” as 30 astronauts across NASA history have been Purdue alums, including Neil Armstrong.
19 (tie). University of Georgia
National ranking: #46 (tie)
UGA, located in Athens, was chartered by the state in 1785, making it the oldest state-chartered university in the US.
It has an enrollment of about 32,000 undergraduate students.
Per US News, UGA has the No. 1 insurance program in the country, which was founded in 1965.
16 (tie). Rutgers University — New Brunswick
National ranking: #42 (tie)
Rutgers has three campuses across New Jersey, but the biggest, located in New Brunswick, was ruled its best. It was founded in 1766 as Queen’s College, before getting renamed Rutgers in 1825.
Approximately 38,000 undergraduates are enrolled at the New Brunswick campus.
16 (tie). University of Washington
National ranking: #42 (tie)
Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is located in the middle of Seattle and has an undergraduate enrollment of about 41,000 students.
UW has strong nursing and computer science programs, both cracking US News’ top 10 lists.
16 (tie). University of Maryland, College Park
National ranking: #42 (tie)
The College Park campus is the largest in the UMD system, with about 31,000 undergraduate students. It was founded in 1856.
College Park is just over 8 miles from downtown Washington, DC, and 30 miles from Baltimore, making it a relatively easy commute to either city.
UMD’s cybersecurity program ranks at No. 9.
15. The Ohio State University
National ranking: #41
The Ohio State University, or OSU, has an undergraduate enrollment of about 47,000 students. Founded in 1870, it’s located in northern Columbus, the Buckeye State’s capital.
OSU has a well-regarded nursing program (No. 4), accounting program (No. 12), and supply chain/logistics program (No. 5).
14. University of California, Santa Barbara
National ranking: #40
Nearly 24,000 undergraduates call UCSB, founded in 1909, home.
Much can be said about UCSB’s strong academics, but it’s probably most famous for its proximity to the beach, making it a dream school for aspiring surfers everywhere.
12 (tie). University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
National ranking: #36 (tie)
About 140 miles southwest of Chicago, you’ll find the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the flagship school of the UI system. It was founded in 1867 and has an undergrad population of 37,000.
UIUC — or, according to a recent branding shift, Illinois — was ranked fifth overall in the nation for its school of engineering, which was founded in 1868, making it one of the oldest schools at the university.
12 (tie). University of Wisconsin — Madison
National ranking: #36 (tie)
UW-Madison’s 939-acre campus, located in the heart of Madison, is home to 39,000 undergraduate students.
Founded in 1848, it’s ranked in the top 10 for nursing, insurance, marketing, real estate, and computer systems.
9 (tie). Georgia Institute of Technology
National ranking: #32 (tie)
The second Georgia university on the list is located a mile from downtown Atlanta. Georgia Tech was founded in 1885 and has an undergraduate population of about 20,000.
It was ranked the third-most innovative school, behind MIT and Arizona State.
9 (tie). University of California, Davis
National ranking: #32 (tie)
Fun fact: UC Davis is the northernmost undergraduate campus in the University of California system, above both San Francisco and Berkeley.
It was founded in 1905 and has roughly 32,000 undergraduates.
UC Davis is tied for No. 2 among universities with the best biological/agricultural engineering programs.
9 (tie). University of California, Irvine
National ranking: #32 (tie)
UC Davis is tied with another California school: UC Irvine, located in Orange County, with an undergraduate population of 30,000.
The school was founded in 1965 and is best-known for its STEM programs. That, and its mascot, the anteater.
7 (tie). University of Florida
National ranking: #30 (tie)
Gainesville is home to the University of Florida, founded in 1853. It’s in northern Florida, roughly 110 miles northwest of Orlando.
There are about 36,000 undergraduate Gators running around the 2,000-acre grounds — and they’re (probably) all powered by Gatorade, the famed sports drink that was created right there on campus by researchers looking to help athletes replenish their electrolytes and stay hydrated.
7 (tie). University of Texas at Austin
National ranking: #30 (tie)
UT Austin, founded in 1883, takes up a big chunk of Texas’ capital city — in fact, it’s just a 15-minute walk from campus to see the Lone Star State’s statehouse. It has 43,000 undergraduates.
Many UT programs are world-renowned, but the Moody College of Communication is among its most famous.
6. University of California, San Diego
National ranking: #29
From the northernmost UC school to the southernmost — UC San Diego, established in 1960, is approximately 30 minutes from the California/Mexico border.
The university, which has 35,000 undergraduate students, is known for its strong engineering and biotechnology programs.
4 (tie). University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
National ranking: #26 (tie)
UNC-Chapel Hill, located less than 30 miles west of Raleigh, was founded in 1789 and has an undergraduate population of 21,000.
Besides its famed NCAA basketball team, Chapel Hill has a top 10 business school and a top five nursing school.
4 (tie). University of Virginia
National ranking: #26 (tie)
The University of Virginia, or UVA, was founded in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1819. It has about 18,000 undergraduate students.
In addition to its strong undergraduate programs, the UVA School of Law is the No. 4 law school in the nation, according to US US News.
3. University of Michigan
National ranking: #20 (tie)
The University of Michigan, known colloquially as “Michigan,” was founded in Ann Arbor in 1817, which is about 40 miles west of Detroit.
Michigan has an undergraduate population of 34,000 students. It’s best known for the Ross School of Business, which ranks No. 13 among full-time MBA programs in the US.
2. University of California, Los Angeles
National ranking: #17 (tie)
UCLA, founded in 1919 and located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, is one of the biggest universities in the UC system, with 33,000 undergraduates and a well-regarded medical school, law school, and public health master’s program.
It also has just a 9% acceptance rate, making it a highly sought-after acceptance letter.
1. University of California, Berkeley
National ranking: #15 (tie)
UC Berkeley (or simply Cal) was named by US News & World Report as the best public school in the US. Founded in 1868, it is the oldest university in the University of California system.
Its 33,000 undergraduate students call the Bay Area home, and the university has top-five biomedical, chemical, civil, computer, electrical, environmental, industrial/manufacturing, materials, and mechanical engineering programs.
