Best Colleges for Economics
50 Economics programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion — from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
For Economics, Harvard University (Massachusetts) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $155,592. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion — not reputation or cost — across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harvard University Cambridge, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $155,592 | $6,617 | 186 | 98.1 |
| 2 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $159,578 | $13,395 | 634 | 97.8 |
| 3 | Duke University Durham, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $161,149 | $13,187 | 209 | 97.3 |
| 4 | Princeton University Princeton, NJ | Bachelor's Degree | $160,763 | $11,250 | 122 | 97.1 |
| 5 | Yale University New Haven, CT | Bachelor's Degree | $142,936 | $12,562 | 204 | 96.6 |
| 6 | Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | Bachelor's Degree | $140,337 | $12,000 | 251 | 96.6 |
| 7 | Williams College Williamstown, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $166,678 | $12,925 | 107 | 96.5 |
| 8 | University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $135,050 | $12,650 | 799 | 96.4 |
| 9 | Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $146,524 | $12,000 | 129 | 96.4 |
| 10 | Cornell University Ithaca, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $137,935 | $15,000 | 182 | 94.4 |
| 11 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $129,985 | $14,621 | 234 | 94.4 |
| 12 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $128,882 | $12,250 | 132 | 94.3 |
| 13 | Brown University Providence, RI | Bachelor's Degree | $124,508 | $13,000 | 215 | 93.7 |
| 14 | Rice University Houston, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $129,575 | $11,644 | 75 | 93.5 |
| 15 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $126,006 | $15,250 | 335 | 93.1 |
| 16 | Dartmouth College Hanover, NH | Bachelor's Degree | $152,929 | $18,132 | 170 | 93.1 |
| 17 | Amherst College Amherst, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $141,730 | $16,662 | 91 | 92.5 |
| 18 | Wellesley College Wellesley, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $121,787 | $11,190 | 92 | 91.8 |
| 19 | Colgate University Hamilton, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $128,887 | $17,500 | 143 | 91.2 |
| 20 | Hamilton College Clinton, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $130,633 | $17,500 | 88 | 90.6 |
| 21 | Tufts University Medford, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $123,809 | $17,850 | 198 | 90.3 |
| 22 | Georgetown University Washington, DC | Bachelor's Degree | $118,999 | $15,500 | 181 | 90.1 |
| 23 | Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $121,337 | $18,000 | 354 | 89.4 |
| 24 | Stanford University Stanford, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $112,700 | $12,500 | 108 | 89.4 |
| 25 | University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN | Bachelor's Degree | $122,637 | $19,000 | 245 | 88.1 |
| 26 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $103,846 | $14,135 | 449 | 87.6 |
| 27 | Bates College Lewiston, ME | Bachelor's Degree | $110,880 | $13,000 | 68 | 86.9 |
| 28 | Barnard College New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $111,909 | $16,250 | 92 | 86.5 |
| 29 | Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO | Bachelor's Degree | $122,998 | $18,628 | 60 | 86.4 |
| 30 | University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $110,773 | $18,423 | 465 | 86.2 |
| 31 | Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $128,051 | $19,500 | 80 | 86.1 |
| 32 | Middlebury College Middlebury, VT | Bachelor's Degree | $123,477 | $19,500 | 111 | 85.8 |
| 33 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI | Bachelor's Degree | $110,552 | $18,750 | 618 | 85.3 |
| 34 | New York University New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $116,510 | $19,767 | 541 | 85 |
| 35 | Duke University Durham, NC | Master's Degree | $140,750 | — | 64 | 85 |
| 36 | University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $98,178 | $13,440 | 656 | 84.6 |
| 37 | Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $121,307 | $19,500 | 108 | 84.4 |
| 38 | Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME | Bachelor's Degree | $121,983 | $19,500 | 78 | 84.3 |
| 39 | Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO | Bachelor's Degree | $102,439 | $14,805 | 105 | 84.2 |
| 40 | Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $144,886 | $22,020 | 55 | 83.7 |
| 41 | Grinnell College Grinnell, IA | Bachelor's Degree | $110,724 | $16,500 | 46 | 83.6 |
| 42 | Lafayette College Easton, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $112,864 | $19,500 | 140 | 83.4 |
| 43 | Texas A & M University-College Station College Station, TX | Master's Degree | $121,910 | — | 95 | 82.4 |
| 44 | Trinity College Hartford, CT | Bachelor's Degree | $122,068 | $21,500 | 119 | 82.3 |
| 45 | University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA | Doctoral Degree | $162,229 | — | 15 | 82.2 |
| 46 | Brigham Young University Provo, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $95,227 | $11,000 | 145 | 82.1 |
| 47 | University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $95,440 | $15,000 | 861 | 81.9 |
| 48 | Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO | Master's Degree | $128,586 | — | 29 | 81.2 |
| 49 | Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $137,710 | $25,000 | 327 | 81.2 |
| 50 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $94,435 | $13,850 | 210 | 81 |
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0–100 within the Economics field (CIP 45.06) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Economics programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded — never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has the best Economics program?+
By our outcome score, Harvard University (Massachusetts) ranks #1 for Economics, with median graduate earnings of $155,592.
How are these Economics programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0–100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.
Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+
The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.
Can I filter Economics programs by state or degree level?+
Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.