State Rankings

Best Colleges in Colorado

Top colleges in Colorado ranked by national standing and graduate outcomes — updated 2026.

Colleges listed: 43

Avg grad earnings: $49,262

Public / Private: 33 / 10

Top Colleges in Colorado

Nationally ranked schools appear first. Remaining schools are ordered by median graduate earnings.

State #	School	Type	Grad Earnings	Admit Rate	SAT Avg	Grad Rate	Out-of-State
1	Colorado School of Mines Golden#51 national	Public	$97,335	59.7%	1,403	79.4%	$44,376
2	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder#126 national	Public	$69,738	83.3%	1,353	75.0%	$41,943
3	United States Air Force Academy USAF Academy#135 national	Public	N/A	13.9%	1,362	88.1%	N/A
4	Colorado College Colorado Springs#142 national	Private	$65,222	20.0%	1,445	86.0%	$67,932
5	University of Denver Denver#146 national	Private	$71,155	71.2%	1,344	78.0%	$59,340
6	Colorado State University-Fort Collins Fort Collins#252 national	Public	$60,543	89.6%	N/A	66.9%	$33,751
7	Regis University Denver#487 national	Private	$72,105	87.3%	N/A	61.1%	$43,980
8	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver#705 national	Public	$64,270	77.8%	1,119	47.4%	$28,209
9	Colorado State University Global Denver#778 national	Public	$76,813	92.9%	N/A	N/A	$8,400
10	Community College of Aurora Aurora#995 national	Public	$44,592	N/A	N/A	N/A	$15,680
11	Colorado Christian University Lakewood#1082 national	Private	$50,416	N/A	N/A	55.3%	$39,266
12	Red Rocks Community College Lakewood#1089 national	Public	$46,288	N/A	N/A	37.4%	$16,947
13	University of Northern Colorado Greeley#1152 national	Public	$52,231	86.4%	1,077	51.3%	$26,204
14	University of Colorado Colorado Springs Colorado Springs#1556 national	Public	$54,659	96.6%	1,140	45.3%	$20,492
15	Arapahoe Community College Littleton#1685 national	Public	$48,341	N/A	N/A	26.8%	$16,542
16	Colorado State University Pueblo Pueblo#1811 national	Public	$55,563	99.8%	1,005	38.0%	$17,242
17	Morgan Community College Fort Morgan#1821 national	Public	$39,429	N/A	N/A	46.1%	$16,360
18	Otero College La Junta#1856 national	Public	$39,018	N/A	N/A	N/A	$7,048
19	Northeastern Junior College Sterling#1874 national	Public	$39,893	N/A	N/A	N/A	$8,045
20	Colorado Mesa University Grand Junction#1911 national	Public	$45,823	81.4%	1,070	41.5%	$24,312
21	Front Range Community College Westminster#1914 national	Public	$45,910	N/A	N/A	30.1%	$16,974
22	Western Colorado University Gunnison#1920 national	Public	$46,833	97.5%	1,130	50.7%	$23,683
23	Metropolitan State University of Denver Denver#2093 national	Public	$52,093	99.1%	1,014	29.9%	$29,503
24	Colorado Mountain College Glenwood Springs#2170 national	Public	$44,127	N/A	N/A	25.9%	$12,540
25	Trinidad State College Trinidad#2186 national	Public	$36,475	N/A	N/A	55.7%	$7,100
26	Aims Community College Greeley#2219 national	Public	$41,887	N/A	N/A	35.1%	$11,306
27	Fort Lewis College Durango#2268 national	Public	$46,349	93.2%	1,084	43.1%	$20,798
28	Pikes Peak State College Colorado Springs#2300 national	Public	$40,796	N/A	N/A	23.0%	$16,534
29	Pueblo Community College Pueblo#2333 national	Public	$37,434	N/A	N/A	37.5%	$17,116
30	Adams State University Alamosa#2364 national	Public	$44,372	N/A	N/A	31.6%	$21,848
31	Community College of Denver Denver#2367 national	Public	$39,095	N/A	N/A	15.8%	$17,136
32	Technical College of the Rockies Delta	Public	$45,516	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
33	Columbia College - Denver Aurora	Private	$45,378	N/A	N/A	N/A	$8,304
34	Montessori Education Center of the Rockies Denver	Private	$44,643	80.0%	N/A	91.7%	N/A
35	Colorado Northwestern Community College Rangely	Public	$43,526	N/A	N/A	N/A	$7,084
36	Nazarene Bible College Colorado Springs	Private	$41,450	N/A	N/A	N/A	$10,002
37	Pickens Technical College Aurora	Public	$39,210	N/A	N/A	N/A	$8,330
38	Otero College - La Junta High School La Junta	Public	$39,018	N/A	N/A	N/A	$7,048
39	Lamar Community College Lamar	Public	$38,719	N/A	N/A	N/A	$7,052
40	Emily Griffith Technical College Denver	Public	$35,487	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
41	Naropa University Boulder	Private	$28,720	94.0%	N/A	46.0%	$34,600
42	Dr. Ida Rolf Institute Boulder	Private	N/A	100.0%	N/A	N/A	N/A
43	National Institute for Medical Assistant Advancement (NIMAA) Denver	Private	N/A	20.7%	N/A	N/A	N/A

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Excludes for-profit institutions.

Compare any two colleges

Use CollegeBound's interactive compare tool to see admissions, costs, and outcome data side by side for any schools in Colorado or beyond.

Open Compare Tool

Best Colleges in Other States

Alabama→Alaska→Arizona→Arkansas→California→Connecticut→Delaware→District of Columbia→

← National Rankings