How many colleges & universities are in the US? (2026 count by state)
Leadz.biz counts 44,236 colleges & universities in the United States as of May 31, 2026. That is 13.3 per 100,000 US residents, using the 2020 Census resident population. The figure is the number of businesses listed on Google Maps under this category in the Leadz database; it is not a census or a licensing count.
Number of colleges & universities by state
51 states and districts with at least one listing, largest first. Data as of May 31, 2026.
| State | Businesses | Share of US total | Per 100,000 residents | Email on file | Avg. Google rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 4,636 | 10.5% | 11.7 | 31.3% | 4.30 |
| Texas | 3,208 | 7.3% | 11.0 | 28.5% | 4.36 |
| New York | 2,628 | 5.9% | 13.0 | 32.1% | 4.31 |
| Florida | 2,358 | 5.3% | 10.9 | 31.6% | 4.32 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,932 | 4.4% | 14.9 | 34.8% | 4.39 |
| North Carolina | 1,836 | 4.2% | 17.6 | 35.6% | 4.46 |
| Illinois | 1,692 | 3.8% | 13.2 | 40.1% | 4.39 |
| Ohio | 1,632 | 3.7% | 13.8 | 34.2% | 4.35 |
| Georgia | 1,384 | 3.1% | 12.9 | 34.8% | 4.35 |
| Michigan | 1,286 | 2.9% | 12.8 | 28.9% | 4.44 |
| Virginia | 1,186 | 2.7% | 13.7 | 32.6% | 4.32 |
| Massachusetts | 1,117 | 2.5% | 15.9 | 32.6% | 4.32 |
| Missouri | 1,058 | 2.4% | 17.2 | 40.3% | 4.34 |
| Tennessee | 1,011 | 2.3% | 14.6 | 32.5% | 4.34 |
| Indiana | 967 | 2.2% | 14.3 | 31.4% | 4.33 |
| Washington | 941 | 2.1% | 12.2 | 36.2% | 4.44 |
| Alabama | 818 | 1.8% | 16.3 | 30.4% | 4.44 |
| Minnesota | 815 | 1.8% | 14.3 | 39.0% | 4.31 |
| Maryland | 801 | 1.8% | 13.0 | 37.7% | 4.44 |
| New Jersey | 773 | 1.7% | 8.3 | 37.6% | 4.33 |
| Arizona | 759 | 1.7% | 10.6 | 41.5% | 4.29 |
| Wisconsin | 697 | 1.6% | 11.8 | 37.7% | 4.38 |
| Kentucky | 670 | 1.5% | 14.9 | 34.9% | 4.47 |
| Iowa | 661 | 1.5% | 20.7 | 41.0% | 4.45 |
| Colorado | 651 | 1.5% | 11.3 | 34.4% | 4.29 |
| South Carolina | 630 | 1.4% | 12.3 | 32.4% | 4.35 |
| Oklahoma | 620 | 1.4% | 15.7 | 26.1% | 4.29 |
| Louisiana | 619 | 1.4% | 13.3 | 29.2% | 4.35 |
| Oregon | 605 | 1.4% | 14.3 | 37.7% | 4.36 |
| Kansas | 591 | 1.3% | 20.1 | 45.0% | 4.42 |
| Mississippi | 546 | 1.2% | 18.4 | 31.5% | 4.40 |
| Utah | 427 | 1.0% | 13.1 | 34.9% | 4.46 |
| Connecticut | 419 | 0.9% | 11.6 | 32.0% | 4.38 |
| Arkansas | 400 | 0.9% | 13.3 | 34.0% | 4.55 |
| Idaho | 367 | 0.8% | 20.0 | 29.4% | 4.33 |
| Nebraska | 365 | 0.8% | 18.6 | 39.7% | 4.47 |
| New Mexico | 313 | 0.7% | 14.8 | 41.9% | 4.37 |
| West Virginia | 283 | 0.6% | 15.8 | 46.3% | 4.30 |
| District of Columbia | 282 | 0.6% | 40.9 | 33.7% | 4.32 |
| Maine | 265 | 0.6% | 19.5 | 32.8% | 4.52 |
| Nevada | 250 | 0.6% | 8.1 | 25.2% | 4.29 |
| New Hampshire | 235 | 0.5% | 17.1 | 39.1% | 4.25 |
| Rhode Island | 217 | 0.5% | 19.8 | 26.3% | 4.41 |
| Hawaii | 187 | 0.4% | 12.8 | 44.4% | 4.26 |
| South Dakota | 182 | 0.4% | 20.5 | 40.7% | - |
| Montana | 176 | 0.4% | 16.2 | 37.5% | - |
| Vermont | 173 | 0.4% | 26.9 | 34.7% | 4.29 |
| North Dakota | 167 | 0.4% | 21.4 | 41.9% | 4.42 |
| Delaware | 154 | 0.3% | 15.6 | 32.5% | 4.37 |
| Alaska | 125 | 0.3% | 17.0 | 36.0% | 4.49 |
| Wyoming | 121 | 0.3% | 21.0 | 41.3% | 4.47 |
| United States | 44,236 | 100.0% | 13.3 | 34.0% | 4.36 |
State names link to the state list for the 12 largest states. "Email on file" is the share of listings with a stored email address; it is not a deliverability check.
Key findings
- California has the largest number of colleges & universities of any state: 4,636, or 10.5% of the US total.
- The three largest states (California, Texas and New York) together account for 23.7% of the US total.
- Relative to population, District of Columbia has the most colleges & universities (40.9 per 100,000 residents) and Nevada the fewest (8.1 per 100,000), among states with at least 50 counted.
- 34.0% of the colleges & universities counted (15,028 of 44,236) have an email address on file.
- The average Google rating across the colleges & universities counted is 4.36 out of 5.
Methodology
Each figure is the number of businesses listed on Google Maps that are in the Leadz database under the College category as of May 31, 2026.
This is not a census or a licensing count. A business can be missing from the database or filed under a different category. State figures may not add up to the US figure because some listings are outside the 50 states and the District of Columbia or have no state on record.
Per-capita figures divide each count by the 2020 Census resident population of the state (US figure: the 50 states and the District of Columbia) and multiply by 100,000. Share of US total divides each state count by the US figure.
Cite this page
Leadz.biz. "How many colleges & universities are in the US? (2026 count by state)." Data as of May 31, 2026. https://www.leadz.biz/statistics/colleges
Browse the colleges & universities list or see statistics for other categories.