List of colleges and universities in the United States by endowment
Many colleges and universities in the United States maintain a financial endowment consisting of assets that are invested in financial securities, real estate, and other instruments. The investment yields a return that funds a portion of an institution's operational expenses while the principal exists in perpetuity. U.S. colleges and universities maintain some of the largest endowments in the world and make up the vast majority of higher education institutions with endowments greater than $1 billion.
The National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) maintains information on endowments at U.S. higher education institutions by fiscal year (FY).[1] As of FY2024[update], the total endowment market value of U.S. institutions stood at $837.720 billion, with an average across all institutions of $1.322 billion and a median of $244.426 million.[2][3]
There exists significant disparity in endowment income among US universities. One fifth of institutions own four fifths of the endowment wealth, while the bottom 20% of institutions own about 1%.[4]
Enhancements and levies
[edit]The tabulated data below are from NACUBO. Some universities benefit from endowments that are not under their direct control but which are nonetheless dedicated to the welfare of one or several institutions. Examples of these foundations include The Duke Endowment, the Robert A. Welch Foundation, and the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust.
Taxes
[edit]In 2017, a federal endowment tax was enacted in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 in the form of an excise tax of 1.4% on institutions that have at least 500 tuition-paying students and net assets of at least $500,000 per student. The $500,000 is not adjusted for inflation, so the threshold is effectively lowered over time. $244M in taxes was raised from 58 institutions in 2022.[5][6]
The endowment tax provision of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has been criticized as funding tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy at the expense of education. Critics note that the tax could threaten financial aid for low-income students, stifle social mobility, and obstruct life-saving research.[7][8][9] Lobbyists representing wealthy private universities continue to advocate for its repeal.[10][11] The Don't Tax Higher Education Act, which would repeal the endowment tax, was introduced in the 115th United States Congress,[12] 116th United States Congress,[13] and 117th United States Congress[14] but failed in the Ways and Means Committee each time.
The endowment tax was revised in the 2025 Big Beautiful Bill, resulting in higher taxes on the institutions with the greatest wealth per student:
- 8% endowment tax: Princeton University, Yale University, MIT, Stanford University, Harvard University
- 4% endowment tax: University of Notre Dame, Dartmouth College, Rice University, Vanderbilt University, University of Richmond
- 1.4% endowment tax: Emory University, Duke University, Washington University in St. Louis, Penn, Brown University
This endowment tax applies to endowment income, not the endowment.
Endowments greater than $1 billion
[edit]Private schools
[edit]Data are from NACUBO as reported in spring of 2026[15] but some institutions do not report.
| Rank | Institution | State | FY2025 endowment (billions USD) | FY2024 endowment (billions USD) | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harvard University | MA | $55.67 | $51.98 | +7.11% |
| 2 | Yale University | CT | $44.15 | $41.44 | +6.53% |
| 3 | Stanford University | CA | $40.79 | $37.63 | +8.38% |
| 4 | The Trustees of Princeton University | NJ | $36.42 | $34.05 | +6.94% |
| 5 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MA | $27.37 | $24.57 | +11.37% |
| 6 | The University of Pennsylvania | PA | $24.81 | $22.35 | +11.01% |
| 7 | University of Notre Dame | IN | $20.09 | $17.90 | +12.26% |
| 8 | Columbia University in the City of New York | NY | $15.92 | $14.78 | +7.68% |
| 9 | Northwestern University | IL | $15.17 | $14.21 | +6.74% |
| 10 | Johns Hopkins University | MD | $13.73 | $13.06 | +5.14% |
| 11 | Washington University in St. Louis | MO | $13.30 | $11.98 | +11.00% |
| 12 | Duke University | NC | $12.32 | $11.89 | +3.60% |
| 13 | Emory University | GA | $12.00 | $11.04 | +8.66% |
| 14 | Cornell University | NY | $11.75 | $10.66 | +10.23% |
| 15 | Vanderbilt University | TN | $10.86 | $10.25 | +5.95% |
| 16 | University of Chicago | IL | $10.62 | $10.10 | +5.11% |
| 17 | University of Southern California | CA | $9.03 | $8.15 | +10.84% |
| 18 | Dartmouth College | NH | $8.96 | $8.27 | +8.30% |
| 19 | Rice University | TX | $8.50 | $8.06 | +5.37% |
| 20 | Brown University | RI | $7.28 | $6.72 | +8.33% |
| 21 | New York University | NY | $7.28 | $6.55 | +11.15% |
| 22 | California Institute of Technology | CA | $4.32 | $4.14 | +4.16% |
| 23 | Carnegie Mellon University | PA | $4.29 | $4.00 | +7.26% |
| 24 | Boston College | MA | $4.24 | $3.78 | +12.13% |
| 25 | Boston University | MA | $4.02 | $3.54 | +13.56% |
| 26 | Georgetown University | DC | $3.95 | $3.64 | +8.60% |
| 27 | Williams College | MA | $3.93 | $3.66 | +7.54% |
| 28 | Amherst College | MA | $3.90 | $3.55 | +9.83% |
| 29 | University of Richmond | VA | $3.49 | $3.25 | +7.67% |
| 30 | University of Rochester | NY | $3.24 | $2.99 | +8.52% |
| 31 | Pomona College | CA | $3.22 | $2.99 | +7.65% |
| 32 | Wellesley College | MA | $3.19 | $3.01 | +6.00% |
| 33 | Bowdoin College | ME | $2.92 | $2.58 | +12.90% |
| 34 | Texas Christian University | TX | $2.85 | $2.68 | +6.65% |
| 35 | Grinnell College | IA | $2.85 | $2.67 | +6.61% |
| 36 | Swarthmore College | PA | $2.84 | $2.73 | +4.19% |
| 37 | The George Washington University | DC | $2.81 | $2.64 | +6.55% |
| 38 | Smith College | MA | $2.71 | $2.56 | +5.67% |
| 39 | Tufts University | MA | $2.71 | $2.53 | +6.84% |
| 40 | The Rockefeller University | NY | $2.61 | $2.42 | +7.76% |
| 41 | Case Western Reserve University | OH | $2.52 | $2.40 | +5.15% |
| 42 | Tulane University | LA | $2.47 | $2.27 | +8.52% |
| 43 | Southern Methodist University | TX | $2.34 | $2.12 | +10.25% |
| 44 | Syracuse University | NY | $2.27 | $2.10 | +8.25% |
| 45 | Washington and Lee University | VA | $2.19 | $2.04 | +7.29% |
| 46 | Baylor University | TX | $2.18 | $2.09 | +4.10% |
| 47 | Wake Forest University | NC | $2.15 | $2.00 | +7.63% |
| 48 | Saint Louis University | MO | $2.02 | $1.88 | +7.40% |
| 49 | Lehigh University | PA | $2.00 | $1.87 | +6.93% |
| 50 | Trinity University | TX | $1.94 | $1.83 | +5.73% |
| 51 | Medical College of Wisconsin | WI | $1.94 | $1.80 | +7.73% |
| 52 | Berea College | KY | $1.83 | $1.65 | +11.05% |
| 53 | Middlebury College | VT | $1.73 | $1.60 | +8.25% |
| 54 | University of Miami | FL | $1.71 | $1.59 | +7.73% |
| 55 | Santa Clara University | CA | $1.67 | $1.56 | +7.29% |
| 56 | Wesleyan University | CT | $1.64 | $1.58 | +3.66% |
| 57 | School of the Art Institute of Chicago | IL | $1.60 | $1.50 | +6.42% |
| 58 | Princeton Theological Seminary | NJ | $1.56 | $1.45 | +7.54% |
| 59 | Hamilton College | NY | $1.50 | $1.36 | +9.89% |
| 60 | Oberlin College | OH | $1.48 | $1.27 | +16.56% |
| 61 | Villanova University | PA | $1.47 | $1.34 | +10.24% |
| 62 | Berry College | GA | $1.47 | $1.37 | +7.17% |
| 63 | Rochester Institute of Technology | NY | $1.46 | $1.37 | +6.57% |
| 64 | Davidson College | NC | $1.46 | $1.37 | +6.23% |
| 65 | Loma Linda University | CA | $1.44 | $1.35 | +7.12% |
| 66 | Baylor College of Medicine | TX | $1.43 | $1.48 | -3.68% |
| 67 | Vassar College | NY | $1.39 | $1.30 | +7.13% |
| 68 | Loyola University of Chicago | IL | $1.37 | $1.06 | +11.03% |
| 69 | Brandeis University | MA | $1.36 | $1.26 | +7.30% |
| 70 | Claremont McKenna College | CA | $1.35 | $1.24 | +9.16% |
| 71 | Colgate University | NY | $1.34 | $1.25 | +7.18% |
| 72 | Bryn Mawr College | PA | $1.34 | $1.21 | +10.99% |
| 73 | University of Tulsa | OK | $1.34 | $1.28 | +3.95% |
| 74 | Carleton College | MN | $1.33 | $1.24 | +7.85% |
| 75 | Pepperdine University | CA | $1.29 | $1.30 | -0.20% |
| 76 | Bucknell University | PA | $1.26 | $1.17 | +8.23% |
| 77 | Colby College | ME | $1.25 | $1.16 | +7.94% |
| 78 | College of the Holy Cross | MA | $1.21 | $1.11 | +8.87% |
| 79 | Lafayette College | PA | $1.20 | $1.12 | +6.75% |
| 80 | Mount Holyoke College | MA | $1.18 | $1.10 | +7.15% |
| 81 | DePaul University | IL | $1.15 | $1.02 | +13.12% |
| 82 | University of Denver | CO | $1.15 | $1.09 | +5.86% |
| 83 | Drexel University | PA | $1.13 | $1.07 | +5.86% |
| 84 | Marquette University | WI | $1.13 | $1.00 | +13.48% |
| 85 | American University | DC | $1.12 | $1.05 | +6.90% |
| 86 | Howard University | DC | $1.12 | $1.03 | +8.47% |
| 87 | Denison University | OH | $1.10 | $1.04 | +6.26% |
| 88 | Colorado College | CO | $1.06 | $0.99 | +7.21% |
| 89 | Fordham University | NY | $1.05 | $1.02 | +2.85% |
Public schools
[edit]
For public universities, larger endowments are often associated with flagship state universities, especially those with medical schools. Fourteen states do not have institutions included in this list: Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Many of these states have small populations. The New England states, however, are known for well-endowed private institutions.
Data are from NACUBO as reported in spring of 2026[15], but some institutions do not report.
Endowments per student greater than $1 million
[edit]
Counterbalancing the effect of the large endowments per student for private institutions, average tuition and fees at private four-year institutions were approximately two to four times the average tuition and fees of four-year public institutions in academic year 2021–2022.[16] In 2026 a 4–8% tax will be levied on these high dollar per student endowments. In fact, many private institutions will be subject to some taxation.[17]
| Rank | Institution | Enrollment[3] (FTE – fall 2023) |
Endowment per student[3] (USD – FY2024) |
Change[3][18] (1‑year) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Princeton Theological Seminary | 282 | $5,154,575 | +12.2% |
| 2 | Princeton University | 9,079 | $3,750,669 | −2.1% |
| 3 | Yale University | 15,269 | $2,714,107 | −2.4% |
| 4 | Stanford University | 17,623 | $2,135,335 | +1.5% |
| 5 | Harvard University | 24,357 | $2,133,974 | +5.0% |
| 6 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 11,777 | $2,086,500 | +4.1% |
| 7 | RAND School of Public Policy | 158 | $1,981,314 | −11.4% |
| 8 | Amherst College | 1,910 | $1,858,417 | +5.6% |
| 9 | Pomona College | 1,652 | $1,810,914 | +11.4% |
| 10 | Williams College | 2,140 | $1,708,205 | +4.3% |
| 11 | California Institute of Technology | 2,463 | $1,682,826 | +10.2% |
| 12 | Columbia Theological Seminary | 167 | $1,676,212 | +11.1% |
| 13 | Swarthmore College | 1,712 | $1,593,734 | −0.5% |
| 14 | Grinnell College | 1,750 | $1,526,198 | +5.0% |
| 15 | Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary | 110 | $1,445,756 | +7.4% |
| 16 | University of Notre Dame | 12,785 | $1,399,873 | +8.7% |
| 17 | Bowdoin College | 1,847 | $1,397,968 | +10.2% |
| 18 | Wellesley College | 2,362 | $1,272,249 | +16.3% |
| 19 | Dartmouth College | 6,700 | $1,234,823 | +5.0% |
| 20 | Principia College | 838 | $1,141,078 | +10.3% |
| 21 | Berea College | 1,487 | $1,108,849 | +4.2% |
| 22 | Medical College of Wisconsin | 1,656 | $1,085,649 | +9.7% |
| 23 | Smith College | 2,495 | $1,027,705 | +18.5% |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "Historic Endowment Study Data". National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). February 17, 2023. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
- ↑ "Number of Respondents to the 2024 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments, and Total Endowment Market Values, by Endowment Size and Institution Type" (PDF). National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). February 12, 2025. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 "U.S. and Canadian 2024 NCSE Participating Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2024 Endowment Market Value, Change in Market Value from FY23 to FY24, and FY24 Endowment Market Values Per Full-time Equivalent Student" (XLSX). National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). February 12, 2025. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
- ↑ Day, Martin V.; Norton, Michael I. (2023). "Perceived and Ideal Inequality in University Endowments in the United States". Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 49 (8): 1151–1165. doi:10.1177/01461672221083766.
- ↑ "What is the tax treatment of college and university endowments?". The Tax Policy Briefing Book. Tax Policy Center. January 2024. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025.
- ↑ Seltzer, Rick (February 17, 2020). "How Much Are Most Colleges Paying in Endowment Tax?". Inside Higher Ed. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
- ↑ The Crimson Editorial Board, ed. (February 20, 2018). "End the Endowment Tax". The Harvard Crimson. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- ↑ Wilson, John (January 15, 2018). "Why the Endowment Tax Is Unconstitutional". Inside Higher Ed. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- ↑ Powell, Alvin (December 21, 2017). "Tax on university endowments passes". The Harvard Gazette. Harvard University. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- ↑ Kreighbaum, Andrew (April 23, 2018). "Endowment Tax Fight Not Over Yet". Inside Higher Ed. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- ↑ Fang, Lee (July 25, 2022). "Ivy League Universities Push for Special Tax Cut". The Intercept. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ↑ "H.R.5220 – Don't Tax Higher Education Act". Congress.gov. United States Congress. March 8, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- ↑ "H.R.4438 – Don't Tax Higher Education Act". Congress.gov. United States Congress. September 20, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- ↑ "H.R.4438 – Don't Tax Higher Education Act". Congress.gov. United States Congress. April 26, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- 1 2 "NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments (NCSE) Results". Public NCSE Tables 2025.
- ↑ "Tuition costs of colleges and universities". National Center for Education Statistics. United States Department of Education. August 4, 2023. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ↑ "Major Reconciliation Bill Becomes Law, With New Policies and Taxes for Higher Education". NACUBO. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
- ↑ "U.S. and Canadian 2023 NCSE Participating Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2023 Endowment Market Value, Change in Market Value from FY22 to FY23, and FY23 Endowment Market Values Per Full-time Equivalent Student" (XLSX). National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). February 15, 2024. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 12, 2025.