Best Illinois Colleges

There are 134 colleges and universities in Illinois enrolling 688,455 students. Explore the list of top colleges in Illinois below to begin your college search. The CollegeSimply rankings are objective and data-driven in order to help you find good matches for you. Learn how the Best Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page. Whether you're searching for a good public, private or community college, this guide to universities in Illinois offers a comprehensive view to the state's higher education options.

 Illinois is home to nationally ranked institutions like University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and Illinois Wesleyan University. The highest ranked college in Illinois is University of Chicago and the top rated public state college is University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

Local college options can be explored in Chicago, Aurora and Rockford or other cities.