Best Western Colleges
There are 127 ranked four-year colleges in the West, evaluated with the same methodology used for our national rankings. Only nonprofit, selective four-year schools are included.
Leading our 2027 rankings is Stanford University in Stanford, California, topping our list in the West. The top rated public university is University of California Berkeley. Also highly ranked: California Institute of Technology, Claremont McKenna College and Pomona College.
Compare tuition, acceptance rates, and enrollment across the colleges below. See how rankings are calculated on our methodology page. Explore the regional list below or browse individual states.
University of California Davis
- Public 4 Year
- Davis, CA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Nov 30 application deadline
UC Davis is a large public university known for undergraduate agriculture, environmental science, and biological sciences. The campus sits in the bike-friendly college town of Davis.
- SAT Range 1160-1400
- Avg GPA 4.0
- Acceptance Rate 42%
- Net Price $17,270
Chapman University
- Private 4 Year
- Orange, CA
-
4.3 | 6 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Chapman is a private university known for undergraduate film, media arts, and performing arts. The suburban campus is in the city of Orange in Southern California's Orange County.
- SAT Range 1260-1440
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 65%
- Net Price $47,902
University of California Santa Barbara
- Public 4 Year
- Santa Barbara, CA
-
4.7 | 3 reviews
- Nov 30 application deadline
UCSB is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate physics, marine science, and environmental studies. The oceanfront campus sits directly on the Pacific coast near Santa Barbara.
- SAT Range 1230-1460
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.82
- Acceptance Rate 33%
- Net Price $17,658
University of San Francisco
- Private 4 Year
- San Francisco, CA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
USF is a private Jesuit university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and international studies. The urban campus sits beside Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
- SAT Range 1190-1390
- Avg GPA 3.57
- Acceptance Rate 62%
- Net Price $45,443
Seattle University
- Private 4 Year
- Seattle, WA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Seattle University is a private Jesuit university known for undergraduate nursing and business. The urban campus sits on First Hill near downtown Seattle.
- SAT Range 1200-1430
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Acceptance Rate 77%
- Net Price $36,948
University of the Pacific
- Private 4 Year
- Stockton, CA
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Pacific is a private university known for its Conservatory of Music and undergraduate programs in business and health sciences. Most undergrads live on the residential Stockton campus in California's Central Valley.
- SAT Range 1183-1480
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 71%
- Net Price $31,670
University of Portland
- Private 4 Year
- Portland, OR
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
University of Portland is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate nursing, engineering, and business. The campus sits on a bluff overlooking the Willamette River in North Portland.
- SAT Range 1160-1370
- Avg GPA 3.66
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $30,985
Brigham Young University
- Private 4 Year
- Provo, UT
-
4.4 | 17 reviews
- Dec 16 application deadline
BYU is a private university known for undergraduate accounting, business, and foreign languages. Most students are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and follow a campus honor code.
- SAT Range 1270-1460
- Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 68%
- Net Price $16,694
California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo
- Public 4 Year
- San Luis Obispo, CA
-
4.7 | 3 reviews
- Nov 30 application deadline
Cal Poly is a public polytechnic university known for undergraduate engineering, architecture, and agriculture. Students study on a Central Coast campus in the college town of San Luis Obispo.
- SAT Range 1220-1410
- Avg GPA 4.0
- Acceptance Rate 31%
- Net Price $17,453
Westmont College
- Private 4 Year
- Santa Barbara, CA
-
| 0 reviews
Westmont is a private Christian liberal arts college known for undergraduate programs in the sciences and humanities. The residential hillside campus overlooks the Pacific Ocean above Santa Barbara.
- SAT Range 1240-1450
- Avg GPA 3.59
- Acceptance Rate 77%
- Net Price $32,172
Colorado School of Mines
- Public 4 Year
- Golden, CO
-
4.6 | 5 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Mines is a public university known for undergraduate engineering focused on mining, petroleum, and the earth sciences. The Golden campus sits against the Rocky Mountain foothills west of Denver.
- SAT Range 1320-1480
- Avg GPA 3.84
- Acceptance Rate 61%
- Net Price $29,925
Pepperdine University
- Private 4 Year
- Malibu, CA
-
3.8 | 4 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Pepperdine is a private Christian university known for undergraduate business, communication, and international studies. The Malibu campus overlooks the Pacific Ocean from hillsides above the coast.
- SAT Range 1290-1450
- Avg GPA 3.74
- Acceptance Rate 63%
- Net Price $66,585
Westminster University
- Private 4 Year
- Salt Lake City, UT
-
| 0 reviews
Westminster is a private university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and health sciences. The urban campus sits near the Wasatch Mountains in Salt Lake City.
- SAT Range 1070-1310
- Avg GPA 3.57
- Acceptance Rate 67%
- Net Price $26,844
Gonzaga University
- Private 4 Year
- Spokane, WA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Gonzaga is a private Jesuit university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and engineering. The campus runs along the Spokane River in eastern Washington.
- SAT Range 1190-1380
- Avg GPA 3.67
- Acceptance Rate 82%
- Net Price $40,117
University of Puget Sound
- Private 4 Year
- Tacoma, WA
-
4.0 | 5 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Puget Sound is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate music and the natural sciences. Most students live on the residential campus in Tacoma near Commencement Bay.
- SAT Range 1170-1380
- Avg GPA 3.56
- Acceptance Rate 72%
- Net Price $43,188
University of Colorado Boulder
- Public 4 Year
- Boulder, CO
-
4.0 | 6 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
CU Boulder is a large public university known for undergraduate aerospace engineering, environmental sciences, and physics. The campus sits against the Flatirons in the college town of Boulder.
- SAT Range 1240-1430
- Avg GPA 3.68
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $26,231
Lewis & Clark College
- Private 4 Year
- Portland, OR
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Lewis & Clark is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate international affairs and environmental studies. The wooded campus sits in the hills of southwest Portland.
- SAT Range 1210-1390
- Avg GPA 3.95
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $37,999
Linfield University
- Private 4 Year
- McMinnville, OR
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Linfield is a private university known for undergraduate nursing and wine studies. The residential campus sits in the small college town of McMinnville in Oregon's Willamette Valley.
- SAT Range 1050-1210
- Avg GPA 3.71
- Acceptance Rate 85%
- Net Price $29,936