Five community colleges in Maryland were among the top 40 in the US, leading to the state being ranked highest in the country overall.

By Zak Failla From Daily Voice

Maryland just schooled the rest of the country — literally — after being named home to the best community college system in America, according to a new report.

WalletHub released its annual "States With the Best & Worst Community Colleges" list for 2025 — and the Old Line State took top honors, ahead of New Mexico, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Washington.

Neighboring Virginia was further down the list, ranked 27th overall.

“Community colleges are an especially attractive option this year as many families deal with inflated prices," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in a statement.

"Students who initially planned on attending a private four-year college might want to consider spending two years at a community college and transferring those credits once they are in a better financial situation.”

To determine the best and worst community college systems in the US, analysts conducted individual school-level samples across 18 key metrics. 

They then took that weighted average of the scores earned by community colleges in each state and the number of students enrolled in each school. 

WalletHub punched the data, and Maryland came out on top, with five individual schools topping the top 40 nationally: 

  • Montgomery College (17th overall nationally);
  • Prince George's Community College (28th);
  • Carroll Community College (31st);
  • Howard Community College (32nd);
  • The Community College of Baltimore County (36th).

WalletHub made note that Maryland is also one of the states that currently offers free community college education, further bolstering its ranking.

The complete ranking from WalletHub can be found here.