Best pediatric hospitals ranked by state: A data-based guide to national leaders
Best pediatric hospitals ranked by state is a useful way to organize nationally recognized children’s medical centers, but rankings are not a substitute for individualized medical guidance. The 2025-2026 U.S. News evaluation identifies 10 honor roll hospitals, while broader sources identify additional leading pediatric institutions across states and specialties. 1
How pediatric hospital rankings are defined
Children’s hospitals exist in several forms, including pediatric-only institutions, pediatric institutes within larger academic medical centers, and general hospitals with substantial pediatric services. The distinction matters because a hospital may provide pediatric emergency care or neonatal intensive care without offering the full range of highly specialized services associated with a major referral center. 1
The 2025-2026 U.S. News evaluation assessed 118 children’s hospitals and covered 11 specialties. These included behavioral health, cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, gastroenterology and GI surgery, neonatology, nephrology, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology and lung surgery, and urology. 4
National honor roll hospitals organized by state
U.S. News lists its 2025-2026 honor roll hospitals in alphabetical order rather than assigning a single ordinal national rank. The group represents hospitals that achieved exceptionally strong performance across several pediatric specialties, so the list is better interpreted as a group of national leaders than as a strict one-through-ten ranking. 3
| State or district | Honor roll hospital | City |
|---|---|---|
| California | Children’s Hospital Los Angeles | Los Angeles |
| Colorado | Children’s Hospital Colorado | Aurora |
| Massachusetts | Boston Children’s Hospital | Boston |
| Maryland | Johns Hopkins Children’s Center | Baltimore |
| Ohio | Cincinnati Children’s | Cincinnati |
| Ohio | Nationwide Children’s Hospital | Columbus |
| Pennsylvania | Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia | Philadelphia |
| Texas | Texas Children’s Hospital | Houston |
| Washington | Seattle Children’s Hospital | Seattle |
| District of Columbia | Children’s National Hospital | Washington |
The honor roll shows that Ohio has two named institutions, while several other states and the District of Columbia have one listed hospital. This table is not a complete directory of pediatric hospitals in every state. It identifies the nationally recognized institutions specifically named in the supplied 2025-2026 honor roll information. 3
Leading hospitals by regional presence
Several honor roll hospitals function as referral centers serving children beyond their immediate cities. Boston Children’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital Colorado, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Children’s National Hospital, Cincinnati Children’s, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Rady Children’s Hospital, Seattle Children’s Hospital, and Texas Children’s Hospital were identified as the 10 hospitals retaining honor roll status in the 2025-2026 cycle. 5
Other hospitals appearing in national evaluations include Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Akron Children’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital of Alabama, and Children’s Hospital New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel. Newsweek’s 2026 ranking also lists hospitals such as AdventHealth for Children and BayCare St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital in Florida, as well as Children’s Hospital Colorado and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. 6
Earlier national ranking context
The supplied 2024-2025 U.S. News data used ordinal positions and placed Boston Children’s Hospital first nationally, Children’s National Hospital second, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia third, Cincinnati Children’s fourth, and Texas Children’s fifth. Nationwide Children’s ranked sixth, Children’s Hospital Colorado seventh, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles eighth, Johns Hopkins Children’s Center ninth, and Lurie Children’s tenth. 7
These earlier positions provide historical context, but they should not be treated as the current 2025-2026 ordering because U.S. News changed the presentation of the honor roll to an unranked alphabetical format. A hospital’s national standing can also vary by specialty, meaning a center may be particularly strong in cancer, cardiology, neonatology, or another field without being the leading option for every condition. 5
What the methodology measures
U.S. News evaluates pediatric hospitals through structure, process, and outcomes. Structure includes service volume, technology, and clinical capabilities. Process includes adherence to best practices, infection-prevention efforts, and expert opinion. Outcomes include measures such as risk-adjusted mortality, readmissions after discharge, and infection rates. 4
The 2025-2026 edition added its second annual assessment of pediatric and adolescent behavioral health programs. The category covers care related to autism, anxiety, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, language and learning disorders, and substance-use and addiction conditions. This expansion reflects the broader range of pediatric needs considered in contemporary hospital evaluation. 2
How families should interpret state rankings
A state-based ranking can help identify institutions with advanced pediatric programs, but geography alone does not determine clinical suitability. Families and clinicians may need to compare a hospital’s experience with the child’s diagnosis, relevant specialty program, intensive-care capacity, research involvement, referral requirements, and practical travel implications. U.S. News describes its rankings as a starting point for decisions made with the child’s physician and care team. 7
Rankings also have limitations. They measure selected specialties and institutional indicators, not every aspect of communication, continuity, family support, or access. A hospital recognized nationally may still be difficult to reach, while a regional pediatric center may provide appropriate care for conditions that do not require tertiary referral. Confirming current services, insurance eligibility, referral procedures, and clinical availability remains necessary because hospital programs and evaluation methods change over time. 1
Sources
- Ampliz, “Leading Children’s Hospitals by State in the USA,” https://www.ampliz.com/resources/top-childrens-hospitals-by-state-in-the-usa/
- PR Newswire, “U.S. News Announces the 2025-2026 Best Children’s Hospitals,” https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/us-news-announces-the-2025-2026-best-childrens-hospitals-302576461.html
- U.S. News & World Report, “The Honor Roll of U.S. News Best Children’s Hospitals 2025-2026,” https://health.usnews.com/health-news/best-childrens-hospitals/slideshows/best-childrens-hospitals-honor-roll
- Advisory Board, “US News: The best children’s hospitals for 2025,” https://www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2025/10/07/best-childrens-hospital
- Healio, “10 children’s hospitals maintain top spots in U.S. News ranking,” https://www.healio.com/news/pediatrics/20251009/10-childrens-hospitals-maintain-top-spots-in-us-news-ranking
- Newsweek, “America’s Best Children’s Hospitals 2026,” https://rankings.newsweek.com/americas-best-childrens-hospitals-2026
- Parents, “The 10 Best Children’s Hospitals in America,” https://www.parents.com/best-childrens-hospitals-in-america-11823970
Authored by MyTrendSpot team