Strongest financial health – HBCUs

These 50 HBCUs rank highest by NACUBO Composite Financial Index (CFI), drawn from 61 institutions with reported data in the U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25. Spelman College (Atlanta, GA) leads at 8.0.

Institutions ranked by Financial Health Index (CFI).
#	Institution	Financial Health Index (CFI)
1	Spelman CollegeGA · Private	8.0
2	H Councill Trenholm State Community CollegeAL · Public	7.9
3	South Carolina State UniversitySC · Public	7.6
4	Huston-Tillotson UniversityTX · Private	7.3
5	Miles CollegeAL · Private	7.2
6	Clark Atlanta UniversityGA · Private	6.9
7	Gadsden State Community CollegeAL · Public	6.9
8	Claflin UniversitySC · Private	6.8
9	Johnson C Smith UniversityNC · Private	6.7
10	Lincoln UniversityPA · Public	6.6
11	Tuskegee UniversityAL · Private	6.6
12	Southern University and A & M CollegeLA · Public	6.5
13	Florida Memorial UniversityFL · Private	6.2
14	Xavier University of LouisianaLA · Private	6.0
15	Virginia Union UniversityVA · Private	5.5
16	Morehouse CollegeGA · Private	5.4
17	Virginia State UniversityVA · Public	5.4
18	Bowie State UniversityMD · Public	4.9
19	Coahoma Community CollegeMS · Public	4.9
20	Dillard UniversityLA · Private	4.9
21	Hampton UniversityVA · Private	4.8
22	Edward Waters UniversityFL · Private	4.7
23	Fayetteville State UniversityNC · Public	4.7
24	Shelton State Community CollegeAL · Public	4.5
25	Langston UniversityOK · Public	4.4
26	North Carolina Central UniversityNC · Public	4.2
27	Texas Southern UniversityTX · Public	4.1
28	Bishop State Community CollegeAL · Public	4.0
29	Winston-Salem State UniversityNC · Public	4.0
30	University of the Virgin IslandsVI · Public	3.9
31	Mississippi Valley State UniversityMS · Public	3.8
32	Bethune-Cookman UniversityFL · Private	3.7
33	North Carolina A & T State UniversityNC · Public	3.7
34	Lawson State Community CollegeAL · Public	3.5
35	Benedict CollegeSC · Private	3.4
36	Fort Valley State UniversityGA · Public	3.4
37	Grambling State UniversityLA · Public	3.4
38	Elizabeth City State UniversityNC · Public	3.2
39	Alcorn State UniversityMS · Public	2.9
40	Savannah State UniversityGA · Public	2.9
41	University of Maryland Eastern ShoreMD · Public	2.9
42	West Virginia State UniversityWV · Public	2.7
43	Tennessee State UniversityTN · Public	2.6
44	Florida Agricultural and Mechanical UniversityFL · Public	2.5
45	Howard UniversityDC · Private	2.5
46	Norfolk State UniversityVA · Public	2.4
47	Coppin State UniversityMD · Public	2.3
48	Jackson State UniversityMS · Public	2.2
49	Fisk UniversityTN · Private	2.0
50	St Philip's CollegeTX · Public	1.8

The Composite Financial Index (CFI) is the NACUBO/accreditor balance-sheet health score; bond-rating agencies track similar ratios. The CFI clamps and rewards reserves relative to budget size, so this list is limited to institutions with at least 1,000 undergraduates for comparability. A data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement or quality rating. Ranked solely on the metric named above using U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25; federal collections lag the current academic year, and some measures are no longer published at all, so the most recent figure is not always a recent one. Institutions that do not report this metric are excluded. Figures and peer context appear on each institution’s profile.

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Frequently asked

Which of these HBCUs ranks highest by NACUBO Composite Financial Index (CFI)?

Spelman College (Atlanta, GA), at 8.0. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 61 with reported data.

How is this ranking calculated?

On one disclosed metric only: by NACUBO Composite Financial Index (CFI), from College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2024-25. Institutions that do not report the metric are excluded. It is a data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement, quality rating or reputation survey, and no part of it is estimated or AI-generated.

How current is the data?

This list is built from the College Scorecard release of June 10, 2026 and the newest IPEDS collection on disk, using the most recent figure each of them publishes for the metric it ranks: College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2024-25. Federal collections lag the current academic year by two to three years, so the newest published figure is not always a recent one; the release the leaderboard is dated on is printed under it.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard & IPEDS (each measure carries its own collection year; see the methodology), with NSF NCSES (HERD), the Clery Act & EADA collections, Census ACS, BLS Employment Projections, WICHE & the FSA Direct Loan Dashboard. Compiled by Ibex Insights. For informational benchmarking only, not financial, investment, or accreditation advice. See the methodology.