Methodology

To create the rankings, U.S. News and RTI International analyzed data from 114 children's hospitals across 11 different specialties:

• Pediatric and adolescent behavioral health
• Cancer
• Cardiology and heart surgery
• Diabetes and endocrinology
• Gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery
• Neonatology
• Nephrology
• Neurology and neurosurgery
• Orthopedics
• Pulmonology and lung surgery
• Urology

Hospitals were evaluated in three main categories:

• Patient outcomes: For most specialties, outcomes, such as survival, infections, and surgical complications, make up a third of each hospital's score. In cardiology and heart surgery, outcomes make up 38.3% of a hospital's score while they make up 20% of the score in behavioral health.
• Expert opinion: U.S. News conducts an annual expert opinion survey of pediatric specialists and subspecialists in all 11 specialties. It makes up 10% of a hospital's score in all specialties except for cardiology and heart surgery, where it makes up 5% of the score.
• Care standards and safety: This category makes up the remainder of a hospital's score and evaluates a commitment to patient safety, excellence, and family-centeredness care.

The 50 best-performing hospitals are ranked in 10 pediatric specialties and listed if they are in the top 50 for pediatric and adolescent behavioral health. Other hospitals with enough information to be evaluated in a specialty are listed but without a rank or score.

The best children's hospitals for 2026

Overall, 90 children's hospitals were ranked in one or more areas of specialty pediatric care. In addition, 11 pediatric hospitals were named to U.S. News' Honor Roll, which recognizes hospitals that are highly ranked in several specialties. The Honor Roll hospitals are named in alphabetical order and either ranked No. 1 or tied for No. 1 in their state or region:

• Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
• Boston Children's Hospital
• Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora
• Children's Hospital Los Angeles
• Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
• Children's National Hospital, Washington, D.C.
• Cincinnati Children's, Cincinnati
• Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
• Seattle Children's Hospital
• Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
• UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh

U.S. News also ranked the top pediatric hospitals in several U.S. regions, including:

• Mid-Atlantic: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Children's National Hospital, and UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh (tied for no. 1)
• Midwest: Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Cincinnati Children's, and Nationwide Children's Hospital (tied for no. 1)
• New England: Boston Children's Hospital
• Pacific: Children's Hospital Los Angeles and Seattle Children's Hospital (tied for no. 1)
• Rocky Mountain: Children's Hospital Colorado
• Southeast: Children's Healthcare of Atlanta
• Southwest: Texas Children's Hospital

"For two decades, U.S. News has helped guide families to top-tier pediatric care," said Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at U.S. News. "Finding the right medical team for a rare diagnosis or complex surgery can be overwhelming, and U.S. News' annual evaluation of the Best Children’s Hospitals provides a clear starting point for parents and referring pediatricians alike."

"Families can use these resources as a starting point, as they talk to their doctor about finding the care for their sick child or teen that is near them," said Jennifer Winston, a senior health data scientist at U.S. News. "It's really important for families to be able to receive treatment that's close to home."