ADBLOCK #102
College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2026 Best Economics Schools in Maine

4 Colleges in the United States
255 Economics Degrees Awarded
$63,757 Avg Early-Career Salary

Economics degree programs prepare students for a range of careers in the field. A focused field like this rewards careful comparison of the schools that offer it.

For its 2026 ranking, College Factual looked at 5 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for economics students pursuing a degree.

What’s on this page:

ADBLOCK #159
DEBUG: Raw major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Initial offers_url = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json", major_slug = ""
DEBUG: After cleaning major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Before URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json"
DEBUG: After TrimSuffix = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json"
DEBUG: After HTTPS placeholder = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json"
DEBUG: After slash cleaning = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json"
DEBUG: After URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json"
DEBUG: offers_url = https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/social-sciences/economics/offers.json
DEBUG: major_slug = ""
DEBUG: offers_url is valid, proceeding to fetch data
DEBUG: offers_data.offers found, count = 5
DEBUG: Specific major detected (cip4 = 45.06), keeping min_relevance at 0.8
DEBUG: Starting relevance filtering - min_relevance = 0.8, max_relevance = 1
DEBUG: Checking offer "Economics (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" with relevance 1
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "Economics (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" ACCEPTED (relevance 1)
DEBUG: Checking offer "Economics (I Have a Bachelors)" with relevance 1
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "Economics (I Have a Bachelors)" ACCEPTED (relevance 1)
DEBUG: Checking offer "MS in Applied Economics" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "MS in Applied Economics" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "Science & Engineering Bachelors Programs (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" with relevance 0.6
DEBUG: ✗ Offer "Science & Engineering Bachelors Programs (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" REJECTED (relevance 0.6)
DEBUG: Checking offer "Science & Engineering Diploma Programs (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" with relevance 0.6
DEBUG: ✗ Offer "Science & Engineering Diploma Programs (I Have a HS Diploma or Associate Degree)" REJECTED (relevance 0.6)
DEBUG: relevant_offers count = 3
DEBUG: relevant_offers > 0, checking for ESYOH offers
DEBUG: ESYOH filtering - found 2 ESYOH offers with relevance >= 0.8
DEBUG: esyoh_offers count = 2
DEBUG: ESYOH offers found, rendering ESYOH widget
DEBUG: most_relevant_only = true, filtering for most relevant
DEBUG: Found 2 offers with relevance >= 1.0

Best Schools for Economics in Maine

If you are not interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the economics degrees they offer, see the list below.

Top Schools in Economics

1
Bates College crest
Bates College
Lewiston, ME

Bates College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in economics. Set in the city of Lewiston, Bates College is a small private not-for-profit institution. Bates College graduates 90% of students within six years. Bates College awarded about 62 economics degrees in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, economics degree recipients from Bates College generally make around $71,187. Students borrow a median of $13,000 to complete this degree. Read more about the economics program at Bates College

2
Bowdoin College crest
Bowdoin College
Brunswick, ME

Bowdoin College is a great choice for students pursuing a degree in economics, landing the #2 spot this year. Bowdoin College is a mid-sized private not-for-profit school located in the town of Brunswick. The six-year graduation rate is 95%. There were roughly 63 economics students who graduated with this degree at Bowdoin College in the most recent data year. Graduates of the economics program make about $75,867 in their early career. Bowdoin College graduates carry a median of $19,500 in student loans. Get the full economics details for Bowdoin College

3
Colby College crest
Colby College
Waterville, ME

A rank of #3 makes Colby College one of the top schools for economics. This mid-sized private not-for-profit university is located in the town of Waterville. The six-year graduation rate is 89%. There were roughly 93 economics students who graduated with this degree at Colby College in the most recent data year. Economics graduates of Colby College earn a median of $76,401 early in their careers. Colby College graduates carry a median of $24,250 in student loans. More information about a degree in economics from Colby College

4

Students looking for a strong economics program will find one at University Of Maine, which ranked #4. Set in the suburb of Orono, University Of Maine is a large public institution. Roughly 55% of students complete a degree within six years here. University Of Maine awarded about 26 economics degrees in the most recent data year. Students who receive their economics degree from University Of Maine earn around $46,159 in the first couple years of their career. University Of Maine graduates carry a median of $22,984 in student loans. Read more about the economics program at University Of Maine

5

A rank of #5 makes University Of Southern Maine one of the top schools for economics. Set in the city of Portland, University Of Southern Maine is a moderately-sized public institution. The six-year graduation rate is 40%. University Of Southern Maine awarded about 11 economics degrees in the most recent data year. Graduates of the economics program make about $49,173 in their early career. University Of Southern Maine graduates carry a median of $12,996 in student loans. See the full economics program report for University Of Southern Maine

ADBLOCK #173
View All Economics Rankings >

ADBLOCK #115

Notes and References

This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs graduation rate, post-graduation earnings, cost, and program quality, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).

Ranking method: College Major Top Ranked · 5 schools evaluated.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

ADBLOCK #116

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs
ADBLOCK #613

Compare Your School Options