Why This Matters

  • U.S. ADDING 883,900 NEW MANAGER POSITIONS

    Individuals with MBA degrees typically go on to fulfill leadership and management roles within their organizations. Demand for these types of jobs is expected to grow by 8% through 2031.

  • BUSINESS AND FINANCE JOBS INCREASING BY 7%

    Those with an MBA often work in the business and financial sectors as well, which are expected to grow at a steady pace over the next decade.

  • EARN OVER SIX FIGURES AS A MANAGER

    The average annual salary for management occupations is $102,450 — this is over $50,000 more than the average salary for all occupations.

Our Research

This list features some of the best online MBA programs at top colleges across the country. Each school featured is a nonprofit, accredited institution — either public or private — with a high standard of academic quality for post-secondary institutions. The programs on our list are available at accredited institutions, including The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), both reputable organizations who assess business programs for educational excellence and a commitment to quality education.

We evaluated each school’s program on tuition costs, admission, retention and graduation rates, faculty, and reputation as well as the student resources provided for online students. Then we calculated the Intelligent Score on a scale of 0 to 100. Read more about our ranking methodology.

Next, we compared this comprehensive list of online MBA programs to a list of aggregated college rankings from reputable publications like the U.S. News & World Report among others to simplify a student’s college search. We pored through these rankings so students don’t have to.

The Top 52 Online MBA Programs

Best MBA Programs 2023
01
Intelligent Pick
Indiana University
01
Most Customizable
UNC Kenan-Flagler
01
Best Alumni Network
USC Marshall
01
Best Graduation Rate
Rice University
01
Best Part-time MBA
Carnegie Mellon University
01
Best Accelerated Online MBA
UF Warrington College of Business
01
Best for Recent Graduates
University of Denver
01
Best Career Support Services
University of Nebraska at Lincoln
01
Best Analytics-focused Program
Ohio University
01
Best Silicon Valley Connections
Santa Clara University
01

Arizona State University
01

University of Utah David Eccles School of Business
01

Babson College
01

Washington State University
01

University of Iowa Tippie College of Business
01

University of South Dakota
01

Pepperdine University
01

NC State University
01

West Texas A&M University
01

University of South Florida
01

ODU Global
01

Auburn University Harbert College of Business
01

Kent State University
01

University of Texas at Dallas
01

California State University at Long Beach
01

Texas Tech University
01

Rochester Institute of Technology
01

University of Massachusetts Amherst
01

James Madison University
01

University of Arizona Eller College of Management
01

University of Michigan at Dearborn
01

University of Wisconsin at Whitewater
01

Hofstra University
01

Regent University
01

William and Mary School of Business
01

University of Delaware
01

Kennesaw State University
01

American University
01

Florida Atlantic University
01

Syracuse University
01

State University of New York at Oswego
01

UMass Lowell
01

Virginia Commonwealth University
01

Florida Institute of Technology
01

Marist College
01

University of Nevada at Reno
01

Suffolk University at Boston
01

Montclair State University
01

GW School of Business

What You Should Know About This Degree

We’re confident that our Top 50 Online Master’s in Business Administration degrees are the right fit for many people. That said, if you want to rely on your school to organize the bulk of your networking, they won’t be the right fit for you. Some of them might offer networking events if you make the trek out to campus, but none of them have mandatory on-campus events for online students. Instead, you’ll want to track down your own networking opportunities to make connections.

You should also be aware that almost all of our programs require a background in business — whether professional or educational. If you don’t have a Bachelor’s degree in business, it’s likely they’ll ask you to take some foundational courses to catch up before you can begin the program itself. How programs handle prerequisites varies by school, so you’ll need to check in with your admissions or degree advisor to see how many credit hours you’ll need to take.

What’s Next?

Check out our list of the best online MBAs and take a closer look into what specializations, concentrations, and electives they offer. Depending on your preferences, you might like the straightforward route some programs offer with direct concentrations, or you might prefer building your own online MBA degree with a number of free electives.

Keep in mind that if you already know the industry you’d like to work in — no matter how niche — there’s probably an online MBA program tailored to help you in that field. In our research, we found the expected concentrations — accounting, marketing, etc. — but also some more particular ones, like cybersecurity, sports management, and aviation.

Finally, you’ll need to keep an eye on state authorizations. Like every online degree, if you apply to a university that’s out-of-state, you’ll need to make sure that your home state has an agreement to accept online degrees from your university’s state. Each school should have a “state authorization” page, but since authorizations can vary by program, check in with an admissions counselor to make sure your state will recognize your online MBA degree as valid.

Frequently Asked Questions