The best hospitals in the United States for heart care
NYU Langone Hospitals in New York City is once again the No. 1 hospital in the United States for cardiology, heart surgery and vascular surgery, according to updated rankings from U.S. News & World Report. It was at the top of 2025’s rankings as well.
A nearby competitor, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital-Columbia and Cornell, was ranked No. 2 in the annual list. Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, came in at No. 3, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles came in at No. 4 and Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City came in at No. 5.
Cleveland Clinic, a mainstay at the top of these rankings for many years, landed at No. 8.
The Best Hospitals report, released by U.S. News & World Report each summer, is designed to help patients find the best care possible when seeking treatment. It includes an overall ranking as well as specific lists focused on different specialties. Data from nearly 4,500 facilities were reviewed to put together this year’s report, and 178 of those facilities earned at least one top-50 national ranking.
One significant difference with the 2026 report is that U.S News & World Report now uses quality metrics more than ever to determine its heart hospital rankings. A total of 41 different risk-adjusted patient outcomes now make up 80% of each hospital’s score; this is up from 45% in previous years. Another update with these latest rankings is the way heart hospitals have been categorized by region.
“Choosing where to seek heart or vascular care is a high-stakes decision,” Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor of U.S. News & World Report, told Cardiovascular Business. “By expanding our focus on 41 discrete outcome measures and introducing regional rankings in Cardiology, Heart & Vascular Surgery, we’re giving patients a more precise benchmark of quality. Most patients want to receive top-tier cardiovascular care as close to home as possible. These changes ensure heart patients have clear, trustworthy insights into the performance of their local hospitals when making life-altering decisions.”
Meanwhile, NYU Langone Hospitals is celebrating its second straight year at the top of this influential list.
“This recognition reflects years of investment in multidisciplinary cardiovascular care, where clinical excellence, innovation, and research work together to improve patient outcomes,” Glenn I. Fishman, MD, director of the Leon H. Charney Division of Cardiology at NYU Langone Health, said in a statement. “Sustaining a ranking like this requires not only expertise across every aspect of heart and vascular care, but the ability to deliver that care at scale while continuing to raise the bar.”
The top 25 U.S. hospitals for cardiology, heart surgery and vascular surgery in 2026:
2. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital-Columbia and Cornell
3. Mayo Clinic
4. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
6. Massachusetts General Hospital
7. Northwestern Medicine-Northwestern Memorial Hospital
9. Stanford Health Care-Stanford Hospital
10. Houston Methodist Hospital
11. Piedmont Heart Institute at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital
12. Brigham and Women’s Hospital
13. UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas
14. Rush University Medical Center
15. UC San Diego Health-Cardiovascular Institute
16. MedStar Heart & Vascular Institute at MedStar Washington Hosp. Center
17. St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center, Roslyn, N.Y.
18. North Shore University Hospital at Northwell Health, Manhasset, N.Y.
19. Mayo Clinic-Arizona (tie)
19. Mayo Clinic-Florida (tie)
21. UCSF Health-UCSF Medical Center
22. UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center
23. University of Kansas Hospital, Kansas City
24. Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
25. Lenox Hill Hospital at Northwell Health, New York
Click here for additional information from U.S. News & World Report, including a longer list of hospitals. Catch up with 2025’s rankings here and 2024’s rankings here.
Michael has more than 19 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.