UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals tied again as the best in Northern California for pediatric care in the 2025-2026 U.S. News & World Report Best Children's Hospitals list.
The UCSF Benioff hospitals in Oakland and San Francisco ranked nationally in all 11 specialties assessed in the annual survey, including top 10 placements in cancer, newborn specialty care, and gastroenterology and GI surgery. Three other specialty areas - neurology and neurosurgery, urology, and kidney disorders - ranked in the national top 20.
Additional ranked specialties were cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, pulmonology and lung surgery, orthopedics, and behavioral health. UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals are among only 21 hospitals in the country to be ranked this year as one of the best in all 11 categories.
Across our Oakland and San Francisco hospitals, our employees work together to provide a system of care that serves children and families of all needs and backgrounds.
Nicholas Holmes, MD, president of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals
This is the eighth year in a row that UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals have been recognized among the nation's best children's hospitals in all specialty areas. The Oakland and San Francisco hospitals are ranked together as one entity, reflecting the comprehensive system of pediatric care that UCSF Health provides to families and communities in the Bay Area and beyond. The integration of the two hospitals supports a stronger infrastructure for high-quality clinical services and expands access to seamless, equitable care for patients on both sides of the Bay.
"We are consistently recognized as one of the country's top pediatric health systems because of our longstanding commitment to providing the best care possible," said Suresh Gunasekaran, president and chief executive officer of UCSF Health. "World-class health care should be available to every child, regardless of their background. Every day, we look for ways to help realize that vision, and to make care more accessible to our communities."
UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals tied for No. 3 children's hospital in the state and took top honors for Northern California in the areas of cancer care, cardiology and heart surgery, and urology. Together, the two hospitals climbed to higher positions this year in nine of the 10 ranked specialty areas. U.S. News & World Report cites the top 50 hospitals in behavioral health but does not rank them.
"Care that serves children and families of all needs and backgrounds"
UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals first affiliated in 2014, bringing together the campuses in Oakland and San Francisco to build one of the nation's leading pediatric health systems. As part of this ongoing effort, UCSF Health is investing $1.6 billion to modernize facilities at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland - a freestanding safety net hospital that is home to one of six Level 1 pediatric trauma centers in the state. The modernization includes the construction of a new hospital building to accommodate state-of-the-art technology and meet the pediatric needs of the region for generations to come.
In July 2025, UCSF Benioff Oakland staff became University of California employees, marking another step forward in the integration of the two cross-Bay hospitals. This transition aligns pediatric services in San Francisco and Oakland, streamlining operations to help patients access exceptional care close to home.
"We are excited about the future of our pediatric care services because of the deep compassion, dedication, and expertise of our staff, nurses, physicians, and trainees," said Nicholas Holmes, MD, president of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals. "Across our Oakland and San Francisco hospitals, our employees work together to provide a system of care that serves children and families of all needs and backgrounds. We hold ourselves to the highest standards because we want everyone who walks through our doors to know they came to the right place."
The 2025-2026 results represent the 19th year of U.S. News & World Report's pediatric rankings, which serve as a guide to hospitals nationwide that excel in treating children with the most challenging diagnoses. The methodology reflects clinical outcomes such as patient survival, infection rates, and complications; the level and quality of hospital resources directly related to patient care, including staffing, special services, and technology; the delivery of health care, including programs to prevent infection and promote adherence to best practices; and expert opinions from surveys of 6,498 pediatric specialists.
Of the 198 children's hospitals eligible this year, 85 ranked among the top 50 in at least one specialty. Each facility was either a freestanding children's hospital or an autonomous, multidisciplinary pediatric department within a major medical center.
The complete list of children's hospital rankings is available online and will be published in the Best Hospitals print guide in November. U.S. News & World Report published this year's adult hospital rankings in July.
UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals Specialty Rankings for 2025-2026
- #6 Neonatology
- #10 Cancer Care*
- #10 Gastroenterology and GI Surgery
- #11 Nephrology
- #18 Neurology and Neurosurgery
- #19 Urology*
- #21 Pulmonology
- #31 Diabetes and Endocrinology
- #33 Cardiology and Heart Surgery*
- #38 Orthopedics
- Top 50 (category unranked) Behavioral Health
*Best in Northern California
