Midwest university tops Forbes list of Best Large Employers

Earlier this month, business publication Forbes released its annual list of the nation's best large employers, with a university in the Midwest topping the ranking.

The list included survey responses from over 217,000 employees working at American companies who employ at least 1,000 people. Anonymous respondents answered questions based on whether they'd recommend their employer, training programs, work environment and salary.

Located in South Bend, Indiana, the University of Notre Dame topped the 2025 edition of the list, ranking 12 spots higher than any other university.

Notre Dame's inclusion at the top of the ranking is also the only Midwestern representation in the top 10, with companies based in Texas, California and Virginia among those behind Notre Dame at the top of the list.

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The next highest-ranked Midwestern employer is also the next highest-ranked university, with Washington University in St. Louis being ranked at No. 13.

The following Midwestern employers were named on Forbes' top 100 ranking:

• No. 16: Garmin (Kansas)
• No. 23: Mayo Clinic (Minnesota)
• No. 24: Community Health Network (Indiana)
• No. 30: Cincinnati Children's (Ohio)
• No. 31: Nationwide Children's Hospital (Ohio)
• No. 38: Mutual of Omaha (Nebraska)
• No. 44: Procter & Gamble (Ohio)
• No. 49: Progressive (Ohio)
• No. 61: Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation (Wisconsin)
  No. 62: Hyatt Hotels (Illinois)
• No. 76: Kwik Trip/Kwik Star (Wisconsin)
• No. 82: University of Kansas Health System (Kansas)
• No. 85: Carhartt (Michigan)
• No. 87: Cleveland Clinic Foundation (Ohio)

The following companies followed Notre Dame on Forbes' top 10:

• No. 2: Trader Joe's (California)
• No. 3: Houston Methodist (Texas)
• No. 4: NVIDIA (California)
• No. 5: Navy Federal Credit Union (Virginia)
• No. 6: Google (California)
• No. 7: Microsoft (Washington)
• No. 8: In-N-Out Burger (California)
• No. 9: Delta Air Lines (Georgia)
• No. 10: Raymond James Financial (Florida)