2025–26 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
| 2025–26 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 2025–26 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament | 2026 | ||||
| Preseason No. 1 | |||||
| |||||
Two human polls make up the 2025–26 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings, the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, in addition to various publications' preseason polls.
Legend
| Increase in ranking | ||
| Decrease in ranking | ||
| Not ranked previous week | ||
| Italics | Number of first place votes | |
| (#–#) | Win-loss record | |
| т | Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |
AP Poll
The women's basketball poll began during the 1976–77 season, and was initially compiled by Mel Greenberg and published by The Philadelphia Inquirer. At first, it was a poll of coaches conducted via telephone, where coaches identified top teams and a list of the Top 20 teams was produced. The contributors continued to be coaches until 1994, when the AP took over administration of the poll from Greenberg, and switched to a panel of writers.[1]
| Preseason Oct 14[2] | Week 2 Nov 10[3] | Week 3 Nov 17[4] | Week 4 Nov 24[5] | Week 5 Dec 1[6] | Week 6 Dec 8[7] | Week 7 Dec 15[8] | Week 8 Dec 22 | Week 9 Dec 29 | Week 10 Jan 5 | Week 11 Jan 12 | Week 12 Jan 19 | Week 13 Jan 26 | Week 14 Feb 2 | Week 15 Feb 9 | Week 16 Feb 16 | Week 17 Feb 23 | Week 18 Mar 2 | Week 19 Mar 9 | Week 20 Mar 16 | Final Apr 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | UConn (27) | UConn (2–0) (30) | UConn (4–0) (28) | UConn (6–0) (30) | UConn (7–0) | UConn (9–0) (23) | UConn (10–0) (24) | 1. | ||||||||||||||
| 2. | South Carolina (4) | South Carolina (2–0) (2) | South Carolina (4–0) (3) | South Carolina (6–0) (1) | Texas (8–0) | Texas (10–0) (9) | Texas (12–0) (8) | 2. | ||||||||||||||
| 3. | UCLA | UCLA (2–0) | UCLA (5–0) (1) | UCLA (6–0) (1) | South Carolina (7–1) | South Carolina (9–1) | South Carolina (10–1) | 3. | ||||||||||||||
| 4. | Texas | Texas (2–0) | Texas (4–0) | Texas (5–0) | UCLA (8–1) | UCLA (9–1) | UCLA (9–1) | 4. | ||||||||||||||
| 5. | LSU | LSU (3–0) | LSU (4–0) | LSU (6–0) | LSU (8–0) | LSU (10–0) | LSU (11–0) | 5. | ||||||||||||||
| 6. | Oklahoma | Oklahoma (1–0) | Michigan (3–0) | Michigan (5–1) | Michigan (6–1) | Michigan (8–1) | Michigan (9–1) | 6. | ||||||||||||||
| 7. | Duke | Baylor (2–0) | Baylor (4–0) | Maryland (7–0) | Maryland (9–0) | Maryland (11–0) | Maryland (12–0) | 7. | ||||||||||||||
| 8. | Tennessee | USC (2–0) | Oklahoma (4–1) | TCU (6–0) | TCU (8–0) | TCU (10–0) | Oklahoma (11–1) | 8. | ||||||||||||||
| 9. | NC State | Maryland (3–0) | Maryland (5–0) | Oklahoma (5–1) | Oklahoma (7–1) | Oklahoma (9–1) | TCU (11–0) | 9. | ||||||||||||||
| 10. | Maryland | NC State (1–1) | TCU (4–0) | Iowa State (7–0) | Iowa State (9–0) | Iowa State (10–0) | Iowa State (12–0) | 10. | ||||||||||||||
| 11. | North Carolina | North Carolina (2–0) | USC (2–1) | Iowa (6–0) | North Carolina (8–1) | Iowa (9–0) | Iowa (11–1) | 11. | ||||||||||||||
| 12. | Ole Miss | Tennessee (2–1) | Iowa State (5–0) | North Carolina (5–1) | Iowa (8–0) | North Carolina (9–2) | Kentucky (11–1) | 12. | ||||||||||||||
| 13. | Michigan | Ole Miss (2–0) | Ole Miss (3–0) | Ole Miss (4–0) | Ole Miss (7–0) | Baylor (9–1) | Vanderbilt (9–0) | 13. | ||||||||||||||
| 14. | Iowa State | Michigan (2–0) | North Carolina (3–1) | Tennessee (5–1) | Baylor (7–1) | Vanderbilt (9–0) | Ole Miss (10–1) | 14. | ||||||||||||||
| 15. | Notre Dame | Duke (1–1) | Tennessee (3–1) | Baylor (5–1) | Vanderbilt (8–0) | Kentucky (10–1) | Baylor (10–2) | 15. | ||||||||||||||
| 16. | Baylor | Iowa State (3–0) | NC State (2–2) | Kentucky (7–0) | USC (5–2) | USC (7–2) | Louisville (10–3) | 16. | ||||||||||||||
| 17. | TCU | TCU (2–0) | Vanderbilt (3–0) | Vanderbilt (6–0) | Kentucky (8–1) | Ole Miss (8–1) | Tennessee (7–2) | 17. | ||||||||||||||
| 18. | USC | Notre Dame (2–0) | Oklahoma State (5–0) | USC (3–2) | Notre Dame (5–1) | Tennessee (6–2) | North Carolina (9–3) | 18. | ||||||||||||||
| 19. | Vanderbilt | Vanderbilt (1–0) | Iowa (4–0) | Notre Dame (4–1) | Tennessee (5–2) | Notre Dame (6–2) | USC (7–3) | 19. | ||||||||||||||
| 20. | Louisville | Oklahoma State (4–0) | Kentucky (5–0) | Michigan State (6–0) | Michigan State (8–0) | Washington (8–1) | Notre Dame (8–2) | 20. | ||||||||||||||
| 21. | Iowa | Iowa (2–0) | Louisville (3–1) | West Virginia (5–0) | Washington (7–0) | Ohio State (7–1) | Ohio State (9–1) | 21. | ||||||||||||||
| 22. | Oklahoma State | Louisville (1–1) | Michigan State (4–0) | Washington (5–0) | Louisville (7–2) | Louisville (8–3) | Washington (9–1) | 22. | ||||||||||||||
| 23. | Michigan State | Kentucky (3–0) | West Virginia (4–0) | Louisville (4–2) | Ohio State (6–1) | Oklahoma State (10–1) | Nebraska (11–0) | 23. | ||||||||||||||
| 24. | Kentucky т | Michigan State (2–0) | Notre Dame (3–1) | Oklahoma State (5–1) | Oklahoma State (8–1) | Nebraska (9–0) | Michigan State (9–1) | 24. | ||||||||||||||
| 25. | Richmond т | Washington (1–0) | Washington (3–0) | NC State (3–3) | West Virginia (6–1) | Michigan State (8–1) | Princeton (10–1) | 25. | ||||||||||||||
| Preseason Oct 14[2] | Week 2 Nov 10[3] | Week 3 Nov 17[4] | Week 4 Nov 24[5] | Week 5 Dec 1[6] | Week 6 Dec 8[7] | Week 7 Dec 15[8] | Week 8 Dec 22 | Week 9 Dec 29 | Week 10 Jan 5 | Week 11 Jan 12 | Week 12 Jan 19 | Week 13 Jan 26 | Week 14 Feb 2 | Week 15 Feb 9 | Week 16 Feb 16 | Week 17 Feb 23 | Week 18 Mar 2 | Week 19 Mar 9 | Week 20 Mar 16 | Final Apr 7 | ||
Dropped:
| Dropped:
| None | Dropped:
| Dropped:
| Dropped:
| None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None |
USA Today Coaches Poll
The Coaches Poll is the second oldest poll still in use after the AP Poll. It is compiled by a rotating group of 31 college Division I head coaches. The Poll operates by Borda count. Each voting member ranks teams from 1 to 25. Each team then receives points for their ranking in reverse order: Number 1 earns 25 points, number 2 earns 24 points, and so forth. The points are then combined and the team with the highest points is then ranked No. 1; second highest is ranked No. 2 and so forth. Only the top 25 teams with points are ranked, with teams receiving first place votes noted the quantity next to their name. The maximum points a single team can earn is 775.
| Preseason Oct 23[9] | Week 2 Nov 11[10] | Week 3 Nov 18[11] | Week 4 Nov 24[12] | Week 5 Dec 2[13] | Week 6 Dec 9[14] | Week 7 Dec 16 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | UConn (28) | UConn (2–0) (29) | UConn (4–0) (28) | UConn (6–0) (29) | UConn (7–0) (28) | UConn (9–0) (28) | 1. | ||||||||||||||
| 2. | South Carolina (3) | South Carolina (2–0) (2) | South Carolina (4–0) (3) | South Carolina (6–0) (2) | Texas (8–0) (3) | Texas (10–0) (3) | 2. | ||||||||||||||
| 3. | Texas | Texas (3–0) | UCLA (5–0) | UCLA (6–0) | South Carolina (7–1) | South Carolina (9–1) | 3. | ||||||||||||||
| 4. | UCLA | UCLA (3–0) | Texas (4–0) | Texas (5–0) | UCLA (8–1) | UCLA (9–1) | 4. | ||||||||||||||
| 5. | LSU | LSU (3–0) | LSU (5–0) | LSU (6–0) | LSU (8–0) | LSU (10–0) | 5. | ||||||||||||||
| 6. | Duke | Oklahoma (1–1) | Maryland (5–0) | Maryland (7–0) | Maryland (9–0) | Maryland (11–0) | 6. | ||||||||||||||
| 7. | Oklahoma | Maryland (3–0) | Oklahoma (4–1) | TCU (6–0) | TCU (8–0) | TCU (10–0) | 7. | ||||||||||||||
| 8. | NC State | North Carolina (2–0) | TCU (4–0) | Oklahoma (5–1) | Michigan (6–1) | Michigan (8–1) | 8. | ||||||||||||||
| 9. | Tennessee | NC State (1–1) | Michigan (3–0) | Michigan (5–1) | Oklahoma (7–1) | Oklahoma (9–1) | 9. | ||||||||||||||
| 10. | Maryland | USC (2–0) | Baylor (4–0) | North Carolina (5–1) | North Carolina (8–1) | Iowa State (10–0) | 10. | ||||||||||||||
| 11. | North Carolina | Duke (1–1) | USC (2–1) | Tennessee (5–1) | Iowa State (9–0) | North Carolina (9–2) | 11. | ||||||||||||||
| 12. | TCU | Tennessee (2–1)т | North Carolina (3–1) | Iowa State (7–0) | Iowa (8–0) | Iowa (9–0) | 12. | ||||||||||||||
| 13. | Notre Dame | TCU (2–0)т | Tennessee (3–1) | Ole Miss (5–0) | Ole Miss (7–0) | Vanderbilt (9–0) | 13. | ||||||||||||||
| 14. | Ole Miss | Baylor (2–0) | Ole Miss (3–0) | Iowa (6–0) | Vanderbilt (8–0) | Baylor (9–1) | 14. | ||||||||||||||
| 15. | Michigan | Michigan (2–0) | Iowa State (5–0) | Kentucky (7–0) | Baylor (7–1) | Kentucky (10–1) | 15. | ||||||||||||||
| 16. | USC | Ole Miss (2–0) | NC State (2–2) | Baylor (5–1) | Kentucky (8–1) | Ole Miss (8–1) | 16. | ||||||||||||||
| 17. | Iowa State | Notre Dame (2–0) | Vanderbilt (3–0) | Vanderbilt (6–0) | Tennessee (5–2) | USC (7–2) | 17. | ||||||||||||||
| 18. | Baylor | Iowa State (3–0) | Kentucky (5–0) | USC (3–2) | USC (5–2) | Tennessee (6–2) | 18. | ||||||||||||||
| 19. | Louisville | Vanderbilt (2–0) | Louisville (3–1) | Notre Dame (5–1) | Notre Dame (5–1) | Notre Dame (6–2) | 19. | ||||||||||||||
| 20. | Kentucky | Kentucky (3–0) | Iowa (4–0) | West Virginia (6–0) | Michigan State (8–0) | Louisville (8–3) | 20. | ||||||||||||||
| 21. | Vanderbilt | Louisville (1–1) | Oklahoma State (5–0) | Michigan State (6–0) | Louisville (7–2) | Ohio State (7–1) | 21. | ||||||||||||||
| 22. | Oklahoma State | Oklahoma State (4–0) | West Virginia (4–0) | Louisville (4–2) | Washington (8–0) | Oklahoma State (10–1) | 22. | ||||||||||||||
| 23. | Iowa | Iowa (2–0) | Notre Dame (3–1) | Washington (5–0) | Oklahoma State (8–1) | Washington (8–1) | 23. | ||||||||||||||
| 24. | Ohio State | Michigan State (2–0) | Duke (3–2) | NC State (3–3) | Ohio State (6–1) | Michigan State (8–1) | 24. | ||||||||||||||
| 25. | Kansas State | Ohio State (1–0) | Michigan State (4–0) | Oklahoma State (6–1) | NC State (5–3) | Alabama (10–0) | 25. | ||||||||||||||
| Preseason Oct 23[9] | Week 2 Nov 11[10] | Week 3 Nov 18[11] | Week 4 Nov 24[12] | Week 5 Dec 2[13] | Week 6 Dec 9[14] | Week 7 Dec 16 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Final | ||
| Dropped: No. 25 Kansas State (3–0) | Dropped: No. 25 Ohio State (2–1) | Dropped: No. 24 Duke (3–3) | Dropped: No. 20 West Virginia (6–2) | Dropped: No. 25 NC State (6–4) | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None | None |
See also
2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
References
- ^ "Mel Greenberg Class of 2004/2005 – Sports Writer". Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Preseason". apnews.com. Associated Press. October 14, 2025. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 2". apnews.com. Associated Press. November 10, 2025. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 3". apnews.com. Associated Press. November 17, 2025. Retrieved November 17, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 4". apnews.com. Associated Press. November 24, 2025. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 5". apnews.com. Associated Press. December 1, 2025. Retrieved December 1, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 6". apnews.com. Associated Press. December 8, 2025. Retrieved December 8, 2025.
- ^ "AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll - Week 7". apnews.com. Associated Press. December 15, 2025. Retrieved December 15, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll". USA Today. October 23, 2025. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Poll - Week 2". USA Today. November 11, 2025. Retrieved November 12, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Poll - Week 3". USA Today. November 18, 2025. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Poll - Week 4". USA Today. November 24, 2025. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Poll - Week 5". USA Today. December 2, 2025. Retrieved December 2, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Poll - Week 6". USA Today. December 9, 2025. Retrieved December 9, 2025.