America's best pizzerias crowned in new rankings as pizza expert gives slice of skepticism

Columbus Day commemorates a famous voyage across the Atlantic, but Americans don't have to travel nearly as far to discover some of the country's best pizza.

The 50 Top Pizza rankings of 2026 highlight restaurants from coast to coast, though what makes a pie worthy of the top spot is still a matter of taste.

New Haven, Connecticut-based food historian and pizza expert Colin Caplan told Fox News Digital that what constitutes the "best" pizza really comes down to personal preference.

AMERICA'S BEST-TASTING PIZZA CHAIN IS AN OLD-SCHOOL FAVORITE, SURVEY FINDS Ranked lists such as those published by 50 Top Pizza are helpful for expanding palates and introducing people to restaurants and dishes to try, he noted, but there's usually some subjectivity at play.

"50 Top Pizza is a very well-respected Italian-based, chef-based site that really goes and finds what they think is the best," he said, but suggested the organization might have a slight bias toward certain pizza styles that align with its Italian roots , such as Neapolitan.

Ultimately, though, good pizza is all about the love that goes into it.

"If the heart is [in] it, the pizza is going to taste amazing," Caplan said.

These are the top five pizzerias in America for 2026, according to 50 Top Pizza.

Founded in 1996 by Anthony Mangieri, this New York City pizzeria has "a stand-up example of sit-down pizza," according to The New York Times.

AMERICA'S MOST AND LEAST EXPENSIVE PLACES TO ORDER PIZZA REVEALED IN NEW STUDY Eater NY called the Margherita pie "a miracle of pizza development and evolution unlike any other Neapolitan pie in the world." Mangieri personally makes each ball of dough by hand, the website says, and he shapes, tops and bakes every pizza himself.

This is the fifth year in a row that Una Pizza Napoletana has claimed the top spot in the 50 Top Pizza USA ranking.

The restaurant also placed second in the 50 Top Pizza World 2026 ranking.

Operated by chef William (Sang Woo) Joo and his wife and partner, Jennifer So, Pizzeria Sei has been serving Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizzas since 2022.

RETRO PIZZA HUT DRAWS CUSTOMERS FROM HOURS AWAY AS 1980S NOSTALGIA SENDS SALES SOARING The crusts are shaped using a crimping technique that, along with a quick baking time at high heat, leads to a unique, varied texture, the website states.