Data study · 2020–21 to 2025–26
How many college basketball players come from outside the US? The international pipeline, by level
7.2% of D1 players list a home outside the US; 4.0% of D2 players list a home outside the US; 2.0% of D3 players list a home outside the US (2025–26 rosters, among players with a home on record). The international pipeline concentrates at D1.
Computed from 77,669 player-seasons · 2020–21 to 2025–26 · updated Sep 1, 2026
International players are most common in D1.
7.2% of D1 rosters list a home outside the US, 4.0% of D2 rosters list a home outside the US, 2.0% of D3 rosters list a home outside the US.
The direction, season by season.
D1 went from 9.8% to 7.2% (down 2.6 points). D2 went from 6.4% to 4.0% (down 2.4 points). D3 is steady (2.0% → 2.0%).
Provinces count as international here.
The home field holds countries and Canadian provinces alike (Australia and Ontario are its two biggest non-US values in this window) — a recruit crossing any national border competes in the same pipeline.
The international share, season by season
Scale spans the data to make the slopes visible; exact values are in the table below.
Share of players listing a home outside the US · 2020–21 to 2025–26
| Season | D1 | D2 | D3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | 9.8% | 6.4% | 2.0% |
| 2021–22 | 9.6% | 5.9% | 2.0% |
| 2022–23 | 9.4% | 4.7% | 1.6% |
| 2023–24 | 8.6% | 5.8% | 1.9% |
| 2024–25 | 7.9% | 5.1% | 1.7% |
| 2025–26 | 7.2% | 4.0% | 2.0% |
What families should take from this
International recruiting is another source of competition for roster spots, especially in D1 — and the table shows where it concentrates. For a domestic player, the practical reading is that the same height and stat line lands differently at different levels partly because the pool it competes against differs.
Which programs actually recruit profiles like yours — international pipeline and all — is what the Recruiting Fit Report scores, program by program.
See how your profile competes in this market
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Methodology
Source · sample · scope77,669 player-seasons · 1,060 programs · 2020–21 to 2025–26
Definitions and scope
- Source
- Official rosters published by the athletics sites of 1,060 NCAA D1, D2 and D3 men's programs, 2020–21 through 2025–26, collected by Depth Chart.
- International
- The roster's hometown field holds a value that is not one of the 50 states or DC — countries and Canadian provinces both appear there and both count. A player with no listed hometown is outside every share on this page.
- The coverage guard
- Hometown coverage varies by season and by program, so every share's denominator is players WITH a home on record that season — collection growth must never read as recruiting change. Coverage by season: 2020–21: D1 90.6% of 5,187 · D2 91.4% of 3,356 · D3 90.2% of 4,465; 2021–22: D1 90.9% of 5,300 · D2 92.4% of 3,612 · D3 88.1% of 5,478; 2022–23: D1 91.2% of 5,219 · D2 92.6% of 3,520 · D3 88.2% of 5,428; 2023–24: D1 90.2% of 5,320 · D2 91.9% of 3,822 · D3 88.4% of 5,564; 2024–25: D1 88.3% of 5,468 · D2 90.3% of 4,063 · D3 88.4% of 5,771; 2025–26: D1 81.2% of 5,418 · D2 83.6% of 4,403 · D3 78.9% of 6,546.
- Sample
- 77,669 player-seasons with a home on record across 6 seasons.
- Computed
- Sep 1, 2026 · methodology 2026-08-28.1
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