It’s no secret that over the past five or more years, Los Angeles has been in a pizza boom, with pop-ups born out of the pandemic becoming brick-and-mortars across the city and serving styles ranging from Neapolitan to Detroit and beyond. The Bay Area’s pizza scene has been thriving for years, too, with spots like Jules and Flour + Water making the New York Times’ newly updated list of the 25 best restaurants in San Francisco.
Now, a new ranking of national pizzerias is finally giving California pie shops their due, with Golden State pizzerias handily dominating the top of the list over New York or New Jersey.
On Wednesday, 50 Top Pizza, an Italy-based culinary guide, released its 2026 list of the best pizza shops across the country. New York City pizzeria Una Pizza Napoletana — which was originally launched in New Jersey in 1998 but came of age during its eight-year stint in San Francisco starting in 2010 — nabbed the top spot for chef Anthony Mangieri’s laser focus on Neapolitan pies.
Two California pizzerias tied for No. 2: LA’s Pizzeria Sei, which has been serving puffy-crusted Tokyo-style pies since 2022, and award-winning pizza guru Tony Gemignani’s now-seminal, 17-year-old Tony’s Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco, which has been on the list since 2021. New Jersey’s acclaimed Razza came in third.
The California pizzeria to round out the top five, at No. 4, was Dana Point’s Truly Pizza, which also won the special category of Pizza of the Year for its umami mushroom pie. Miami’s Francesco Martucci scored the fifth spot.
Other California pizzerias to make the list include Flour House in San Luis Obispo (No. 22), Nardo in Huntington Beach (No. 25) and San Diego’s Tribute Pizza (No. 38).
Although New York City has long been regarded as the country’s best pizza city — and does have more representation on the list overall — the top of this ranking suggests that California hasn’t just arrived on the national scene, it’s proudly standing on its own.
“We don’t need their water, but we will gladly take their tears,” said LA-based pizza influencer and community organizer David Turkell when asked about California dominating the top five.
Launched in 2018, 50 Top Pizza ranks the world’s best pizzerias via anonymous inspectors who evaluate each one based on factors like quality, technique, dough, ambiance and more. In 2025, Pizzeria Sei, Tony’s Pizza Napoletana and Truly Pizza landed at Nos. 2, 3 and 9 on the list, respectively.