Institutional performance benchmarking requires identifying a set of reference or comparator institutions. This paper describes a method by which an institution can identify other institutions that are most similar to itself using a methodology that identifies the nearest institutional neighbors based on a balanced set of metrics accessed from IPEDS [Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System] data. The Nearest Neighbor methodology is robust and flexible; it is easy to understand and to explain to others; and it is a hybrid method integrating judgment and analytical techniques. Use of the method is discussed, and it is compared to other methodologies such as Cluster Analysis. (Contains 1 table, 6 figures and 3 footnotes.)