World’s Top 100 Universities 2027 — QS and THE Rankings

By Sampath Kumar · Updated

The two most-quoted global rankings, both 2027 editions, side by side: the QS World University Rankings 2027 and the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2027, published on 30 September 2026. Every rank is exactly as the publisher printed it, ties included — with where India’s IITs, IISc and universities stand.

MITNo. 1 in QS 2027 (score 100)
OxfordNo. 1 in THE 2027 (score 97.9)
75universities in both top 100s
#118best Indian rank (QS): IIT Delhi
No Indian institution is in either top 100. In QS 2027 the highest is IIT Delhi at 118, then IIT Bombay (=134) and IIT Madras (170); 52 Indian institutions are ranked in all. In THE 2027 the highest is IISc Bangalore at =254; 170 Indian institutions are ranked, and the IITs are not in THE’s 2027 table. India in both rankings ↓

QS World University Rankings 2027 — top 100

102 universities, because several share a rank (a rank written “=2” is a tie). Score out of 100. Type a university or country to filter.

RankUniversityCountryCityScore
1Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)United StatesCambridge100
=2Imperial College LondonUnited KingdomLondon99.2
=2Stanford UniversityUnited StatesStanford99.2
4University of OxfordUnited KingdomOxford98.6
5Harvard UniversityUnited StatesCambridge97.4
6University of CambridgeUnited KingdomCambridge97.1
7California Institute of Technology (Caltech)United StatesPasadena96.6
=8ETH ZurichSwitzerlandZürich96.3
=8UCLUnited KingdomLondon96.3
10National University of Singapore (NUS)SingaporeSingapore96.2
11The University of Hong KongHong KongHong Kong95.9
12Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore)SingaporeSingapore93.6
13Peking UniversityChinaBeijing92.6
14Tsinghua UniversityChinaBeijing92.1
15University of PennsylvaniaUnited StatesPhiladelphia91.7
=16Cornell UniversityUnited StatesIthaca91.5
=16Yale UniversityUnited StatesNew Haven91.5
18The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)Hong KongHong Kong89.9
19The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney)AustraliaSydney89.8
=20Johns Hopkins UniversityUnited StatesBaltimore89.7
=20University of California, Berkeley (UCB)United StatesBerkeley89.7
=22EPFL – École polytechnique fédérale de LausanneSwitzerlandLausanne89.6
=22The University of MelbourneAustraliaMelbourne89.6
24University of ChicagoUnited StatesChicago89.2
25Technical University of MunichGermanyMunich89.1
26Fudan UniversityChinaShanghai89
27Princeton UniversityUnited StatesPrinceton88.9
28The University of SydneyAustraliaSydney88.4
29Australian National University (ANU)AustraliaCanberra87.6
30McGill UniversityCanadaMontreal87.5
31Monash UniversityAustraliaMelbourne87
32University of TorontoCanadaToronto86.8
33The Hong Kong University of Science and TechnologyHong KongHong Kong86.4
34Université PSLFranceParis86
35The University of EdinburghUnited KingdomEdinburgh85.9
36Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityChinaShanghai85.8
37King's College LondonUnited KingdomLondon85.7
38Seoul National UniversitySouth KoreaSeoul85.4
39The University of TokyoJapanTokyo84.8
=40The University of ManchesterUnited KingdomManchester84.6
=40The University of QueenslandAustraliaBrisbane84.6
42Yonsei UniversitySouth KoreaSeoul84.2
=43Columbia UniversityUnited StatesNew York City84
=43Institut Polytechnique de ParisFranceParis84
=45Northwestern UniversityUnited StatesEvanston83.8
=45University of British ColumbiaCanadaVancouver83.9
47Zhejiang UniversityChinaHangzhou83.5
48Delft University of TechnologyNetherlandsDelft83.1
49University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)United StatesLos Angeles82.7
50The Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityHong KongHong Kong82.3
51University of Michigan-Ann ArborUnited StatesAnn Arbor82.2
=52City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK)Hong KongKowloon81.9
=52Korea UniversitySouth KoreaSeoul81.9
54National Taiwan University (NTU)TaiwanTaipei81.7
55Carnegie Mellon UniversityUnited StatesPittsburgh81.4
56Universiti Malaya (UM)MalaysiaKuala Lumpur81.2
57University of BristolUnited KingdomBristol80.9
58New York University (NYU)United StatesNew York City80.8
59KU LeuvenBelgiumLeuven80.5
60University of AmsterdamNetherlandsAmsterdam80.2
61Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenGermanyMunich79.6
62The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)United KingdomLondon78.8
63KFUPMSaudi ArabiaDhahran78.3
64Kyoto UniversityJapanKyoto78.2
65KAISTSouth KoreaDaejeon77.7
66Brown UniversityUnited StatesProvidence77.4
67The University of AucklandNew ZealandAuckland77
=68University of WarwickUnited KingdomEngland75.9
=68University of BirminghamUnited KingdomBirmingham75.9
70Duke UniversityUnited StatesDurham75.8
71Lund UniversitySwedenLund75.7
72University of Texas at AustinUnited StatesAustin75.3
73Sorbonne UniversityFranceParis74.8
74University of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignUnited StatesChampaign74.7
75Trinity College Dublin, The University of DublinIrelandDublin74.4
76Université Paris-SaclayFranceParis73.8
=77The University of Western AustraliaAustraliaPerth73.7
=77University of LeedsUnited KingdomLeeds73.7
79Adelaide UniversityAustraliaAdelaide73.6
80University of GlasgowUnited KingdomGlasgow73.4
81University of California, San Diego (UCSD)United StatesSan Diego73.3
=82KTH Royal Institute of TechnologySwedenStockholm72.7
=82The University of SheffieldUnited KingdomSheffield72.7
84Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA)ArgentinaBuenos Aires72.3
85Durham UniversityUnited KingdomDurham71.7
86Universität HeidelbergGermanyHeidelberg70.6
=87Politecnico di MilanoItalyMilan70.5
=87The University of Technology Sydney (UTS)AustraliaSydney70.5
=87Uppsala UniversitySwedenUppsala70.5
=90Nanjing UniversityChinaNanjing70.4
=90University of CopenhagenDenmarkCopenhagen70.4
=92Pennsylvania State UniversityUnited StatesUniversity Park70.2
=92University of WashingtonUnited StatesSeattle70.2
94Boston UniversityUnited StatesBoston70
95The University of OsakaJapanOsaka City69.5
96University of AlbertaCanadaEdmonton69.3
=97Institute of Science TokyoJapanTokyo69.2
=97University of NottinghamUnited KingdomNottingham69.2
=98Freie Universitaet BerlinGermanyBerlin69
=98University of ZurichSwitzerlandZürich69
=100Purdue UniversityUnited StatesWest Lafayette68.7
=100University College DublinIrelandDublin68.7

In both top 100s

75 universities make the top 100 of both rankings — the most consistent picks if you are shortlisting on reputation. Sorted by their two ranks combined.

UniversityCountryQS 2027THE 2027
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)United States12
Stanford UniversityUnited States=2=3
University of OxfordUnited Kingdom41
Imperial College LondonUnited Kingdom=28
Harvard UniversityUnited States56
University of CambridgeUnited Kingdom65
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)United States77
ETH ZurichSwitzerland=812
UCLUnited Kingdom=8=17
National University of Singapore (NUS)Singapore1015
Tsinghua UniversityChina1411
Yale UniversityUnited States=16=9
Peking UniversityChina1313
University of PennsylvaniaUnited States1514
University of California, Berkeley (UCB)United States=20=9
Princeton UniversityUnited States27=3
Cornell UniversityUnited States=1621
Johns Hopkins UniversityUnited States=20=17
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore)Singapore1228
University of ChicagoUnited States2416
The University of Hong KongHong Kong1133
Technical University of MunichGermany2525
University of TorontoCanada3222
The University of MelbourneAustralia=22=34
EPFL – École polytechnique fédérale de LausanneSwitzerland=2236
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)Hong Kong1842
Columbia UniversityUnited States=4319
Fudan UniversityChina2638
The University of EdinburghUnited Kingdom35=29
The University of TokyoJapan3927
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)United States4920
McGill UniversityCanada3043
Northwestern UniversityUnited States=45=29
University of Michigan-Ann ArborUnited States5123
Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityChina3639
King's College LondonUnited Kingdom3740
The University of SydneyAustralia28=51
Carnegie Mellon UniversityUnited States5524
Zhejiang UniversityChina47=34
New York University (NYU)United States58=29
University of British ColumbiaCanada=4544
The Hong Kong University of Science and TechnologyHong Kong3358
Université PSLFrance3457
Monash UniversityAustralia3161
The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney)Australia19=75
Seoul National UniversitySouth Korea3856
Delft University of TechnologyNetherlands4850
The University of ManchesterUnited Kingdom=4060
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenGermany6141
Duke UniversityUnited States7032
KU LeuvenBelgium59=45
Australian National University (ANU)Australia2977
The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)United Kingdom6247
The University of QueenslandAustralia=40=73
Institut Polytechnique de ParisFrance=43=75
University of California, San Diego (UCSD)United States8137
University of WashingtonUnited States=9226
Yonsei UniversitySouth Korea4280
City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK)Hong Kong=5270
University of AmsterdamNetherlands60=62
University of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignUnited States7448
University of Texas at AustinUnited States72=53
Kyoto UniversityJapan64=62
The Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityHong Kong5079
KAISTSouth Korea6564
Universität HeidelbergGermany86=45
University of BristolUnited Kingdom5782
Brown UniversityUnited States66=73
Nanjing UniversityChina=9059
Université Paris-SaclayFrance7678
University of GlasgowUnited Kingdom8083
University of BirminghamUnited Kingdom=68=97
University of CopenhagenDenmark=9081
Boston UniversityUnited States9486
Purdue UniversityUnited States=10084

Top 100 universities by country

CountryIn QS top 100In THE top 100
United States2637
United Kingdom1611
Australia96
China68
Germany47
Hong Kong55
South Korea44
Canada43
France43
Netherlands25
Japan42
Switzerland32
Singapore22
Sweden31
Denmark12
Belgium11
Ireland2—
Argentina1—
Austria—1
Italy1—
Malaysia1—
New Zealand1—
Saudi Arabia1—
Taiwan1—

The United States has the most in both (26 in QS, 37 in THE), followed by the United Kingdom (16 and 11). The two rankings weigh different things, so a country can do noticeably better in one than the other.

Where Indian institutions stand

QS 2027 ranks 52 Indian institutions. The top 15:

QS rankInstitutionCityScore
118Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD)New Delhi65.7
=134Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB)Mumbai63.9
170Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM)Chennai59.3
205Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT-KGP)Kharagpur55.1
=221Indian Institute of Science (IISc) BangaloreBangalore53.8
=221Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK)Kanpur53.8
=322University of DelhiNew Delhi43.8
=335Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR)Roorkee42.9
=349Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG)Guwahati41.9
=452Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management SciencesSolan34.5
=470Anna UniversityChennai33.8
=510Indian Institute of Technology BHU Varanasi (IIT BHU Varanasi)Varanasi32.1
=526Chandigarh University (Punjab)Mohali31.1
=546Indian Institute of Technology IndoreIndore30.1
=555Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityNew Delhi29.7

THE 2027 ranks 170 Indian institutions; below the top 200 THE publishes rank bands rather than exact ranks. The top 12:

THE rankInstitution
=254Indian Institute of Science
326–350Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences
451–500Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences
501–550Jamia Millia Islamia
501–550KIIT University
501–550Lovely Professional University
551–600Amity University, Noida
551–600Banaras Hindu University
551–600Graphic Era University
551–600Manipal Academy of Higher Education
601–650Symbiosis International University
601–650UPES

The two lists look very different for India mainly because the IITs appear in QS but not in THE’s 2027 table, and THE includes many private universities that QS ranks lower. Getting into an IIT is covered on our IIT admission page and the JoSAA college predictor.

Why QS and THE disagree

How to use these rankings when you choose

  1. Look at the subject, not only the overall rank. A university outside the top 100 can be world-class in your field; both publishers also rank by subject.
  2. Check the total cost and the visa rules for the country before you shortlist.
  3. For medicine, a foreign degree must also meet India’s licensing rules — see our MBBS abroad guide and the cost comparison.
  4. Use both rankings. A university high in both is a safer reputation bet than one that is high in only one.

Frequently asked questions

Which is the No. 1 university in the world in 2027?

MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in the QS World University Rankings 2027, and the University of Oxford in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2027.

Is any Indian university in the world's top 100?

No. In QS 2027 the best Indian institution is IIT Delhi at 118; in THE 2027 it is the Indian Institute of Science at =254.

What is IIT Bombay's world ranking in 2027?

=134 in the QS World University Rankings 2027. IIT Bombay does not appear in THE's 2027 table.

Which country has the most top-100 universities?

The United States: 26 in QS 2027 and 37 in THE 2027, followed by the United Kingdom with 16 and 11.

Why are QS and THE rankings different?

They weigh different things. QS relies more on reputation surveys and employer views; THE puts more weight on research output and citations.

When was the THE World University Rankings 2027 published?

On 30 September 2026.

Sources: QS World University Rankings 2027 (topuniversities.com) and THE World University Rankings 2027 (timeshighereducation.com), read on 30 September 2026. Ranks and scores are the publishers’; the country counts and the “in both” list are computed here. QS and THE are trademarks of their owners; College Path is not affiliated with either.

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