Top universities in the UK 2021

The University of Oxford continues its domination as the top university in the UK for 2021. The elite institution has dropped one place since last year’s ranking and is now the fifth best university in the world, while their rival institution the University of Cambridge remains in seventh place. 

There is a total of 90 UK universities in the QS World University Rankings 2021 – six more than last year. Four of these institutions make it into the global top 10, with a further four in the global top 50.

Read on for more information on the top 10 universities in the UK and view the full results of the QS World University Rankings 2021 here. You can also find out more about the methodology used to compile the rankings here.

QS World University Rankings 2021 – Top 10 Universities in the UK
UK Rank	Global Rank	Institution
1	5	University of Oxford
2	7	University of Cambridge
3	8	Imperial College London
4	10	UCL (University College London)
5	20	University of Edinburgh
6	27=	The University of Manchester
7	31=	King’s College London (KCL)
8	49	London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
9	58	University of Bristol
10	62	The University of Warwick

10) The University of Warwick

 

 

Remaining in 10^th place in the UK this year is the University of Warwick, which is also ranked 62^nd globally for another year. Their success in the rankings is largely due to the global outlook of the university, which achieves near perfect scores in the international faculty and international students ranking indicators. 

9) University of Bristol        

 

 

Ninth in the UK is the University of Bristol, which nonetheless drops nine spots in the global rankings this year to 58^th place. The university achieves high scores across all ranking indicators, particularly for academic reputation where it ranks 74^th globally.

8) London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

 

 

In eighth place in the UK is the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), which drops five places this year to rank 49^th globally – the first UK university in our top 10 to make it into the global top 50. LSE is ranked seventh in the world for international students, making it the most diverse UK university in our ranking.

7) King’s College London (KCL)

 

 

Seventh in the UK again this year is King’s College London (KCL), which climbs two places in the global rankings to joint 31^st. One of four London-based universities in the UK top 10, KCL achieves impressive scores in all indicators, particularly academic reputation where it ranks among the top 50 universities in the world.

6) The University of Manchester

 

 

 

The University of Manchester ranks sixth in the UK this year, taking joint 27^th place in the global rankings. Manchester graduates are looked on particularly favourably by employers – the university ranks 21^st in the world for the employer reputation indicator.

5) University of Edinburgh

 

 

 

Ranking fifth in the UK, and remaining the 20^th best university in the world, is the University of Edinburgh – the only Scottish institution in the UK top 10. It scores particularly highly for academic reputation and employer reputation, ranking 25^th and 31^st in the world respectively for these indicators.

4) UCL (University College London)

 

 

Just missing out on a spot in the UK top three is UCL (University College London), which drops two places in the global rankings this year to 10^th. Its highest score can be found in the academic reputation indicator where it places 13^th in the world.

3) Imperial College London

 

 

 

Taking the bronze medal position in the UK is Imperial College London, the highest-ranked university in the capital. It moves up one position globally this year to eighth place and takes ninth place globally for academic reputation. 

2) University of Cambridge

 

 

As per usual, it’s a battle between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge for first place in the UK rankings. Once again, it’s Cambridge in second place, ranked seventh globally. However, Cambridge is the highest ranked university in the UK for both academic and employer reputation, in second place globally for these indicators.

1) University of Oxford

 

 

Taking first place in the UK again this year is the University of Oxford, which drops one place in the global rankings to fifth. Achieving high scores across all indicators, Oxford is the highest ranked school in the UK for faculty-student ratio (eighth place) and citations per faculty (44^th place).

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The next 10 best universities in the UK can be found below:

QS World University Rankings 2021 – Top Universities in the UK 11-20
UK Rank	Global Rank	Institution
11	77=	University of Glasgow
12	86	Durham University
13	87	University of Birmingham
14	90	University of Southampton
15	91	University of Leeds
16	93=	The University of Sheffield
17	96	University of St Andrews
18	99	The University of Nottingham
19	133=	Queen Mary University of London (QMUL)
20	135=	Lancaster University

A further 29 UK universities are ranked within the world’s top 500 institutions.

QS World University Rankings 2020 – Top Universities in the UK 21-49
UK Rank	Global Rank	Institution
21	150=	University of York
22	152=	Newcastle University
23	159	Cardiff University
24	164	University of Exeter
25	173=	University of Bath
26	181=	University of Liverpool
27	205	University of Reading
28	207	University of Aberdeen
29	209	Queen's University of Belfast
30	226	Loughborough University
31	242=	University of Leicester
32	246=	University of Sussex
33	267=	University of Surrey
34	300	University of Strathclyde
35	301=	Heriot-Watt University
36	308=	Royal Holloway University of London
37	319	University of Dundee
38	333=	University of East Anglia (UEA)
39	344=	Birkbeck College, University of London
40	346=	SOAS - School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
41	350=	City, University of London
42	368=	Brunel University
43	380=	University of Kent
44	383=	Oxford Brookes University
45	411=	University of Essex
46	416=	Goldsmiths, University of London
47	474=	Swansea University
48	485=	Aberystwyth University
48	485=	University of Stirling

After 500th place, the QS World University Rankings group universities together into bandings, e.g. 501-510, 511-520. The remaining 35 universities and their banding can be seen below. 

QS World University Rankings 2020 – Top Universities in the UK 501-1000
UK Rank	Global Rank	Institution
50	511-520	Aston University
51	541-550	Coventry University
52	581-590	Kingston University, London
53	601-650	Bangor University
54	601-650	Ulster University
57	601-650	University of Bradford
55	601-650	University of Hull
56	601-650	University of Portsmouth
60	651-700	Northumbria University at Newcastle
58	651-700	Plymouth University
59	651-700	University of Westminster
61	701-750	Keele University
63	701-750	Middlesex University
64	701-750	University of Greenwich
62	701-750	University of Huddersfield
65	751-800	Bournemouth University
67	751-800	London South Bank University
66	751-800	Nottingham Trent University
82	801-1000	Birmingham City University (BCU)
73	801-1000	De Montfort University
79	801-1000	Edinburgh Napier University
84	801-1000	Glasgow Caledonian University
69	801-1000	Liverpool John Moores University
75	801-1000	London Metropolitan University
69	801-1000	Manchester Metropolitan University
75	801-1000	Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh
81	801-1000	Sheffield Hallam University
82	801-1000	The Robert Gordon University
72	801-1000	University of Brighton
78	801-1000	University of Central Lancashire
68	801-1000	University of East London
74	801-1000	University of Hertfordshire
80	801-1000	University of Lincoln
77	801-1000	University of Salford
69	801-1000	University of the West of England