Harvard Tops Global Rankings as 19 U.S. Universities Make the World’s Best List

Nineteen U.S. universities have landed spots among the top 100 global institutions in the 2025-2026 U.S. News & World Report global rankings.

Harvard University claimed the No. 1 spot worldwide, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) ranked second. Rounding out the top U.S. entries: Stanford University at No. 3, University of California, Berkeley at No. 6, University of Washington, Seattle at No. 8, Yale University at No. 9, and Columbia University at No. 10.

Other high-ranking U.S. schools included University of California, Los Angeles (13), Johns Hopkins University (14), and University of Pennsylvania (15). Cornell University, Princeton University, and University of California, San Francisco all shared the No. 16 spot.

Also making the list: University of California, San Diego and University of Michigan (tied at 21), California Institute of Technology (23), Northwestern University (24), University of Chicago (26), and Duke University (27).

This year’s rankings evaluated 2,250 top institutions across 105 countries, selected from a pool of 2,346 universities analyzed by Clarivate™. Schools were measured on 13 indicators, including global and regional research reputation, publications, books, conferences, and international collaboration.

According to U.S. News, the list helps offer insight into how American universities — long ranked domestically — stack up against the best schools around the globe.