Tokyo University Scores Highest Ever in Global Ranking
The University of Tokyo achieved its highest-ever 26th position in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026. Japan’s overall representation at the top has dipped slightly, with only 4% of its providers improving their position from last year. Japan has three other institutions in the top 200: Kyoto University (61), Tohoku University (103) and The University of Osaka (151).
India overtakes Japan to become the second most-represented country in the ranking for the first time, totaling 128 institutions, which increased from 107 last year and 19 in 2016. It is behind the US, with 171 institutions.
Trusted worldwide by students, academics, governments and industry experts, the rankings this year included a record 2,191 institutions from 115 countries and territories.
The University of Tokyo says it has led research and education in Japan since foundation as a national university in 1877. For more than a century, it has been “nurturing minds that have gone on to explore space, win Nobel Prizes and expand the frontiers of human knowledge.” More than 5,500 faculty and some 27,000 students make it one of the most important global hubs of research and education in Asia.
Some experts said the latest rankings represent a “shift in the balance of power” from West to East, but shrinking populations pose a threat to East Asia as well as the US, UK and others. The annual report said, “As absolute numbers start to decline, universities will need to come up with solutions. The demographic clock is ticking, and so it’s going to be very interesting to see what happens, particularly in Korea, Taiwan and Japan.”
“South Korea rises significantly in all four research quality metrics and now has a record four institutions in the top 100. Hong Kong occupies a record six spots in the top 200 as a result of improvements in teaching reputation and its student-to-staff ratio, and all six of its institutions that were ranked both this year and last year have improved. The National University of Singapore failed to improve on last year’s 17th position.”
Oxford is still the best university in the world despite the worst performance in a decade from the UK overall. “There are clear warning signs of UK decline,” the report warned, citing a financial crisis in the further education industry caused by inflation and fewer international students due to tougher visa rules.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology is second while Princeton rises to joint third as the only US university to achieve its best-ever finish this year.
“In contrast, 21% of Chinese universities have moved up the table this year and the country’s average score increased by a whole point. It now has five universities in the top 40, up from three last year, and 35 in the top 500—which is more than Australia.” A total of 18 Chinese institutions achieved their best rank ever, more than any other nation.
“The number of Chinese universities in the top 200 is also steady, at 13 universities for the third year in a row. This stability is in marked contrast to the trajectory of Asia’s top universities in the decade leading up to the 2024 edition of the rankings, during which time Tsinghua moved up 35 places, Peking 28 places and NUS seven places. This year marks the first time since the 2012 edition that none of the three institutions has improved its rank.”
World University Rankings 2026: Top 10
| 2026 rank | 2025 rank | Institution | Country/region |
| 1 | 1 | University of Oxford | United Kingdom |
| 2 | 2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | United States |
| =3 | 4 | Princeton University | United States |
| =3 | 5 | University of Cambridge | United Kingdom |
| =5 | 3 | Harvard University | United States |
| =5 | 6 | Stanford University | United States |
| 7 | 7 | California Institute of Technology | United States |
| 8 | 9 | Imperial College London | United Kingdom |
| 9 | 8 | University of California, Berkeley | United States |
| 10 | 10 | Yale University | United States |