QS Best Student Cities 2026
2025-10-30
Thinking of studying abroad? Explore the world's most student-friendly locations with the QS Best Student Cities 2026.
Seoul is the top city for students according to this year's ranking, replacing London which was the previous number one city. It means both of the top two student cities are now in Asia, with Tokyo ranked second this year.
| Rank | City | City | Overall Score |
| 1 | Seoul | South Korea | 100 |
| 2 | Tokyo | Japan | 99.9 |
| 3 | London | United Kingdom | 97.1 |
| 4 | Munich | Germany | 96.3 |
| 5 | Melbourne | Australia | 95.7 |
| 6 | Sydney | Australia | 94.7 |
| 7 | Berlin | Germany | 93.3 |
| 7 | Paris | France | 93.3 |
| 9 | Zurich | Switzerland | 91.5 |
| 10 | Vienna | Austria | 90.8 |
| 11 | Singapore | Singapore | 90.6 |
| 12 | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia | 90.3 |
| 13 | Beijing | China (Mainland) | 89.7 |
| 14 | Taipei | Taiwan | 89.1 |
| 15 | Boston | United States | 88.5 |
| 15 | Edinburgh | United Kingdom | 88.5 |
| 17 | Hong Kong SAR | Hong Kong | 88.3 |
| 18 | Kyoto | Japan | 87.8 |
| 18 | Montreal | Canada | 87.8 |
| 20 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | 87.4 |
| 21 | Lausanne | Switzerland | 87.1 |
| 22 | Toronto | Canada | 87 |
| 23 | New York | United States | 86.1 |
| 24 | Stockholm | Sweden | 85.2 |
| 25 | Auckland | New Zealand | 84.7 |
| 26 | Brisbane | Australia | 84.3 |
| 27 | Shanghai | China (Mainland) | 84 |
| 28 | Madrid | Spain | 83.9 |
| 29 | Prague | Czech Republic | 83.4 |
| 29 | Vancouver | Canada | 83.4 |
| 31 | Adelaide | Australia | 82.9 |
| 32 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | 82.8 |
| 33 | Leuven | Belgium | 82.5 |
| 34 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 82.3 |
| 35 | Barcelona | Spain | 82.2 |
| 35 | Glasgow | United Kingdom | 82.2 |
| 37 | Perth | Australia | 81.4 |
| 38 | Canberra | Australia | 81.2 |
| 38 | Dublin | Ireland | 81.2 |
| 40 | Manchester | United Kingdom | 80.8 |
| 41 | Newcastle Upon Tyne | United Kingdom | 80.7 |
| 41 | San Francisco | United States | 80.7 |
| 43 | Los Angeles | United States | 79.5 |
| 44 | Milan | Italy | 78.3 |
| 45 | Coventry | United Kingdom | 76.2 |
| 46 | Rome | Italy | 75.9 |
| 47 | Bristol | United Kingdom | 75.4 |
| 47 | Chicago | United States | 75.4 |
| 49 | Nottingham | United Kingdom | 75.3 |
| 50 | Santiago | Chile | 75.2 |
| 51 | Leeds | United Kingdom | 75 |
| 52 | Gothenburg | Sweden | 74.9 |
| 53 | Brussels | Belgium | 74.7 |
| 54 | Lyon | France | 74.5 |
| 55 | Bangkok | Thailand | 74.4 |
| 56 | Warsaw | Poland | 74.1 |
| 57 | Brno | Czech Republic | 73.4 |
| 58 | Lisbon | Portugal | 73.2 |
| 59 | Birmingham | United Kingdom | 73 |
| 60 | Helsinki | Finland | 72.7 |
| 61 | Istanbul | Turkey | 72.1 |
| 62 | Liverpool | United Kingdom | 70.9 |
| 62 | Osaka | Japan | 70.9 |
| 64 | Amman | Jordan | 70.8 |
| 65 | Belfast | United Kingdom | 70.6 |
| 66 | Turin | Italy | 70.2 |
| 67 | Sheffield | United Kingdom | 69.7 |
| 68 | Budapest | Hungary | 68.8 |
| 69 | Nanjing | China (Mainland) | 68.7 |
| 70 | Philadelphia | United States | 68.4 |
| 71 | Cairo | Egypt | 68.2 |
| 71 | Hsinchu | Taiwan | 68.2 |
| 73 | Mexico City | Mexico | 67.7 |
| 74 | Washington DC | United States | 67.6 |
| 75 | Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman | United Arab Emirates | 67.1 |
| 76 | Sharjah | United Arab Emirates | 66.8 |
| 77 | Cape Town | South Africa | 66.7 |
| 78 | Oslo | Norway | 65.7 |
| 79 | Ankara | Turkey | 65.6 |
| 80 | Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 65.4 |
| 80 | Atlanta | United States | 65.4 |
| 80 | Ottawa | Canada | 65.4 |
| 83 | Valencia | Spain | 65.2 |
| 84 | Riyadh | Saudi Arabia | 64.7 |
| 85 | Doha | Qatar | 64.4 |
| 86 | Aberdeen | United Kingdom | 64.1 |
| 87 | San Diego | United States | 64 |
| 88 | Manila | Philippines | 63.9 |
| 89 | Pittsburgh | United States | 63.7 |
| 90 | Wuhan | China (Mainland) | 63.6 |
| 91 | Almaty | Kazakhstan | 63.5 |
| 92 | Brighton | United Kingdom | 62.2 |
| 92 | Tainan | Taiwan | 62.2 |
| 94 | Christchurch | New Zealand | 62.1 |
| 95 | Gold Coast | Australia | 61.9 |
| 96 | Seattle | United States | 61.8 |
| 97 | Beirut | Lebanon | 61.7 |
| 98 | Mumbai | India | 61.6 |
| 99 | Bogota | Colombia | 61.4 |
| 99 | Johannesburg | South Africa | 61.4 |
| 101 | Sao Paulo | Brazil | 61.2 |
| 102 | Athens | Greece | 60.8 |
| 103 | Baltimore | United States | 60.6 |
| 104 | Delhi | India | 60.5 |
| 105 | Riga | Latvia | 60.4 |
| 106 | Toulouse | France | 60.3 |
| 107 | Al-Ain | United Arab Emirates | 60 |
| 108 | Bangalore | India | 59.6 |
| 109 | Graz | Austria | 59.4 |
| 110 | Krakow | Poland | 59.1 |
| 111 | Monterrey | Mexico | 58 |
| 111 | Nagoya | Japan | 58 |
| 113 | Taichung | Taiwan | 57.9 |
| 114 | Houston | United States | 57.8 |
| 114 | Vilnius | Lithuania | 57.8 |
| 116 | Jakarta | Indonesia | 56.9 |
| 117 | Baku | Azerbaijan | 56.8 |
| 117 | Busan | South Korea | 56.8 |
| 119 | Guangzhou | China (Mainland) | 56.7 |
| 119 | Stuttgart | Germany | 56.7 |
| 121 | Yogyakarta | Indonesia | 56.1 |
| 122 | Jeddah | Saudi Arabia | 55.6 |
| 123 | Bandung | Indonesia | 55.5 |
| 124 | Xi'an | China (Mainland) | 55.1 |
| 125 | Leicester | United Kingdom | 54.8 |
| 126 | Miami | United States | 54.5 |
| 127 | Astana | Kazakhstan | 54.3 |
| 128 | Chennai | India | 54.1 |
| 129 | Tallinn | Estonia | 53.9 |
| 130 | Taoyuan District | Taiwan | 53.6 |
| 131 | Daegu | South Korea | 53.4 |
| 132 | Tianjin | China (Mainland) | 52.8 |
| 133 | Pretoria | South Africa | 52.6 |
| 134 | Macau | Macau SAR | 52 |
| 135 | Lima | Peru | 51.3 |
| 136 | Dhaka | Bangladesh | 50.7 |
| 137 | Montpellier | France | 50.2 |
| 138 | Bishkek | Kyrgyzstan | 50.1 |
| 138 | Tel Aviv-Yafo | Israel | 50.1 |
| 140 | Wroclaw | Poland | 49.9 |
| 141 | Izmir | Turkey | 49.8 |
| 142 | Kaunas | Lithuania | 49.5 |
| 143 | Surabaya | Indonesia | 49.2 |
| 144 | Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | 49.1 |
| 144 | Shah Alam | Malaysia | 49.1 |
| 146 | Chengdu | China (Mainland) | 48.8 |
| 147 | Dallas | United States | 48.7 |
| 148 | Cluj-Napoca | Romania | 48.5 |
| 148 | Durham | United States | 48.5 |
| 150 | Irbid | Jordan | 48.3 |
