The University of Toronto (U of T) is Canada’s top school, according to the newly released Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026. U of T lands at No. 21 in the world, leading the Canadian University pack by a good margin. The University’s overall score is 88.5, with top scores in research environment (92.9), research quality (92.3), industry (95.8), international outlook (92.3) and a teaching score of 78.2. U of T’s ranking has remained steady throughout the years, holding 21st spot for the third straight year, after a recent peak at 18th from 2020 to 2023.
Thirty-four universities in Canada made this year’s cut, but no school came close to Toronto. Right behind U of T is McGill at 41st spot (77.1), with standout scores in international outlook (89.2) and research quality (86.2). UBC comes in 45th spot (77.0), also strong in research quality (88.6) and international outlook (93.5). Rounding out Canada’s top 200 are McMaster (No. 116), University of Alberta (119), Université de Montréal (150), Waterloo (162), University of Ottawa (187) and University of Calgary (200).
Looking globally, the U.S. continues to dominate, with Oxford holding on to the No. 1 spot for the tenth straight year. Princeton jumps to joint third (its best-ever finish among U.S. schools this year). India has the second-highest number of ranked universities for the first time (right behind the U.S.), and China counts five institutions in the global top 40, up from three.
Universities were ranked using 18 indicators, ranging from reputation surveys (there were more than 108,000 responses in 2024-2025) and Scopus bibliometrics (18.7 million publications and 174.9 million citations from over a five-year window) to field-weighted citations, international co-authorships, industry income and patents that cite university research.
You can look at the full rankings here!
This isn’t U of T’s only recent accolade. Last month, the NTU World University Rankings 2025 placed U of T among the global top five and at No. 1 in Canada.
Still, U of T didn’t top every list. In June, four Canadian universities earned spots among the world’s top 100 in the 2026 QS World University Rankings. Montreal’s McGill University moved up two spots from last year’s ranking to 27th spot. U of T took second place among Canadian schools, ranking 29th (a slight dip from last year’s 25th position), followed by the University of British Columbia (a distant 40th spot) and the University of Alberta (94th spot).
