Leeds has risen nine places in the 2026 Guardian University Guide.
The Guardian guide ranks UK institutions by subject, looking at student satisfaction, staff numbers, spending and career prospects.
It is one of several UK rankings used by prospective students, parents and advisors when considering universities.
The University of Leeds is now ranked joint 28th, up from 37th last year – with 18 subjects at Leeds placed in the UK’s top 15.
These subject areas include Architecture, Accounting and Finance, Business and Management, Chemical Engineering, Children’s Nursing, Criminology, Dentistry, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Fashion and Textiles, Journalism, Marketing and Public Relations, Mechanical Engineering, Media and film studies, Midwifery, Journalism, Social Work, Theology and Religious studies and Zoology.
The guide also highlighted that 84% of graduates were in highly skilled work or further study 15 months after graduation.
Working together
Professor Hai-Sui Yu, Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, said: “League tables are important for the institution’s reputation, and a higher position helps us attract the best to study here. This improvement follows our rise in the recent Complete University Guide and Daily Mail University Guide rankings and reflects the hard work of colleagues across the University to create a better educational experience.
“We are working together to enhance education, simplify processes and put students at the centre of everything we do. Progress in league tables shows the value of this collective effort and the difference it is already making to our students and our reputation.”
Leeds achieved an overall score of 62 out of 100, with 85.4% student satisfaction for teaching and 74.4% for feedback.
The latest success reflects, in part, progress seen in the 2025 National Student Survey (NSS), where improvements were seen for Leeds across every theme and question.
Leeds has also performed strongly in other national and global rankings over the past year:
- The University rose seven places to 18th in the 2025 Daily Mail University Guide.
- It climbed two places to 21st in the 2026 Complete University Guide, with 21 subjects ranked in the UK’s top ten.
- In the QS World University Rankings, Leeds was placed 86th globally, rising to 13th among UK institutions and 13th worldwide for its International Research Network measure.
- In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, the University moved up six places to 123rd, its highest position for more than a decade, and 15th among UK universities, with a particularly strong performance for the international outlook measure.
- In the 2025 Academic Ranking of World Universities (Shanghai Ranking), Leeds improved by 10 places year on year, maintaining a position in the top 200 globally.
Further information
Please visit the Guardian University Guide 2025 website or contact the University of Leeds press office at pressoffice@leeds.ac.uk.