The world's best universities were ranked and this Canadian school dethroned U of T
Three universities in Canada made the top 40!
University of Toronto building.
A ranking has revealed the best universities in the world.
You might think the University of Toronto is Canada's top school, but it's not the national leader anymore!
Earlier this year, Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) shared the QS World University Rankings for 2026.
The ranking was based on the research, employability, reputation, learning experience, global engagement and sustainability of post-secondary schools.
More than 1,500 universities from over 100 countries were included in the 2026 edition of the QS World University Rankings.
So, if you are going to a university in Canada this fall or are a graduate wondering how your alma mater ranked, here's what you need to know!
These are the top 10 universities in the world for 2026, according to QS:
- MIT
- Imperial College London
- Stanford University
- University of Oxford
- Harvard University
- University of Cambridge
- ETH Zurich
- National University of Singapore
- UCL
- California Institute of Technology
QS revealed that in the 2026 World University Rankings, McGill University has overtaken the University of Toronto as Canada's national leader.
McGill ranked 27th globally on this list, making it the top university in Canada.
It has an overall score of 88.9 out of 100 thanks to top marks in academic reputation, employability, international research networks, and sustainability.
Even though the University of Toronto has been dethroned, it wasn't that far behind McGill.
U of T ranked the 29th best university in the world with an overall score of 88.5 because of academic reputation, employability, international students, sustainability, and more.
After that, the University of British Columbia was the third-highest ranked Canadian post-secondary school in the 40th spot, with an overall score of 85.5.
It got top marks in academic reputation, employer reputation, international research networks, and sustainability.
Even more Canadian universities made the 2026 QS World University Rankings, including:
- University of Alberta — 94th
- University of Waterloo — 119th
- Western University — 151st
- Université de Montréal — 168th
- McMaster University — 173rd
- Queen's University — 191st
- University of Calgary — 211th
- University of Ottawa — 219th
- Dalhousie University — 283rd
- Simon Fraser University — 308th
- York University — 333rd
- University of Victoria — 358th
- University of Saskatchewan — 378th
- Concordia University — 465th
- Université Laval — 469th
- University of Guelph — 504th
- University of Windsor — 546th
- University of New Brunswick — 622nd
- University of Manitoba — 643rd
- Memorial University of Newfoundland — 660th
Toronto Metropolitan University, Carleton University, Université du Québec, Université de Sherbrooke, University of Regina, and Brock University made the QS World University Rankings for 2026 as well.
However, those post-secondary schools were further down the list, between 700th and 1,400th place.
QS also recently released the Best Student Cities Ranking, and Montreal was the top Canadian city and 18th overall.
It beat out Toronto and Vancouver, which ranked 22nd and 29th in the world.
So, not only is McGill the best university in Canada, but it's also in the best Canadian city for students, according to QS.