Guardian University Guide 2025: Oxford retains top spot, St Andrews beats Cambridge – Check top 10 UK institutions here

The Guardian University Guide 2025 is out today and the University of Oxford has been ranked the best university in the United Kingdom (UK). Oxford was number one last year as well. The University of St Andrews came second, even ahead of Cambridge. 

The University of the Arts London (UAL) shocked many by making it into the top ten. This is unusual because the Complete University Guide ranked it 33rd earlier this year and it had one of the worst scores for graduate job prospects. But in the Guardian rankings, UAL is clearly having a strong year.

Bath joins the top ten

The University of Bath secured a place in the top ten. Bath may not be as well-known as Oxford or Cambridge, but it has performed well across several rankings, including the Complete University Guide and the Daily Mail’s list. 

Bath is especially praised for helping students secure graduate jobs.

The Guardian bases its university rankings on factors like how happy students are with their teaching, how many students leave before finishing and what graduates go on to do after their studies.

The Guardian has released its rankings of top UK universities, highlighting performance across different subject areas. Each university is ranked separately based on its strength in a particular field.

In subject-specific rankings, the London School of Economics claimed the No. 1 spot in Accounting and Finance, while Imperial College London led in Aerospace and Engineering. The University of St Andrews secured first place in both Biology and Business Management and the University of Cambridge topped the list for Chemical Engineering.

Here are the top 10 best universities in UK as per Guardian University Guide 2026