The University of Ibadan (UI) has been named Nigeria’s top university in the 2026 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, released on Thursday. Positioned between 801–1,000 globally, UI regained the leading spot it last held in 2023, surpassing other prominent Nigerian institutions. The rankings assessed 2,191 institutions across 115 countries, evaluating 18 performance indicators in teaching, research environment, research quality, industry connections, and international outlook.
UI climbed from fourth place in 2025, overtaking Covenant University, which led in 2024 and 2025. The University of Lagos (UNILAG) secured second place, followed by Bayero University (BUK) and Covenant University in third and fourth, respectively. UNILAG excelled in research quality (66.7), BUK led in international outlook, and Covenant topped industry connections.
Of the 51 Nigerian universities included, only UI and UNILAG ranked in the global 801–1,000 band. BUK, Covenant, and Landmark University fell in the 1,001–1,200 range, while five others—Ahmadu Bello University, Federal University of Technology Minna, University of Ilorin, University of Jos, and University of Nigeria—ranked between 1,201–1,500. Fourteen universities were placed above 1,501, and 27 remained unranked.
THE, a globally recognized authority on higher education data, ranks institutions that teach undergraduates, conduct multi-disciplinary research, and have published at least 1,000 research papers from 2020 to 2024 (minimum 100 annually). The 2026 rankings analyzed 174.9 million citations from 18.7 million publications and incorporated survey responses from over 108,000 scholars worldwide.
Full List of Nigerian Universities in THE 2026 World University Rankings:
1. University of Ibadan (801–1,000)
2. University of Lagos (801–1,000)
3. Bayero University (1,001–1,200)
4. Covenant University (1,001–1,200)
5. Landmark University (1,001–1,200)
6. Ahmadu Bello University (1,201–1,500)
7. Federal University of Technology, Minna (1,201–1,500)
8. University of Ilorin (1,201–1,500)
9. University of Jos (1,201–1,500)
10. University of Nigeria, Nsukka (1,201–1,500)
11. Babcock University (1,501+)
12. Delta State University, Abraka (1,501+)
13. Ekiti State University (1,501+)
14. Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (1,501+)
15. Federal University of Technology, Akure (1,501+)
16. Federal University of Technology, Owerri (1,501+)
17. Federal University Oye-Ekiti (1,501+)
18. Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (1,501+)
19. Lagos State University (1,501+)
20. Nnamdi Azikiwe University (1,501+)
21. Obafemi Awolowo University (1,501+)
22. University of Benin (1,501+)
23. University of Calabar (1,501+)
24. University of Port Harcourt (1,501+)
25. Admiralty University of Nigeria (Unranked)
26. Akwa Ibom State University (Unranked)
27. Al-Hikmah University (Unranked)
28. Augustine University (Unranked)
29. Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere-Ekiti (Unranked)
30. Bauchi State University, Gadau (Unranked)
31. Bayelsa Medical University (Unranked)
32. Baze University (Unranked)
33. Bells University of Technology (Unranked)
34. Bowen University (Unranked)
35. Evangel University, Akaeze (Unranked)
36. Federal University of Lafia (Unranked)
37. Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun (Unranked)
38. Fountain University (Unranked)
39. Godfrey Okoye University (Unranked)
40. Igbinedion University Okada (Unranked)
41. Kaduna State University (Unranked)
42. Lagos State University of Education (Unranked)
43. Lagos State University of Science and Technology (Unranked)
44. Lead City University (Unranked)
45. Maryam Abacha American University of Nigeria (Unranked)
46. Nasarawa State University, Keffi (Unranked)
47. Redeemer’s University (Unranked)
48. Rivers State University (Unranked)
49. Thomas Adewumi University (Unranked)
50. University of Cross River State (Unranked)
51. University of Delta (Unranked)
