Ranked: The best unis in the country right now, according to the Complete University Guide

25 per cent of them aren’t even Russell Group

2 weeks ago

The Complete University Guide 2025 is officially here, ranking all the UK universities on factors such as student satisfaction, research quality, research intensity, staff-to-student ratio and graduate prospects to find the very best unis in the country right now.

So, does your uni make the cut and can you officially claim those bragging rights over your mates from home because your uni made it into the top 20 and theirs didn’t?

These are the best universities in the country right now, according to the Complete University Guide 2025:

20. University of Southampton

Just scraping into the top 20 is the University of Southampton which, coincidentally just ranked the sunniest Russell Group uni overall. Southampton is down three spaces from last year’s ranking but features 11 subjects ranked in the top 10 including making fifth for civil engineering and eighth for archaeology.

19. University of Liverpool

The University of Liverpool has moved up an impressive six spaces from last year to be the 19th-best UK uni in the country right now. Liverpool has seven subjects ranked in the top 10, including veterinary medicine, nursing and midwifery, and marketing. Plus it’s a bloody good night out, so win-win.

18. University of Sheffield

Going from 20th last year, Sheffield is now ranked as the 18th best university, according to the Complete University Guide 2025. It also has 17 subjects ranked in the top 10 overall, including topping the rankings for nursing and midwifery.

17. University of York

York has stayed in the same spot from last year’s rankings, placing it as the 17th-best university in the UK for 2025. It might rank very poorly for spending on its academic services (112th out of 130) but it ranks as the ninth best for research quality and features 14 subjects in the top 10 overall.

16. University of Bristol

Ranking highly in aspects such as research quality and continuation of students, Bristol is 16th overall. With a huge 28 subjects making it into the top 10, Bristol is second in the country for both aeronautical engineering and education.

15. University of Edinburgh

Plummeting down the rankings from 12th last year, the University of Edinburgh is the 15th best UK uni going into 2025. It has an impressive 30 subjects ranking in the top 10 and also ranks extremely high for research intensity, student-to-staff ratio and continuation of students throughout their degrees.

14. University of Exeter

The University of Exeter is the 14th best UK uni right now, according to the Complete University Guide 2025. It’s moved up one space from last year and has 21 subjects such as psychology, marketing and business all in the top 10 for subject rankings.

13. University of Surrey

Moving up one place from last year’s ranking, this non-Russell Group university ranks well as the 13th-best university in the country. It does however only feature nine subjects in the top 10 overall and these include Iberian languages, paramedic science and music.

12. University of Birmingham

Birmingham, with 19 subjects ranking in the top 10 overall, is the 12th best uni in the UK right now. It is the second-best uni for spending on its facilities, you know, so you feel like you’re actually getting your money’s worth, but ranks really poorly for student satisfaction at 111th.

11. Lancaster University

Moving from 10th to 11th since last year, Lancaster has 15 subjects in the top 10 overall. It also ranks third overall for its research intensity.

10. University of Warwick

And moving into the top 10, the University of Warwick is the 10th best uni in the UK right now. It has moved up one space since last year and currently has 17 subjects like creative writing, maths and sociology all in the top 10.

9. University College London

For the third year running, UCL is ranked ninth in the Complete University Guide 2025. With 35 subjects making it into the top 10, UCL is also the second-best uni for its staff-to-student ratio and fifth for its research quality.

8. University of Bath

Another non-Russell Group uni, the University of Bath is at number eight. It might have moved down three places from last year’s Complete University Guide but 25 of its subjects make it into the top 10 overall, including topping the rankings for its marketing course.

7. Loughborough University

For the fifth year running, Loughborough University is more than just good at sports, it’s also the seventh-best uni in the country right now. It ranks fourth for its spending on facilities and 18 of its subjects make it into the top 10 overall.

6. Durham University

Now in sixth place, Durham has moved up two rankings from last year. 31 of its subjects make it into the top 10, including coming third for Asian studies and fourth for history.

5. Imperial College London

Moving up one place from last year’s rankings, Imperial College London is the fifth-best university in the UK right now. It also comes out on top for both the university’s spend on academic services and also research quality. 14 subjects at Imperial rank in the top 10 overall.

4. University of St Andrews

The highest ranking non-Russell Group University and highest ranking Scottish University, the University of St Andrews is officially the fourth best UK uni. St Andrews has stayed in the fourth spot since 2022 and is the second best for student satisfaction as well as topping the rankings for a number of different subjects.

3. London School of Economics

The best London uni in the rankings, LSE is the third best UK university on the planet right now. Retaining the third spot for the fourth year running, London School of Economics ranks highly rated in a lot of areas including second for research quality and continuation of students. It does, however, rank poorly for student satisfaction, ranking as the 62nd best UK uni for how happy its students are.

2. University of Oxford

Big yikes to Oxford missing out to Cambridge this time! As the second best UK uni overall, Oxford also ranks first in student-to-staff ratio and has 38 subjects ranked in the top 10 including being the best uni for several subjects such as English and Anthropology.

1. University of Cambridge

It’s SO hard to even act shocked anymore, isn’t it? The University of Cambridge is officially the best in the world right now, according to the Complete University Guide 2025. It has a maximum overall score of 1000 and ranks first in a number of different areas including research intensity and continuation of students and subjects such as history, medicine and chemistry.