UC Berkeley named top public university in the U.S. and No. 7 in the world by ‘U.S. News’

U.S. News & World Report has ranked UC Berkeley No. 7 in its 2026 list of the best global universities, which assesses more than 2,250 research institutions worldwide. Berkeley also claimed the honor of top public university in the U.S. and the No. 4 research university in the country overall.

The just-released list evaluates universities from 105 countries on 13 metrics such as global and research reputation (as reported by academics and their peers) and number of highly cited scholarly papers. 

Berkeley has been consistently awarded the distinction of the U.S.’s top public university since the Best Global Universities list was first published in 2014. UCLA appeared as the second-highest-ranked public university on the list, at No. 11.

“A strong position in the Best Global Universities rankings recognizes a school’s profound commitment to world-class research and cross-border academic excellence,” said LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News.

The rankings also assess a university’s strength in various subject areas; these assessments are separate from U.S. News’ 2026 Best Graduate Programs rankings released in April. This year, Berkeley was named in the top five globally in a number of subjects, including physics (No. 3), biology and biochemistry (No. 4), economics and business (No. 4), environment/ecology (No. 4), and space science (No. 5). Subject rankings are based heavily on scholarly publications and citations as well as reputation.

In September, U.S. News also released its 2026 Best Colleges list, in which Berkeley was also named the No. 1 public institution among American universities. That honor joins other accolades judging Berkeley to be the best public university in the country, such as those from Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education.