Rankings: The 47 best universities in France for 2024/2025
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Universities, grand ecoles, business schools: France offers a diverse range of institutions at which you can study. And many of them rank high with the best universities in Europe and the world. Another statistic underlines France’s claim to be one of the world’s leading nations for higher education: France is high up among the countries with the most Nobel prize winners.
Thanks to the remarkable reputation of French education, a degree from a university in France will open many doors for you around the globe.
| University | QS Ranking 2024 | THE Ranking 2024 | ARWU Ranking 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universit辿 PSL | 24 | 40 | 41 |
| cole Polytechnique | 38 | 71 | 301 |
| Sorbonne University | 59 | 75 | 46 |
| Universit辿 Paris-Saclay | 71 | 58 | 15 |
| ENS de Lyon | 184 | 251 | 201 |
| cole des ponts ParisTech | 192 | 401 | – |
| Universit辿 Grenoble Alpes | 294 | 301 | 101 |
| Sciences Po | 319 | 501 | – |
| Universit辿 Paris 1 Panth辿on-Sorbonne | 328 | 801 | – |
| University of Montpellier | 382 | 301 | 151 |
| Aix-Marseille University | 387 | 351 | 151 |
| INSA Lyon | 392 | 601 | – |
| University of Strasbourg | 421 | – | 151 |
| Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University | 452 | 401 | 201 |
| University of Bordeaux | 465 | 351 | 201 |
| Universit辿 Paul Sabatier | 511 | – | 301 |
| University of Lille | 631 | 601 | 301 |
| Universit辿 de Rennes 1 | 711 | 801 | 401 |
| Universit辿 de Lorraine | 721 | 601 | 201 |
| Universit辿 C担te dAzur | 721 | 501 | 401 |
| Universit辿 de Nantes | 771 | 501 | 701 |
| CY Cergy Paris University | 851 | 801 | – |
| University Paris 2 Panth辿on-Assas | 851 | – | – |
| Toulouse 1 Capitole University | 951 | – | 301 |
| Universit辿 Lumi竪re Lyon 2 | 1001 | 1201 | – |
| Universit辿 Paul-Val辿ry Montpellier 3 | 1001 | – | – |
| University of Caen Normandy | 1001 | – | – |
| University of Poitiers | 1001 | 801 | 901 |
| University Toulouse - Jean Jaur竪s | 1001 | – | – |
| University of Franche-Comt辿 | 1201 | 1001 | – |
| University of Limoges | 1201 | – | – |
| Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University | 1201 | 1501 | – |
| University Paris Nanterre | 1201 | 1201 | – |
| Centrale Nantes | – | 401 | – |
| cole Centrale de Lyon | – | 601 | – |
| Universit辿 de Paris | – | 152 | 69 |
| University of Clermont Auvergne | – | 801 | 601 |
| University of Pau and Pays de lAdour | – | 1201 | – |
| University of Technology of Compi竪gne | – | 1201 | – |
| University of Tours | – | 801 | – |
| University of Western Brittany | – | 801 | – |
| INSA Toulouse | – | – | 701 |
| Universit辿 de Bourgogne | – | – | 701 |
| EHESS - School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences | – | – | 801 |
| University of Savoy | – | – | 801 |
| University Paris-Est Cr辿teil Val de Marne (UPEC) | – | – | 801 |
| Montpellier Business School | – | – | 901 |
The QS World University Rankings are among the most important, most-referenced rankings. The QS ranking relies heavily on its academic survey, asking thousands of academics worldwide about the reputation of universities.
The Times Higher Education World University Rankings (or the THE Rankings for short) compile a wide range of statistics. Equal weight is put on teaching quality, research excellence, and research impact through citations (meaning how often a universitys research is referenced elsewhere).
The Academic Ranking of World Universities by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (often just Shanghai Ranking, or ARWU) focuses on research output and quality, for example measured by the number of published and cited scientific papers and the number of staff or alumni winning the Nobel Prize or Fields Medal.
Thanks to world-leading universities and tuition-free education at public institutions, France is one of the most popular student host countries in the world. Many French universities have increased the number of English-taught degree programmes in recent years. Business, Engineering, Computer Science, Social Studies - in France, you can study virtually any subject in English.
Read more about studying in France
