University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo, has been ranked Nigeria’s best university in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2026.

The ranking, published on THE’s website on Thursday, placed the Ibadan-based federal university between 801 and 1,000 globally and ahead of other leading Nigerian universities, a spot it last held in 2023.

UI came from fourth position in 2025 to emerge as Nigeria’s best in the 2026 ranking. It dethroned Covenant University, which was the best university in 2024 and 2025.

Following UI are the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Bayero University (BUK), and Covenant University (CU), ranked second, third, and fourth in Nigeria, respectively.

THE surveyed 2,191 institutions from 115 countries and assessed them based on 18 performance indicators across five key areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry, and international outlook.

The 2026 list reflected a shift in the global higher education landscape, with more than 174.9 million citations from 18.7 million research publications analysed and survey responses from over 108,000 scholars collected globally.

THE rankings also show the strength of individual institutions.

UNILAG is ranked highest in quality research, scoring 66.7.

Furthermore, BUK is ranked as the best Nigerian university in terms of international outlook, while Covenant has the highest industry score, indicating its top connection to industries.

See full list;

University of Ibadan (801–1000)

University of Lagos (801–1000)

Bayero University (1001–1200)

Covenant University (1001–1200)

Landmark University (1001–1200)

Ahmadu Bello University (1201–1500)

Federal University of Technology, Minna (1201–1500)

University of Ilorin (1201–1500)

University of Jos (1201–1500)

University of Nigeria, Nsukka (1201–1500)

Babcock University (1501+)

Delta State University, Abraka (1501+)

Ekiti State University (1501+)

Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (1501+)

Federal University of Technology, Akure (1501+)

Federal University of Technology, Owerri (1501+)

Federal University Oye-Ekiti (1501+)

Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (1501+)

Lagos State University (1501+)

Nnamdi Azikiwe University (1501+)

Obafemi Awolowo University (1501+)

University of Benin (1501+)

University of Calabar (1501+)

University of Port Harcourt (1501+)

Admiralty University of Nigeria

Akwa Ibom State University

Al-Hikmah University

Augustine University

Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere-Ekiti

Bauchi State University, Gadau

Bayelsa Medical University

Baze University

Bells University of Technology

Bowen University

Evangel University, Akaeze

Federal University of Lafia

Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun

Fountain University

Godfrey Okoye University

Igbinedion University Okada

Kaduna State University

Lagos State University of Education

Lagos State University of Science and Technology

Lead City University

Maryam Abacha American University of Nigeria

Nasarawa State University, Keffi

Redeemer’s University

Rivers State University

Thomas Adewumi University

University of Cross River State

University of Delta