South African universities are among the best in the world when it comes to partnering with other countries to conduct research, and maintains these relationships long-term to drive global knowledge.
This is one of the standout findings in the 2026 QS World University Rankings, where 11 South African universities made the cut.
The rankings evaluate over 1,500 institutions across 106 countries and territories, with a key focus on research and discovery, which accounts for 50% of the final score.
As reflecting in other rankings that have come out this year, South Africa’s universities continue to face headwinds, with only three of the 11 ranked moving up the list.
Despite this, South Africa is still home to Sub-Saharan Africa’s best university, the University of Cape Town, which saw its overall global ranking increase from 171 in 2025 to 150 in 2026.
The University of Johannesburg (308) and the University of KwaZulu-Natal (587) were the only other institutions to see their rankings rise.
Six institutions dropped in the rankings, with South Africa losing ground to global competitors.
The overall rankings are measured across five performance lenses, which are then broken down into nine indicators with different weights:
- Research and Discovery: Accounts for 50% of the ranking, with two indicators: Academic Reputation (30%) and Citations per Faculty (20%), by faculty, QS means the academic staff.
- Employability and Outcomes: Accounts for 20%, with two indicators: Employer Reputation (15%) and Employment Outcomes (5%).
- Learning Experience: Accounts for 10%, with a single indicator: Faculty Student Ratio (10%), which is just the ratio of academic staff to students.
- Global Engagement: Accounts for 15%, with three indicators: International Research Network (5%), International Faculty (5%) (again, this refers to the international academic staff), and International Students (5%).
- Sustainability: Accounts for 5% with a single eponymous indicator: Sustainability (5%).
Notably, nine South African universities feature in the global top 150 in the International Research Network Indicator.
This indicator measures the success of creating and sustaining international research partnerships by looking at the number of different countries represented, and whether these relationships are renewed and repeated.
The ranking only considers sustained partnerships, defined as those which result in three or more joint papers published in a five-year period.
The University of Johannesburg ranks at number 14 worldwide in the indicator with a score of 99.1, while the Universities of Cape Town, Pretoria and Witwatersrand also make the top 50.
South Africa has the highest average score in the indicator. South Africa’s average of 91.1 is narrowly ahead of Denmark’s 90.1 and Sweden’s 88.8.
That said, the ranking also suggests that global competition is gaining on South Africa’s leading position, with six of South Africa’s universities failing in the rankings, while only three improved.
South Africa in 2026 QS World University Rankings
| SA Rank | 2026 Rank | 2025 Rank | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 150 | 171 | University of Cape Town |
| 2 | 291 | =267 | University of The Witwatersrand |
| 3 | 302 | 296 | Stellenbosch University |
| 4 | =308 | =312 | University of Johannesburg |
| 5 | =362 | 354 | University of Pretoria |
| 6 | =558 | =587 | University of Kwazulu-Natal |
| 7 | 901-950 | 851-900 | University of South Africa |
| 8= | 951-1000 | 851-900 | North-West University |
| 8= | 951-1000 | 951-1000 | University of the Western Cape |
| 10= | 1001-1200 | 951-1000 | Rhodes University |
| 10= | 1001-1200 | 1001-1200 | University of the Free State |
Universities in the top 150 in International Research Network
| Institution | Score | Rank | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Johannesburg | 99.1 | 14 | +12 |
| University of Cape Town | 97.7 | 24 | +12 |
| University of Pretoria | 97.6 | 26 | -2 |
| University of The Witwatersrand | 96.7 | 44 | +2 |
| University of Kwazulu-Natal | 95.9 | 62 | +45 |
| North-West University | 94.6 | 89 | +33 |
| University of the Free State | 93.7 | 107 | +23 |
| Stellenbosch University | 93.6 | 111 | -31 |
| University of South Africa | 92.5 | 138 | +18 |
Work still to do
The rankings also showed that South African universities dropped in their Employer Reputation indicator, based on surveys from over 100,000 employers.
Following historical success, South Africa has seven universities within the top 250 for Employment Outcomes.
QS World Rankings noted increased competition in the area, which measures whether a degree from a specific institution can ensure high employability for graduates.
All universities in South Africa saw a drop, except the University of the Free State, which maintains its position from last year in this area.
Despite South Africa dominating the Sub-Saharan African region in the latest QS rankings, Ben Sowter, QS Senior Vice President, said that improvements are still needed.
“With only three of the 11 institutions in the country improving their rankings, universities need to ensure they keep up with improvements in higher education elsewhere in the world,” said Sowter.
“Employability is a key area where institutions must work to improve, with global peers surging ahead of South African universities.”
