Yorkshire’s cities are home to some popular and prestigious universities, which attract enthusiastic scholars from all over the country.
The Guardian’s latest university guide for the 2026 academic year went live over the weekend. This annual league table compares and ranks more than 120 universities from across the UK, giving them scores out of 100. It uses a comprehensive methodology, which factors in the latest data on student satisfaction, staff numbers, spending, future career prospects for graduates, and more.
We’ve picked out universities from across Yorkshire to see how they did in the latest guide. As well as their overall scores, we have added a few key details likely to be important to sixth form students considering studying there - including a score representing how satisfied final year students were with their teaching, and the proportion of recent graduates either employed in a graduate-level job or undertaking further study 15 months after their course finished.
But The Guardian warns that prospective students should take the results with a grain of salt. “Rankings change annually, and some universities may benefit from temporary measures such as funding boosts or changes to their student intake. Don’t forget that universities languishing at the bottom of the overall table can be top for certain subjects,” its creators wrote. Some universities have also not been included, where data was not available.
Here were the 10 Yorkshire universities on this year’s list, and how they did overall:
1. The University of Sheffield
The top Yorkshire university in the league table this year was South Yorkshire’s University of Sheffield. It came in 16th overall in the 2026 guide, up from 20th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 68.2 out of 100. It had a rating of 89.5 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 85% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Google
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2. University of Leeds
Next up was West Yorkshire’s University of Leeds. It ranked 28th overall this year, up from 37th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 62 out of 100. It had a rating of 85.4 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 84% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Jonathan Gawthorpe/National World
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3. University of York
Up in North Yorkshire, the University of York was Yorkshire’s third most highly-ranked institution. It placed 38th this year, down from 25th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 59.4 out of 100. It had a rating of 86.5 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 84% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Historic England/National World
4. University of Bradford
Another West Yorkshire contender, Bradford’s namesake university was next. It ranked 69th overall this year, up from 81st last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 53.1 out of 100. It had a rating of 83 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 83% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Google