QS Best Student Cities 2026: Seoul and Tokyo first Asian cities to take the lead, London falling in third

Seoul (South Korea) takes first place and Tokyo (Japan) second place in the QS Best Student Cities 2026, published on 15/07/2024. These two capitals are now ahead of London (UK), which topped the ranking in 2025, and is now in third place.

The UK and the USA are the two most represented countries, with 16 cities each. China is in second place with eight cities, then Australia with seven cities.

Nine cities enter the ranking:
• Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) in 107^th place;
• Baku (Azerbaijan) in 117^th place;
• Daegu (South Korea) in 131^st place;
• Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) in 138^th place;
• Tel Aviv-Yafo (Israel) 138^th;
• Chengdu (China) 146^th;
• Irbid (Jordan) in 150^th place.

The two Japanese cities, Kyoto (18^th) and Osaka (62^nd), which were previously associated with Kobe, now appear separately.

News Tank shows the 149 world cities ranking, as well as a focus on the best European cities ranked.

Methodology

In its 2026 edition, the QS Best Student Cities ranking brings together 149 cities. To take part in the ranking, each city must have at least 250,000 inhabitants, as well as two universities in…