South Africa has five universities in the world’s top 500, with one university climbing back into the global top 150 in the latest Times Higher Education World University Rankings.
The 2027 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings were released on Wednesday, 30 September, covering 2 297 universities across 118 countries and territories.
South Africa has 17 universities included in this year’s rankings, up from 13 in the 2026 edition.
UCT climbs back into the top 150
The University of Cape Town (UCT) is once again South Africa’s highest-ranked university, moving from joint 164th in 2026 to joint 147th in 2027.
The result also makes UCT the highest-ranked university in Africa.
According to the rankings, the university’s 2027 position is its best result in seven years and its first return to the global top 150 since the 2020 edition.
UCT is followed by the University of the Witwatersrand, Stellenbosch University, the University of Johannesburg and the University of Pretoria.
The five South African universities in the global top 500
The five South African universities in the top 500 are:
| University | THE 2027 ranking |
|---|---|
| University of Cape Town | =147 |
| University of the Witwatersrand | 301–325 |
| Stellenbosch University | 326–350 |
| University of Johannesburg | 351–375 |
| University of Pretoria | 451–500 |
The University of Pretoria recorded a notable improvement, moving from the 501–600 band in 2026 to 451–500 in the new ranking. The results coverage describes this as Pretoria’s highest showing yet.
South Africa is also the only country in sub-Saharan Africa with a university in both the global top 200 and top 500.
Full list of South African universities
The remaining South African universities were placed in broader ranking bands, rather than being given individual positions.
| South African university | THE World Ranking 2027 |
|---|---|
| University of Cape Town (UCT) | =147 |
| University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) | 301–325 |
| Stellenbosch University | 326–350 |
| University of Johannesburg (UJ) | 351–375 |
| University of Pretoria (UP) | 451–500 |
| University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) | 501–600 |
| North-West University (NWU) | 601–800 |
| University of the Western Cape (UWC) | 601–800 |
| University of the Free State (UFS) | 1001–1200 |
| University of South Africa (Unisa) | 1001–1200 |
| Nelson Mandela University | 1201–1400 |
| Durban University of Technology (DUT) | 1201–1400 |
| Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University | 1401–1600 |
| Walter Sisulu University | 1801–2000 |
| Tshwane University of Technology | 1801–2000 |
| University of Venda | 1801–2000 |
| Vaal University of Technology | 1801–2000 |
How the rankings work
Times Higher Education‘s World University Rankings assess research-intensive universities using 17 performance indicators grouped into five broad areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, international outlook and industry.
The 2027 edition includes 2 297 universities from 118 countries and territories, compared with 2 191 universities in 115 countries and territories in the previous edition.
Globally, the University of Oxford retained first place for an 11th consecutive year, followed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Princeton and Stanford Universities tied in third place.
