2026 U.S. News Law School (Graduate) Rankings

194 schools · Source: U.S. News 2026 (published 2026) · Admission and tuition figures are school-wide undergraduate data. Acceptance rate for fall 2025, international tuition for 2025 (IPEDS)

School Program

See World University Rankings

Showing the top 100 of 194

1

Same

Stanford University California
Admit 3.6% $65,910 25.7% international
=2

↑ 1

University of Chicago Illinois
Admit 4.5% $69,324 32.1% international
=2

↓ 1

Yale University Connecticut
Admit 3.9% $67,250 24.3% international
=4

↑ 1

University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania
Admit 5.4% $68,686 23.7% international
=4

Same

University of Virginia-Main Campus Virginia
Admit 16.8% $61,591 9.6% international
6

Same

Harvard University Massachusetts
Admit 3.6% $61,676 26.5% international
=7

↓ 1

Duke University North Carolina
Admit 5.7% $68,758 25.8% international
=7

↑ 1

New York University New York
Admit 9.2% $62,796 33.8% international
=9

↑ 1

Columbia University in the City of New York New York
Admit 4.0% $70,517 39.3% international
=9

↑ 1

Northwestern University Illinois
Admit 7.7% $68,322 22.0% international
=9

↓ 1

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Michigan
Admit 15.6% $63,081 16.4% international
12

↑ 2

Vanderbilt University Tennessee
Admit 5.9% $67,498 13.5% international
=13

↑ 5

Cornell University New York
Admit 8.8% $69,314 25.9% international
=13

↓ 1

University of California-Los Angeles California
Admit 9.0% $46,121 13.4% international
=13

↑ 1

Washington University in St Louis Missouri
Admit 12.1% $65,790 27.6% international
=16

↓ 2

The University of Texas at Austin Texas
Admit 26.6% $44,908 9.7% international
=16

↓ 3

University of California-Berkeley California
Admit 11.0% $47,265 15.8% international
=18

↓ 4

Georgetown University D.C.
Admit 12.9% $68,089 16.5% international
=18

Same

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill North Carolina
Admit 15.3% $41,203 8.0% international
=20

↑ 5

Boston College Massachusetts
Admit 16.4% $70,702 10.5% international
=20

Same

University of Notre Dame Indiana
Admit 11.3% $65,025 13.9% international
=22

Same

Texas A & M University-College Station Texas
Admit 57.4% $40,124 6.9% international
=22

↓ 2

University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minnesota
Admit 79.7% $38,362 9.5% international
=24

↓ 2

Boston University Massachusetts
Admit 11.1% $68,102 26.3% international
=24

↑ 4

Brigham Young University-Provo Utah
Admit 67.8% $6,688 3.5% international
=26

↑ 5

George Washington University D.C.
Admit 47.1% $67,710 14.5% international
=26

↓ 4

University of Georgia Georgia
Admit 37.7% $31,688 5.7% international
=26

Same

University of Southern California California
Admit 9.8% $71,647 26.6% international
=26

↑ 2

University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin
Admit 45.2% $42,103 15.6% international
=30

↓ 2

Ohio State University-Main Campus Ohio
Admit 60.6% $40,022 10.2% international
=30

↓ 4

Wake Forest University North Carolina
Admit 21.7% $67,642 6.1% international
=32

↓ 1

George Mason University Virginia
Admit 87.5% $38,688 10.7% international
=32

↑ 4

University of Iowa Iowa
Admit 83.6% $33,371 4.7% international
=34

↑ 9

Baylor University Texas
Admit 51.3% $58,100 4.3% international
=34

↓ 3

College of William and Mary Virginia
Admit 34.1% $51,038 5.4% international
=34

↑ 4

Florida State University Florida
Admit 24.2% $21,683 5.5% international
=34

↑ 4

University of California-Irvine California
Admit 28.6% $46,640 15.7% international
=34

↑ 4

University of Florida Florida
Admit 24.2% $28,659 9.1% international
=34

↑ 2

Washington and Lee University Virginia
Admit 14.0% $68,045 7.8% international
=40

↓ 2

Emory University Georgia
Admit 10.6% $64,280 18.4% international
=40

↓ 9

The University of Alabama Alabama
Admit 76.6% $34,172 3.0% international
=42

↓ 4

Fordham University New York
Admit 59.3% $64,470 11.2% international
=42

↑ 1

Southern Methodist University Texas
Admit 63.3% $67,040 9.2% international
=44

↑ 1

Arizona State University-Tempe Arizona
Admit 89.9% $33,139 15.7% international
=44

↓ 13

University of Utah Utah
Admit 86.0% $30,860 8.5% international
=46

↑ 9

Pepperdine University California
Admit 62.9% $69,918 6.9% international
=46

↑ 2

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Illinois
Admit 42.4% $40,096 22.5% international
=46

↑ 4

University of Kansas Kansas
Admit 93.5% $30,432 6.4% international
=49

↓ 3

Indiana University-Bloomington Indiana
Admit 78.2% $41,891 10.3% international
=49

↑ 1

Temple University Pennsylvania
Admit 80.4% $38,805 6.8% international
=49

↓ 1

Villanova University Pennsylvania
Admit 27.0% $67,776 3.7% international
=52

↓ 2

University of California-Davis California
Admit 41.8% $47,692 14.9% international
=52

↓ 2

University of Washington-Seattle Campus Washington
Admit 39.1% $43,209 14.0% international
=54

↓ 8

University of Colorado Boulder Colorado
Admit 78.1% $42,970 6.4% international
=54

↑ 9

University of Houston Texas
Admit 73.9% $22,547 10.5% international
=54

↑ 3

University of San Diego California
Admit 52.4% $59,486 6.0% international
57

↓ 2

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Tennessee
Admit 41.6% $33,256 3.7% international
58

↓ 8

University of Connecticut Connecticut
Admit 52.4% $43,712 11.5% international
=59

Same

Marquette University Wisconsin
Admit 81.3% $51,170 3.4% international
=59

↓ 2

University of Missouri-Columbia Missouri
Admit 78.5% $36,056 4.5% international
=59

↑ 4

Yeshiva University New York
Admit 55.6% $51,800 14.9% international
=62

↓ 3

Pennsylvania State University-Dickinson Law Pennsylvania
=62

↑ 1

St John's University (NY) New York
Admit 83.4% $53,529 3.4% international
=62

↑ 1

University of Maryland, Baltimore Maryland
$44,811 7.0% international
=62

↑ 9

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Nebraska
Admit 87.5% $28,584 6.8% international
=62

↓ 3

University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Oklahoma
Admit 76.6% $27,377 5.9% international
=62

↑ 9

University of Richmond Virginia
Admit 22.2% $65,230 10.8% international
=62

↑ 1

University of South Carolina-Columbia South Carolina
Admit 60.2% $36,298 4.4% international
=62

↑ 9

Wayne State University Michigan
Admit 81.2% $34,650 5.5% international
=70

↑ 1

Catholic University of America D.C.
Admit 82.8% $58,378 11.4% international
=70

↑ 1

Loyola Marymount University California
Admit 45.1% $61,867 8.9% international
=70

↑ 1

Seton Hall University New Jersey
Admit 73.3% $53,170 2.3% international
=70

↑ 1

Tulane University of Louisiana Louisiana
Admit 14.0% $68,678 9.8% international
=70

↓ 11

University of Arizona Arizona
Admit 86.1% $39,903 6.5% international
=70

↓ 2

University of Kentucky Kentucky
Admit 92.9% $34,140 3.5% international
=70

↑ 22

University of Miami Florida
Admit 18.9% $62,616 10.8% international
=77

↑ 7

Florida International University Florida
Admit 54.7% $18,964 8.5% international
=77

↑ 2

Georgia State University Georgia
Admit 55.4% $24,840 8.3% international
=77

↑ 2

Loyola University Chicago Illinois
Admit 81.6% $53,710 3.1% international
=77

↓ 9

Northeastern University Massachusetts
Admit 5.2% $66,162 35.4% international
=77

↑ 2

University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pennsylvania
Admit 58.1% $41,430 8.9% international
=82

↓ 3

Drexel University Pennsylvania
Admit 79.4% $62,412 11.3% international
=82

↑ 12

University at Buffalo New York
Admit 74.2% $31,536 19.8% international
=82

↓ 11

University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Ohio
Admit 85.3% $28,697 10.1% international
=85

↓ 1

Belmont University Tennessee
Admit 95.3% $42,540 1.1% international
=85

↑ 7

Duquesne University Pennsylvania
Admit 83.6% $48,986 5.6% international
=85

↓ 1

Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Louisiana
Admit 73.3% $28,631 4.2% international
=85

↑ 3

Texas Tech University Texas
Admit 72.6% $24,157 7.1% international
=85

↑ 3

University of California-San Francisco California
10.5% international
90

↑ 9

The University of Montana Montana
Admit 95.9% $33,671 1.7% international
=91

↓ 7

Drake University Iowa
Admit 63.9% $51,960 3.2% international
=91

↑ 3

Regent University Virginia
Admit 38.1% $21,650 1.7% international
=91

↑ 3

Saint Louis University Missouri
Admit 75.0% $55,760 20.0% international
=91

↑ 8

Stetson University Florida
Admit 71.6% $57,410 6.6% international
=91

↓ 3

University of Denver Colorado
Admit 77.8% $61,398 5.5% international
=91

↑ 8

University of Hawaii at Manoa Hawaii
Admit 86.6% $34,218 6.2% international
=91

↓ 3

University of Maine Maine
Admit 96.6% $36,756 4.7% international
=91

↓ 12

University of Nevada--Las Vegas Nevada
Admit 96.2% $27,411 3.1% international
=91

↑ 3

University of Oregon Oregon
Admit 88.3% $42,516 3.4% international
=100

↑ 7

Case Western Reserve University Ohio
Admit 36.5% $66,608 16.4% international

U.S. News 2026 Best Law Schools: Methodology

The 2026 U.S. News Best Law Schools rankings were published in April 2026. They assess JD programs accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA), with separate rankings for specialties such as business law, tax law and intellectual property law. In 2026 Stanford is No. 1 and Chicago and Yale tie for No. 2, the first time in many years that Yale is not No. 1.

Methodology

Category	Indicator	Weight
Employment and bar passage (58%)	Graduate employment	33%
	First-time bar passage rate	18%
	Ultimate bar passage rate	7%
Reputation (25%)	Ratings by law school deans and faculty	12.5%
Reputation (25%)	Ratings by lawyers and judges	12.5%
Selectivity (10%)	LSAT/GRE scores	5%
	Undergraduate GPA	4%
	Acceptance rate	1%
Faculty and library (7%)	Student-faculty ratio	5%
Faculty and library (7%)	Library resources	2%

What changed in this edition

Employment and bar passage now use two-year averages, which reduces the effect of a single year's swings.

How to use this ranking

Employment and bar passage make up nearly 60%. Schools with small graduating classes have noisier data, so their ranks move around more.
Specialty ranks (business law, tax law and others) come only from peer assessment.
The acceptance rate, tuition and international share on this page are the school's undergraduate figures (IPEDS), not the law school's.

Sources

Compiled by Forward Pathway, updated 2026-11-04