The top 56 best universities in Italy: 2025 rankings

Top ranked universities in Italy

University	QS Ranking 2026	THE Ranking 2026	ARWU Ranking 2025
Politecnico di Milano	98	201	301
Sapienza University of Rome	128	170	101
University of Bologna	138	130	201
University of Padua	233	201	151
Politecnico di Torino	242	401	601
University of Milan	276	301	151
University of Pisa	343	351	201
University of Rome Tor Vergata	355	301	401
University of Naples Federico II	379	301	201
University of Florence	404	351	301
University of Turin	408	401	201
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore	409	251	401
University of Pavia	423	351	401
Vita-Salute San Raffaele University	461	251	401
University of Trento	485	351	301
University of Genoa	530	401	301
University of Milano-Bicocca	542	401	301
University of Siena	607	351	601
Free University of Bozen-Bolzano	643	401	901
University of Brescia	650	351	601
Ca' Foscari University of Venice	660	501	–
University of Messina	741	501	801
University of Trieste	751	501	601
University of Modena and Reggio Emilia	801	501	801
University of Perugia	801	–	501
Polytechnic University of Bari	801	501	801
University of Salerno	801	501	601
Marche Polytechnic University	801	401	601
University of Palermo	801	501	701
University of Bari Aldo Moro	801	601	401
University of Verona	851	351	401
Tuscia University	851	601	–
University of Catania	851	501	501
Roma Tre University	901	801	901
University of Calabria	951	601	701
University of Ferrara	951	501	601
Parthenope University of Naples	1001	601	–
University of Salento	1001	801	–
University of Parma	1001	601	501
University of Chieti-Pescara	1001	801	901
University of Udine	1001	601	–
University of Urbino	1201	1201	–
University of Bergamo	1401	–	–
University of Sannio	–	1001	–
University of Camerino (Unicam)	–	1001	–
Kore University of Enna	–	1001	–
University of Foggia	–	801	–
University of L'Aquila	–	601	–
Università degli Studi dell’Insubria	–	601	–
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma	–	501	–
Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies	–	201	–
University of Eastern Piedmont	–	601	901
University of Cagliari	–	601	801
Scuola Normale Superiore	–	137	701
Humanitas University	–	251	701
University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”	–	1001	501

Explained: How do the university rankings work?

The QS World University Rankings are among the most important, most-referenced rankings. The QS ranking relies heavily on its academic survey, asking thousands of academics worldwide about the reputation of universities.

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings (or the THE Rankings for short) compile a wide range of statistics. Equal weight is put on teaching quality, research excellence, and research impact through citations (meaning how often a university’s research is referenced elsewhere).

The Academic Ranking of World Universities by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (often just Shanghai Ranking, or ARWU) focuses on research output and quality, for example measured by the number of published and cited scientific papers and the number of staff or alumni winning the Nobel Prize or Fields Medal.

Study in Italy

Italy offers the perfect combination of stunning history, academic tradition, and innovative research and education. In the birthplace of Europe’s first university, many of Italy’s institutions are today among the best in the world. International students are flocking to the Southern European country to receive world-class education and enjoy la dolce vita - “the sweet life”.