Using data from Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings 2023, identify the top universities in Canada.
Some of the best universities in the world are found in Canada. According to, 31 Canadian institutions are among the greatest in the world. Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings 2023.
Top 7 universities in Canada
Scroll down for the full list of best universities in Canada
| Canada Rank 2023 | World University Rank 2023 | University | Province | City |
| 1 | 18 | University of Toronto | Ontario | Toronto |
| 2 | 40 | University of British Columbia | British Columbia | Vancouver |
| 3 | 46 | McGill University | Quebec | Montreal |
| 4 | 85 | McMaster University | Ontario | Hamilton |
| 5 | 111 | University of Montreal | Quebec | Montreal |
| 6 | 118 | University of Alberta | Alberta | Edmonton |
| 7 | =137 | University of Ottawa | Ontario | Ottawa |
With seven universities in the top 200, Canada offers plenty of opportunities for a world-class education for international students.
Compared with the US, Canada can also provide cheaper tuition fees, simpler application processes and more opportunities for permanent residency after graduation.
Canada’s top two institutions – the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia – score particularly highly for research impact, which means that these schools produce high-quality academic work that is well respected.
Many of Canada’s universities are renowned for promoting a global outlook by recruiting international students and staff and encouraging international collaborations, so there will be a large community of international staff and students at any university in Canada.
How to apply to university in Canada
The cost of studying at a university in Canada
A guide to student bank accounts in Canada
Scholarships in Canada for international students
Top universities in Canada ranked by employers
Everything you need to know about studying in Canada
Everything international students need to know about student visas in Canada
10 things every international student in Canada should know
Top 5 universities in Canada
5. University of Montreal
The University of Montreal’s main teaching language is French.
A quarter of all students at the university are international.
The University of Montreal is the second-largest university in the country in terms of student numbers, with more than 36,000 students enrolled.
The university has a students’ union that represents undergraduate and postgraduate students, and it has three affiliated fraternities and sororities.
The university offers full-time housing for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
University sport is popular – the teams are known as the Carabins and compete in badminton, Canadian football and hockey, among other sports.
The university counts former prime minister Pierre Trudeau and 10 premiers of Quebec among its alumni.
4. McMaster University
McMaster University is located in Hamilton, Ontario. Students and faculty come from more than 90 countries.
The university is named after William McMaster, a prominent Canadian senator and banker who donated C$900,000 to found the institution.
McMaster’s medical school is world-renowned, and there are also faculties of engineering, business, humanities, social sciences and science. The university places a strong emphasis on research working to target some of the most urgent needs in society, particularly in the field of health sciences.
The university holds some 70 international exchange agreements with institutions around the world.
3. McGill University
Students at McGill University come from more than 150 countries.
The university was founded in 1821.
The main campus is at the base of Mount Royal in downtown Montreal. First-year students have the option to live on the park-like campus.
In 1829, McGill University founded the nation’s first faculty of medicine, and to this day the university scores particularly highly in world rankings for clinical subjects.
The university offers more than 300 degree subjects to more than 31,000 students at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level.
There is a range of services for students including the Career Planning Service, the Office for Students with Disabilities and the Academic Advising Service.
Singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen and the actor William Shatner are graduates of McGill. The university also educates more Rhodes scholars than any other Canadian institution.
2. University of British Columbia
Some 33 per cent of students are international at the University of British Columbia.
Eight Nobel prizewinners are associated with the university, as are 71 Rhodes scholars and 65 Olympic medallists.
There are two campuses at the University of British Columbia: one in Vancouver and one in Okanagan.
The university is organised into 12 faculties on the Vancouver campus and a further seven on the Okanagan campus. The university offers a special joint undergraduate programme with Sciences Po in Paris.
Faculties at the university include applied science, education, music, nursing, the arts, law and medicine among others.
The university offers a number of scholarships for international students, including the Donald A. Wehrung International Student Award for candidates from war-torn countries.
Three Canadian prime ministers have been educated at UBC, including current prime minister Justin Trudeau, who graduated with a Bachelor of Education degree.
1. University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is the only Canadian university to feature in the top 20 of the World University Rankings 2023.
Notable alumni include five Canadian prime ministers and the writers Michael Ondaatje and Margaret Atwood. In total, 10 Nobel laureates are affiliated with the university.
The University of Toronto is structured as a collegiate system, much like prestigious universities in the UK such as the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. The seven colleges all have distinct histories and traditions.
Some 25 per cent of students at the university are international.
More than 700 undergraduate degrees and 200 postgraduate degrees are on offer, and the university is one of the best in the world for medicine.
There are more than 1,000 different student associations and clubs available for students to join across the university’s three campuses.
Best universities in the UK
Best universities in the United States
Best universities in Asia
Best universities in Australia
Best universities in South America
Best universities in China
Best universities in Canada 2023
Click each institution to view its full World University Rankings 2023 profile.
| Canada Rank 2023 | World University Rank 2023 | University | Province | City |
| 1 | 18 | University of Toronto | Ontario | Toronto |
| 2 | 40 | University of British Columbia | British Columbia | Vancouver |
| 3 | 46 | McGill University | Quebec | Montreal |
| 4 | 85 | McMaster University | Ontario | Hamilton |
| 5 | 111 | University of Montreal | Quebec | Montreal |
| 6 | 118 | University of Alberta | Alberta | Edmonton |
| 7 | =137 | University of Ottawa | Ontario | Ottawa |
| =8 | 201–250 | University of Calgary | Alberta | Calgary |
| =8 | 201–250 | University of Waterloo | Ontario | Waterloo |
| =8 | 201–250 | Western University | Ontario | London |
| =11 | 251–300 | Université Laval | Quebec | Quebec City |
| =11 | 251–300 | Queen’s University | Ontario | Kingston |
| =11 | 251–300 | Simon Fraser University | British Columbia | Burnaby |
| =14 | 301–350 | Dalhousie University | Nova Scotia | Halifax |
| =14 | 301–350 | University of Victoria | British Columbia | Victoria |
| 16 | 351–400 | University of Manitoba | Manitoba | Winnipeg |
| 17 | 401–500 | York University | Ontario | Toronto |
| =18 | 501–600 | University of Guelph | Ontario | Guelph |
| =18 | 501–600 | University of Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan | Saskatoon |
| =20 | 601–800 | Carleton University | Ontario | Ottawa |
| =20 | 601–800 | Concordia University | Quebec | Montreal |
| =20 | 601–800 | Memorial University of Newfoundland | Newfoundland and Labrador | St John’s |
| =20 | 601–800 | University of New Brunswick UNB | New Brunswick | Fredricton |
| =20 | 601–800 | Ontario Tech University | Ontario | Oshawa |
| =20 | 601–800 | Université du Québec | Quebec | Quebec City |
| =20 | 601–800 | University of Regina | Saskatchewan | Regina |
| =20 | 601–800 | University of Windsor | Ontario | Windsor |
| =28 | 801–1000 | Lakehead University | Ontario | Thunder Bay and Orillia |
| =28 | 801–1000 | University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) | British Columbia | Prince George |
| =28 | 801–1000 | Toronto Metropolitan University | Ontario | Toronto |
| 31 | 1201–1500 | University of Lethbridge | Alberta | Lethbridge |
Share
