Quacquarelli Symonds released the QS World University Rankings Asia 2027 on 3 November 2026, covering 1,722 universities across 26 higher education systems in Asia. The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) at 66th place is India’s highest ranked institution, followed by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru at 79th and IIT Bombay at 83rd. The University of Hong Kong retained first place in Asia, with Peking University second and Tsinghua University third.
What Is the QS World University Rankings Asia?
The QS World University Rankings Asia is a yearly regional table that compares universities located only in Asia. QS stands for Quacquarelli Symonds, a global higher education analytics firm headquartered in London and founded in 1990 by Nunzio Quacquarelli. The firm published rankings jointly with Times Higher Education from 2004 to 2009 and has published its own rankings independently since 2010.
The QS Asia table started in 2009 and is released every November. The 2027 edition, released on 3 November 2026, ranks 1,722 universities from 26 higher education systems, including 195 new entrants. QS also publishes four sub regional tables for Eastern, Southern, South Eastern and Central Asia using the same scores.
An Asia rank does not equal a world rank. QS uses different indicators and weights for the two tables, so the order of universities can change between them.
Asia Top 10 in QS Rankings 2027
The QS Asia University Rankings 2027 kept the same ten institutions in the top 10 as last year, but eight of them changed positions. Hong Kong SAR placed five universities in the top 10, more than any other system. Mainland China placed three and Singapore placed two.
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) held first place for the second straight year. Peking University in Beijing held second place. Tsinghua University, also in Beijing, made the largest jump in the top group, rising from ninth to third. This is the first time since 2023 that China has held two of the top three places.
| 2027 Rank | University | Location | 2026 Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong SAR | 1 |
| 2 | Peking University | Beijing, China | 2 |
| 3 | Tsinghua University | Beijing, China | 9 |
| 4 | City University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong SAR | 7 |
| 5 | Chinese University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong SAR | 7 |
| 6 | Fudan University | Shanghai, China | 5 |
| 6 | National University of Singapore | Singapore | 3 |
| 8 | Nanyang Technological University | Singapore | 3 |
| 9 | Hong Kong Polytechnic University | Hong Kong SAR | 10 |
| 9 | Hong Kong University of Science and Technology | Hong Kong SAR | 6 |
Hong Kong showed broad gains. Nearly 73 percent of its ranked universities improved their positions, the highest share in the region. The City University of Hong Kong leads all of Asia on three measures, which are international faculty ratio, outbound exchange students ratio and staff with PhD. Singapore’s two leaders slipped, with the National University of Singapore moving from third to joint sixth and Nanyang Technological University moving from joint third to eighth.
How Indian Universities Performed in QS Asia Rankings 2027
India is the second most represented system in the QS Asia University Rankings 2027 with 325 ranked universities, including 34 new entrants. Only Mainland China has more, with 448 universities including 53 new entrants. Japan is third with 153 universities, led by the University of Tokyo at 27th.
IIT Delhi remains India’s highest ranked institution at 66th, though it fell from 59th last year. IISc Bengaluru follows at 79th, down from 64th. IIT Bombay stands at joint 83rd, down from 71st. No Indian university is in Asia’s top 10 or top 50.
| Indian Rank | Institution | QS Asia 2027 Rank | QS Asia 2026 Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IIT Delhi | 66 | 59 |
| 2 | IISc Bengaluru | 79 | 64 |
| 3 | IIT Bombay | 83 | 71 |
| 4 | IIT Madras | 85 | 70 |
| 5 | IIT Kharagpur | 90 | 77 |
| 6 | IIT Kanpur | 97 | 77 |
| 7 | Chandigarh University | 104 | 109 |
| 8 | University of Delhi | 106 | 95 |
| 9 | IIT Guwahati | 120 | 118 |
| 10 | IIT Roorkee | 124 | 114 |
All six of India’s highest ranked institutions slipped compared to last year. The University of Delhi moved out of the top 100, falling from 95th to 106th. India’s presence in the top 200 still grew from 20 to 21 universities.
Why Top Indian Institutions Slipped Despite Larger Presence
A larger count does not guarantee higher ranks. QS ranks are relative. When new universities enter above an institution, or when rival universities improve faster on reputation and research scores, the institution moves down even if its own score holds steady. The 2027 edition added 195 new entrants across Asia, which increased competition.
QS analysis points to clear strengths and gaps for India. Employer reputation remains a strength. IIT Bombay ranks seventh in Asia on this measure and IIT Delhi ranks tenth, the first time Indian institutions have entered Asia’s top 10 on this indicator. India also leads the region on research output and share of doctoral qualified staff.
The gaps lie in global engagement. Many Indian universities score lower on international faculty, international students and exchange programmes. GLA University shows what movement on these measures can do. It climbed 218 places to 491st, one of the largest jumps in Asia, on stronger inbound and outbound exchange scores. Chandigarh University also improved, moving from 109th to 104th, while Jawaharlal Nehru University moved from 130th to 128th.
How QS Ranking Is Calculated
The QS Asia University Rankings 2027 uses 11 indicators grouped under four areas. Surveys decide half the total score. Research publication data comes from the Scopus database maintained by Elsevier.
| Indicator | Weight | What It Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Academic reputation | 30 percent | Votes from academics on leading universities in their field |
| Employer reputation | 20 percent | Votes from employers on universities with the best graduates |
| Faculty student ratio | 10 percent | Full time academic staff per student enrolled |
| International research network | 10 percent | Diversity of research collaboration with foreign institutions |
| Citations per paper | 10 percent | Average citations to published papers, a sign of research impact |
| Papers per faculty | 5 percent | Research papers published per faculty member, a sign of output |
| Staff with PhD | 5 percent | Share of academic staff with a PhD or equal terminal degree |
| International faculty | 2.5 percent | Share of faculty members from other countries |
| International students | 2.5 percent | Share of students from other countries |
| Inbound exchange students | 2.5 percent | Exchange students received under formal agreements |
| Outbound exchange students | 2.5 percent | Students sent on exchange under formal agreements |
Academic reputation comes from the QS Global Academic Survey, one of the largest polls of university teachers in the world. Employer reputation comes from the QS Global Employer Survey. Citations per paper counts citations over six years to papers published over five years, excluding self citations. Papers per faculty counts Scopus papers over five years per academic staff member. Exchange indicators count only exchanges of at least one semester under formal university agreements.
To be ranked, a university must offer degrees at undergraduate and postgraduate level in at least two broad fields, teach at least partly on campus, appear in the academic reputation survey and have at least 50 Scopus papers over five years.
How QS Asia Rankings Differ From Global Rankings and Indian Rankings
The QS Asia table and the QS global table are not directly comparable. The global table uses nine indicators and gives 15 percent weight to employer reputation. The Asia table gives employer reputation 20 percent weight, splits research into two parts, which are citations per paper and papers per faculty, and adds three Asia specific measures, which are staff with PhD and inbound and outbound exchange students. The global table includes employment outcomes and sustainability, which the Asia table leaves out.
The QS Asia table also differs from Times Higher Education rankings and India’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). Times Higher Education uses 18 performance measures across teaching, research, citations, industry income and international outlook, with a stronger focus on research income and patents. NIRF is India’s domestic framework, run by the Ministry of Education since 2016. It scores institutions on teaching and resources, research, graduation outcomes, outreach and perception, using Indian data alone. QS is global, survey driven and comparative across countries. So an institution can top NIRF in India yet sit lower in QS Asia because of weaker international scores.
Key Takeaways
- QS released the QS World University Rankings Asia 2027 on 3 November 2026, covering 1,722 universities across 26 systems.
- IIT Delhi at 66th is India’s highest ranked institution, followed by IISc Bengaluru at 79th and IIT Bombay at 83rd.
- The University of Hong Kong retained first place in Asia, followed by Peking University and Tsinghua University.
- Mainland China leads representation with 448 universities, followed by India with 325 universities including 34 new entrants.
- The QS Asia table uses 11 indicators, with academic reputation at 30 percent and employer reputation at 20 percent.
