Without a strategy on where to study? Your choice can be easier if you look at university rankings. The top universities in Germany are listed below after a review of the most respected university rankings. We will also go through how a university ranking is created and what the rankings’ implications are for you.
What Does a University Ranking Say?
Simply put, a “university ranking” is a list that identifies the top universities in Germany. The Anglo-American nations are where the university rankings first appeared. There are now numerous “top universities in Germany” lists doing the rounds in German media. Some of them are global, while others are only available at German universities. Yet, the top universities frequently change greatly depending on the rankings of universities.
The top university in Germany is a difficult question to answer. It makes sense given that every university rating uses a distinct set of criteria and data sources, such as surveys of professors or students or counts of scientific publications. Yet, some rankings take into account the university’s resources and financial standing. So which university ranking in Germany is currently the most significant or the best?
The Summary of the University Rankings for Germany’s Top Universities
Every university’s rating has a different focus and various priorities. So, we have compiled the most well-known lists of the “top universities in Germany” into one list. The resulting university rating for Germany has a larger database. This indicates that it considers a wider range of factors than each university ranking alone. As a result, it provides a fuller picture of university excellence.
The methods and criteria of the various university rankings are presented in more detail below so that you can decide whether the results of the German Universities Ranking are at all relevant to you personally.
The best Universities – Overall
| Rank | University |
| 1st | LMU Munich |
| 2nd | TUM (TU Munich) |
| 3rd | University Of Heidelberg |
| 4rth | RWTH Aachen |
| 5th | Technical University Of Berlin |
| 6th | HU Berlin |
| 7th | University Of Berlin |
| 8rth | University Of Cologne |
| 9th | University Of Tuebingen |
| 10th | University Of Fribourg |
1st place: University of LMU Munich
The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich is ranked first overall in Germany’s university system. The officially “best” university in Germany is also the second-largest, with more than 50,000 students. Courses at the LMU Munich span widely, from A for English to Z for Dentistry. The absence of a technical faculty at LMU Munich is the sole thing.
- Catholic Theological Faculty
- Protestant Theological Faculty
- Law Faculty
- Faculty of Business Administration
- Faculty of Economics
- Medical school
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
- Faculty of History and Arts
- Faculty of Philosophy, Philosophy of Science, and Religious Studies
- Faculty of Psychology and Pedagogy
- Faculty of Cultural Studies
- Faculty of Linguistics and Literature
- Faculty of Social Sciences
- Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics, and Statistics
- Faculty of Physics
- Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy
- Faculty of Biology
- Faculty of Geosciences
2nd place: Technical University of Munich
There’s no need to worry because the Technical University of Munich has advanced to the second spot in the nation’s university rankings. The Technical University of Munich (TU Munich) now offers 173 courses, covering a wide range of technological, natural, social, and medical topics. The prestigious institution is well-known outside of Germany as well; of the more than 41,000 students, about one-third are international. The 14 faculties that make up the TUM are as follows:
- Faculty of Physics
- Faculty of Chemistry
- Faculty of Architecture
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
- Faculty of Computer Science
- Faculty of Civil, Geo, and Environmental Engineering
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
- Faculty of Medicine
- Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences
- Faculty of Science Center Weihenstephan for Nutrition, Land Use, and Environment
- Faculty TUM School of Education
- Faculty TUM School of Governance
- Faculty of Economics
3rd place: University of Heidelberg
Germany’s third-best university is the renowned Ruprecht-Karls University in Heidelberg. The university’s 12 faculties offer a wide range of courses in the most essential subject areas, including math, physics, social sciences, and humanities, as well as medicine.The faculties are-- Medical Faculty Heidelberg
- Medical Faculty Mannheim
- life sciences
- chemistry and geosciences
- mathematics and computer science
- physics and astronomy
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Faculty of Modern Languages
- Faculty of Theology
- Law Faculty
- Economics and Social Sciences
- Behavioral and empirical cultural studies
4th place: University of RWTH Aachen
The largest university in Germany with a technological focus is RWTH Aachen. There are now 547 professors working there, and there are about 45,000 students enrolled. About 21% of the students are from other countries. The university is now much above the 13% national average. In addition to other collaborations within the ERASMUS program, the RWTH’s global network includes more than 100 partner universities. The nine faculties at RWTH Aachen are as follows:
- Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics, and Natural Sciences
- Faculty of Architecture
- Faculty of Civil Engineering
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
- Faculty of Georesources and Materials Engineering
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Faculty of Economics
- Medical school
5th place: Technical University of Berlin
The TU Berlin, the third largest of Berlin’s universities, has around 35,000 students. The TU Berlin is particularly international: almost 8,000 young people from abroad study here – around 22 percent. As an employer, TU Berlin employs almost 8,389 people in the capital, including 351 professors and 2,600 student assistants. The courses at TU Berlin are based on seven faculties:
- Humanities
- Mathematics and natural sciences
- process sciences
- electrical engineering and computer science
- traffic and machine systems
- Planning and Environment
- Business and Management
6th place: University of HU Berlin
The HU Berlin (Humboldt University of Berlin) is one of the four universities in the capital. Approximately 41,632 students are currently enrolled there. 15.5% of them are international students. 424 professors teach at HU Berlin. A total of 189 courses are offered at the following nine faculties:
- Law Faculty
- Faculty of Cultural, Social, and Educational Sciences
- Faculty of Life Sciences
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Faculty of Linguistics and Literature
- Faculty of Theology
- Faculty of Business and Economics
- Charité – University Medicine Berlin
7th place: University of Berlin
The Excellence Initiative Germany includes the Freie Universität Berlin. There are now 490 professors working there, and there are about 33,000 students enrolled. About 20% of the pupils are from other countries. The university is now over the 13% national average. The FU Berlin has 340 ERASMUS program partners and over 100 bilateral partnership agreements with other universities worldwide. The 12 departments that make up Freie University Berlin are as follows:
- Department of Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy
- Department of Education and Psychology
- Department of Geosciences
- Department of History and Cultural Studies
- Department of Mathematics and Computer Science
- Department of Philosophy and Humanities
- Department of Physics
- Department of Political and Social Sciences
- Department of Law
- Department of Veterinary Medicine
- Department of Economics
- Department of Charité – University Medicine Berlin
8th place: University of Cologne
The University of Cologne is the second-largest institution in Germany and one of the oldest in all of Europe. There, they will be taught by 631 professors along with 53,176 German students and 4,919 foreign students. A graduate from Cologne is typically 26.3 years old. There are a total of six faculties at the University of Cologne.
- The Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences
- Medical school
- Faculty of Law
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
- Faculty of Human Sciences
9th place: University of Tübingen
One of the oldest universities in Germany is the University of Tübingen (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen), a governmental institution. Here, about 28,000 students attend classes, with nearly 60% of them being female. At the University of Tübingen, 536 academics teach and conduct research. Since 2012, the university has participated in the federal government’s excellence project. Seven faculties offer instruction in the 311 courses:
- Protestant Theological Faculty
- Catholic Theological Faculty
- Law Faculty
- Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences (63 professorships)
- Faculty of Philosophy (109 professorships)
- Medical faculty (115 professorships)
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (185 professorships)
- Center for Islamic Theology (5 professorships)
10th place: University of Freiburg
- Faculty of Theology
- Faculty of Law
- Faculty of Economics and Behavioral Sciences
- Medical school
- Faculty of Philology
- Faculty of Philosophy
- Faculty of Mathematics and Physics
- Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy
- Faculty of Biology
- Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources
- Technical Faculty
