Top Law Schools in the US (2026) – Compare Rankings, Costs & Outcomes

2025 U.S. News Law School Rankings Overview

The 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Law Schools rankings (released April 2025) brought both continuity and surprise at the very top. Yale and Stanford remain tied for #1, while the traditional “T14” has officially expanded into a T17 thanks to a four-way tie at #14.

Diverse group of law students walking and discussing on a sunny American university campus — Future lawyers on campus — the 2025 rankings show which schools give them the strongest launchpad

Ranking Methodology and Key Metrics

U.S. News weighs 12 factors, with the heaviest emphasis this year on:

Peer assessment (25%)
Employment outcomes at 10 months (weighted heavily)
First-time and ultimate bar passage rates
Student selectivity (LSAT/GPA median + acceptance rate)
Faculty resources and expenditures per student

Small swings in bar passage or BigLaw placement now move schools more than ever.

Notable Movers and Decliners in 2025

Up big: Vanderbilt (+5), George Washington (+10), William & Mary (+5)
Down: Harvard & Duke both fell to #6 (tied), Cornell dropped out of T14

Understanding the T14 and T17 Law Schools

The “T14” label is now officially outdated. With four schools tied at #14 (Georgetown, Texas, Vanderbilt, WashU), the elite tier now includes 17 schools. These are the programs where median starting salaries routinely exceed $200k and BigLaw placement often tops 80%.

Top Law Schools in the US for 2025

Leading Schools: Yale, Stanford, Harvard, University of Chicago

Rank	School	Tuition (2025–26)	Acceptance Rate	Bar Passage (First-Time)
#1 (tie)	Yale Law School	$76,369	5.25%	~98%
#1 (tie)	Stanford Law School	$76,608	8.85%	~97%
#3	University of Chicago Law	$78,000+	12.73%	~96%
#6 (tie)	Harvard Law School	$78,000+	~10%	~97%

Other Prominent Law Schools: Duke, Columbia, UVA

Acceptance Rates, Tuition, and Student-Faculty Ratios

UVA (#4) offers in-state tuition of ~$68k and one of the best student-faculty ratios (6:1). Duke (#6 tie) remains a favorite for BigLaw placement and clerkships.

Bar Passage Rates and Employment Outcomes

Top schools routinely post 95%+ first-time bar passage and 90%+ employment at 10 months. The real differentiator is federal clerkship placement (Yale and Stanford lead) and BigLaw % (Northwestern, Penn, Columbia often >80%).

Quick Tip: If you’re aiming for BigLaw or federal clerkships, the difference between #10 and #25 is often bigger than the difference between #1 and #10.

Specialized Category Rankings by Princeton Review 2025

U.S. News tells you who’s “best overall.” Princeton Review tells you who’s best at the things that actually matter to real students. These rankings come straight from surveys of 19,000+ current law students — no games, no spin.

Law student celebrating with confetti after receiving great news — The moment you realize you picked the school that actually delivers

Best Career Prospects (2025)

1. Yale 2. Stanford 3. Harvard 4. Chicago 5. Columbia
These five schools still dominate federal clerkships, Supreme Court pipelines, and BigLaw offers that start at $225k+.

Best Classroom Experience

Washington & Lee, University of Georgia, University of Alabama, Pepperdine, and Baylor top this list. Small classes, engaged professors, zero curve pressure — the opposite of the cut-throat stereotype.

Toughest Law Schools to Get Into

Yale (5.2%), Stanford (8.8%), Harvard (~10%), Chicago (12.7%). If your LSAT is below 170 and GPA below 3.8, these are basically reach schools — but still worth a shot with a killer personal statement.

Diversity & Resources Categories

Most Diverse Faculty: CUNY, Howard, Texas Southern
Best for Women: Stanford, Yale, Northwestern
Best for LGBTQ+ Students: NYU, Berkeley, UCLA

Pro Tip: If you care about work-life balance and classroom vibe more than pure prestige, the Princeton Review rankings are often more useful than U.S. News.

Global Law School Rankings 2025

Times Higher Education (THE) Law Subject Rankings

Stanford
Harvard
NYU
Oxford
Cambridge

QS World University Rankings for Law & Legal Studies 2025

Harvard
Oxford
Cambridge
NYU
Stanford

Takeaway: If you want an international career (UN, ICC, BigLaw London/Singapore), Oxford, Cambridge, and NYU jump way up in value.

How to Actually Use These Rankings (Without Getting Trapped by Them)

Weigh Rankings Against Your Real Life

Prestige opens doors, but debt closes them. A full-ride at #25 can beat $300k debt at #5. Calculate your “cost of attendance minus scholarships” and compare to expected first-year salary.

Bar Passage & Employment Are the Real Scorecards

Look at 10-month employment rate + first-time bar passage. Schools with 95%+ bar passage and 90%+ employment are playing a different game than schools scraping 80%.

Get Real Mentorship & Use Comparative Tools

Rankings are starting points. Talk to current students on Reddit (r/lawschooladmissions), reach out to alumni on LinkedIn, and run your numbers through Orbit’s free Law School ROI calculator.

Frequently Asked Questions

The traditional T14 is now a T17: Yale & Stanford (#1 tie), Chicago (#3), UVA (#4), Penn (#5), Harvard & Duke (#6 tie), Columbia & NYU (#8 tie), Michigan & Northwestern (#10 tie), Cornell & Berkeley (#12 tie), then Georgetown, Texas, Vanderbilt, WashU all tied at #14.

Expect $75,000–$80,000 per year at private T14 schools. Public schools like UVA (in-state ~$68k) and Michigan (in-state ~$65k) are significantly cheaper.

Yale, Stanford, Chicago, Harvard, and UVA routinely hit 96–99% first-time bar passage.

Always run the numbers. A full ride at #30 beats $250k debt at #10 for most people. Use scholarship calculators and compare total cost vs. expected salary.

They matter a lot if you want to work internationally, clerk at the ICC, or practice in London/Hong Kong/Singapore. Oxford, Cambridge, and NYU jump way up in those lists.

Topic Tags

#lawschools #best law school #law school rankings

Sayak Moulic

February 3, 2026

An experienced writer and researcher focused on college admissions, this author simplifies the complex journey of applying to universities. They create practical, student-friendly content on entrance exams, application strategies, essays, and admission planning. With a strong emphasis on clarity and real-world guidance, their work helps students and parents make informed decisions, avoid common mistakes, and confidently navigate competitive admissions processes to find the right academic fit.