McGill just made a huge jump in a new global university ranking — and cracked the top 10
It couldn't beat U of T, though.
The list comes from the higher-ed analysts at QS, who released their 2026 edition of their World University Rankings: Sustainability on November 18.
Montreal's McGill University just scored a major win on the global stage. A new 2026 ranking of the world's most sustainable universities has placed the Montreal school ninth overall — a huge leap from last year, when it sat in 15th place.
The list comes from the higher-ed analysts at QS, who released their 2026 edition of their World University Rankings: Sustainability on November 18. Nearly 2,000 institutions were evaluated based on three pillars: environmental impact, social impact and governance.
Despite the massive competition, McGill climbed into the world's top 10, making it one of the highest-ranked schools in North America for sustainability.
Canada as a whole performed incredibly well. According to QS, this country has the highest concentration of top-10 schools in the world. The University of Toronto landed in second place globally, the University of British Columbia placed fifth, and Canada even came close to holding the number-one spot — though Lund University in Sweden ultimately took first place this year.
Here's the global top five:
- Lund University (Sweden)
- University of Toronto
- University College London
- University of Edinburgh
- University of British Columbia
McGill appeared in ninth place, just behind Imperial College London and the London School of Economics, making it the third-best Canadian institution on the list.
With an impressive overall score of 98.1, McGill landed an Environmental Sustainability score of 91.6, an Environmental Education score of 99.7, and an Environmental Research score of 98.7.
Other Canadian schools also posted strong results:
- Western University — tied for 24th
- Université de Montréal — tied for 53rd
- Queen's University — tied for 59th
- University of Waterloo — tied for 69th
- University of Alberta — tied for 74th
- McMaster University — tied for 92nd
- Dalhousie University — tied for 107th
- University of Ottawa — tied for 116th
- Concordia University — 188th
Even more Canadian universities made the ranking but were placed outside the numerical list.
You can explore the entire QS sustainability ranking here.
