Top 16 Universities in Sri Lanka (2026)
Planning to study in Sri Lanka? This list features 16 universities. Compare rankings, tuition fees, and acceptance rates to make a confident decision. Institutions are evaluated based on research output, global rankings, and academic performance.
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Degree Level
Bachelor, Master, PhD
Subject Area
Science, Business, Arts
Location
Worldwide destinations
1
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
1643 World
470 Asia
1
Sri Lanka
1 Colombo
University Information
Acceptance
32%*
Publications
11972
Citations
157301
2
Peradeniya, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
1879 World
557 Asia
2
Sri Lanka
63 Peradeniya
University Information
Acceptance
17%
Publications
13335
Citations
268999
3
Nugegoda, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
2336 World
727 Asia
3
Sri Lanka
187 Nugegoda
University Information
Acceptance
30%*
Publications
8658
Citations
79353
4
Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
2860 World
908 Asia
4
Sri Lanka
343 Moratuwa
University Information
Acceptance
29%*
Publications
7212
Citations
59412
5
Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
2995 World
965 Asia
5
Sri Lanka
199 Kelaniya
University Information
Acceptance
38%*
Publications
6196
Citations
72126
6
Matara, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
3836 World
1297 Asia
6
Sri Lanka
325 Matara
University Information
Acceptance
37%*
Publications
5127
Citations
57182
7
Jaffna, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
3985 World
1360 Asia
7
Sri Lanka
400 Jaffna
University Information
Acceptance
20%
Publications
3482
Citations
38077
8
Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
5757 World
2122 Asia
8
Sri Lanka
1 Anuradhapura
University Information
Acceptance
17%
Publications
2173
Citations
26459
9
Belihuloya, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
6265 World
2346 Asia
9
Sri Lanka
729 Belihuloya
University Information
Acceptance
40%*
Publications
2022
Citations
16183
10
Addalachchenai, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
6429 World
2430 Asia
10
Sri Lanka
956 Addalachchenai
University Information
Acceptance
85%
Publications
1471
Citations
8787
11
Badulla, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
6454 World
2443 Asia
11
Sri Lanka
935 Badulla
University Information
Acceptance
48%*
Publications
1342
Citations
12264
12
Kuliyapitiya, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
6638 World
2533 Asia
12
Sri Lanka
878 Kuliyapitiya
University Information
Acceptance
38%*
Publications
1817
Citations
13794
13
Batticaloa, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
7077 World
2754 Asia
13
Sri Lanka
University Information
Acceptance
37%*
14
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
9780 World
3894 Asia
14
Sri Lanka
2 Colombo
University Information
Acceptance
30%*
15
Homagama, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
11656 World
4816 Asia
15
Sri Lanka
University Information
Acceptance
66%*
16
Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka
Asia
Founded:
Rankings
12361 World
5105 Asia
16
Sri Lanka
2 Anuradhapura
University Information
Acceptance
28%*