Top 20 Universities in Ireland (2026)
Planning to study in Ireland? This list features 20 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
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
247 World
88 Europe
1
Ireland
1 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
42%
Publications
86736
Citations
2550337
2
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
306 World
116 Europe
2
Ireland
2 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
48%*
Publications
78325
Citations
2622337
3
Cork, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
417 World
172 Europe
3
Ireland
33 Cork
University Information
Acceptance
48%*
Publications
49318
Citations
1479513
4
Galway, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
571 World
225 Europe
4
Ireland
1 Galway
University Information
Acceptance
43%
Publications
40203
Citations
1084209
5
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
694 World
277 Europe
5
Ireland
3 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
49%*
Publications
27146
Citations
573772
6
Limerick, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
758 World
302 Europe
6
Ireland
1 Limerick
University Information
Acceptance
51%*
Publications
27682
Citations
595792
7
Maynooth, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
994 World
384 Europe
7
Ireland
1 Maynooth
University Information
Acceptance
52%*
Publications
16764
Citations
383430
8
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
1268 World
469 Europe
8
Ireland
4 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
55%*
Publications
18044
Citations
520968
9
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
1598 World
566 Europe
9
Ireland
5 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
61%*
Publications
5604
Citations
159550
10
Waterford, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
2361 World
753 Europe
10
Ireland
417 Waterford
University Information
Acceptance
70%
Publications
3390
Citations
61764
11
Bishopstown, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
2541 World
790 Europe
11
Ireland
376 Bishopstown
University Information
Acceptance
59%*
Publications
1931
Citations
50080
12
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
2942 World
881 Europe
12
Ireland
6 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
54%*
Publications
8568
Citations
352879
13
Dundalk, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3397 World
981 Europe
13
Ireland
681 Dundalk
University Information
Acceptance
45%
Publications
1357
Citations
22782
14
Galway, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3497 World
997 Europe
14
Ireland
2 Galway
University Information
Acceptance
52%*
Publications
1102
Citations
36607
15
Sligo, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3522 World
1000 Europe
15
Ireland
935 Sligo
University Information
Acceptance
45%
Publications
1448
Citations
35092
16
Athlone, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3581 World
1010 Europe
16
Ireland
1702 Athlone
University Information
Acceptance
72%
Publications
1066
Citations
23627
17
Dublin, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3726 World
1036 Europe
17
Ireland
7 Dublin
University Information
Acceptance
54%*
Publications
951
Citations
18421
18
Carlow, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
3729 World
1038 Europe
18
Ireland
1 Carlow
University Information
Acceptance
45%
Publications
1121
Citations
17167
19
Limerick, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
4243 World
1123 Europe
19
Ireland
2 Limerick
University Information
Acceptance
49%*
Publications
533
Citations
7099
20
Letterkenny, Ireland
Europe
Founded:
Rankings
4607 World
1181 Europe
20
Ireland
2773 Letterkenny
University Information
Acceptance
45%
Publications
2545
Citations
8057