On 8th April 2025, the U.S. News Law School Rankings was released. In addition to the overall ranking of law schools in America, there are also the U.S. News and World Report Law School Rankings in detailed areas, like the Part Time Law School Ranking, Business/Corporate Law, Clinical Training, Constitutional Law, Contracts/Commercial Law, Criminal Law, Dispute Resolution, Environmental Law, Health Care Law, Intellectual Property Law, International Law, Legal Writing, Tax Law and Trial Advocacy.
Being in a career in law begins with studying in a school that is best suitable for you. So having a deep understanding on the the Law School U.S. News Rankings and the competitive advantages of the law schools in America means a lot for people plan to have a career in law.
No matter you are a student, a professional, or a career planner, our blog will provide you with useful information, in-depth analysis and unique insights on the U.S. News law schools. Follow our steps and explore the law schools in the United States of America together according to the U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026.
What is the U.S. News Law School Rankings?
U.S. News & World Report Law School Rankings: The ranking is published by U.S. News & World Report, an annual ranking of law schools in the United States.
U.S. News Law School Ranking Factors: The ranking results are depending on various factors, including
- Employment outcomes
- Bar passage rates
- Peer and lawyer/judge assessments
- LSAT/GRE scores
- Undergraduate GPAs
- Acceptance rates
- Student-faculty ratios
- Library resources
Importance and Impacts: For prospective students, although the Law Schools U.S. News Rankings should not be considered as the sole factor when choosing a law school, their data is indeed useful for prospective students to deeply consider a law school ranking together with other factors like tuition, daily costs, location, program strength and career outcomes.
How Were the U.S. News Law School Rankings Calculated?
| Overall Law Schools Ranking Indicators and Proportation Weight | |
|---|---|
| Ranking Indicators | Proportition Weight |
| Outcomes 10 months after graduation | 33% |
| Bar passage rate for first-time test-takers | 18% |
| Ultimate bar passage rate | 7% |
| Peer assessment score | 12.50% |
| Lawyers and judges assessment score | 12.50% |
| Median LSAT and GRE scores | 5% |
| Median undergraduate grade point average | 4% |
| Acceptance rate | 1% |
| Student-faculty ratio | 5% |
| Library resources | 2% |
U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 Top 100 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Stanford University |
| 1 | Yale University |
| 3 | University of Chicago |
| 4 | University of Virginia |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| 6 | Duke University |
| 6 | Harvard University |
| 8 | New York University |
| 8 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 10 | Columbia University |
| 10 | Northwestern University (Pritzker) |
| 12 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| 13 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 14 | Georgetown University |
| 14 | University of Texas–Austin |
| 14 | Vanderbilt University |
| 14 | Washington University in St. Louis |
| 18 | Cornell University |
| 18 | University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill |
| 20 | University of Minnesota |
| 20 | University of Notre Dame |
| 22 | Boston University |
| 22 | Texas A&M University |
| 22 | University of Georgia |
| 25 | Boston College |
| 26 | University of Southern California (Gould) |
| 26 | Wake Forest University |
| 28 | Brigham Young University (Clark) |
| 28 | Ohio State University (Moritz) |
| 28 | University of Wisconsin–Madison |
| 31 | George Mason University (Scalia) |
| 31 | George Washington University |
| 31 | University of Alabama |
| 31 | University of Utah (Quinney) |
| 31 | William & Mary Law School |
| 36 | University of Iowa |
| 36 | Washington and Lee University |
| 38 | Emory University |
| 38 | Florida State University |
| 38 | Fordham University |
| 38 | University of California–Irvine |
| 38 | University of Florida (Levin) |
| 43 | Baylor University |
| 43 | Southern Methodist University (Dedman) |
| 45 | Arizona State University (O’Connor) |
| 46 | Indiana University–Bloomington (Maurer) |
| 46 | University of Colorado–Boulder |
| 48 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign |
| 48 | Villanova University (Widger) |
| 50 | Temple University (Beasley) |
| 50 | University of California–Davis |
| 50 | University of Connecticut |
| 50 | University of Kansas |
| 50 | University of Washington |
| 55 | Pepperdine University (Caruso) |
| 55 | University of Tennessee–Knoxville |
| 57 | University of Missouri |
| 57 | University of San Diego |
| 59 | Marquette University |
| 59 | Pennsylvania State University Dickinson Law |
| 59 | University of Arizona (Rogers) |
| 59 | University of Oklahoma |
| 63 | St. John’s University |
| 63 | University of Houston Law Center |
| 63 | University of Maryland (Carey) |
| 63 | University of South Carolina |
| 63 | Yeshiva University (Cardozo) |
| 68 | Northeastern University |
| 68 | Pennsylvania State University–University Park |
| 68 | University of Kentucky (Rosenberg) |
| 71 | Loyola Marymount University |
| 71 | Seton Hall University |
| 71 | The Catholic University of America |
| 71 | Tulane University |
| 71 | University of Cincinnati |
| 71 | University of Nebraska–Lincoln |
| 71 | University of Richmond |
| 71 | Wayne State University |
| 79 | Drexel University (Kline) |
| 79 | Georgia State University |
| 79 | Loyola University Chicago |
| 79 | University of Nevada–Las Vegas (Boyd) |
| 79 | University of Pittsburgh |
| 84 | Belmont University |
| 84 | Drake University |
| 84 | Florida International University |
| 84 | Louisiana State University–Baton Rouge (Hebert) |
| 88 | Texas Tech University |
| 88 | University of California–San Francisco |
| 88 | University of Denver (Sturm) |
| 88 | University of Maine School of Law |
| 92 | Duquesne University (Kline) |
| 92 | University of Miami |
| 94 | Regent University |
| 94 | Saint Louis University |
| 94 | University at Buffalo–SUNY |
| 94 | University of Oregon |
| 94 | University of St. Thomas |
| 99 | Lewis & Clark College (Northwestern) |
| 99 | Stetson University |
| 99 | University of Hawaii–Manoa (Richardson) |
| 99 | University of Missouri–Kansas City |
| 99 | University of Montana (Blewett) |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 Top 104-195 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 104 | American University (Washington) |
| 104 | Chapman University (Fowler) |
| 104 | Rutgers University |
| 107 | Case Western Reserve University |
| 107 | Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago-Kent) |
| 107 | Indiana University–Indianapolis (McKinney) |
| 107 | Mercer University (George) |
| 107 | Samford University (Cumberland) |
| 107 | Syracuse University |
| 107 | University of Dayton |
| 107 | University of New Mexico |
| 115 | Michigan State University |
| 115 | University of Arkansas–Fayetteville |
| 117 | Albany Law School |
| 117 | Brooklyn Law School |
| 117 | University of Wyoming |
| 117 | West Virginia University |
| 121 | Cleveland State University |
| 121 | New York Law School |
| 121 | University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) School of Law |
| 121 | Washburn University |
| 125 | Hofstra University (Deane) |
| 125 | University of New Hampshire (Pierce) |
| 127 | Howard University |
| 127 | Seattle University |
| 127 | Suffolk University |
| 127 | University of Akron |
| 127 | University of South Dakota (Knudson) |
| 127 | University of Tulsa |
| 133 | DePaul University |
| 134 | Campbell University (Wiggins) |
| 134 | Loyola University New Orleans |
| 134 | Northern Kentucky University (Chase) |
| 134 | University of Detroit Mercy |
| 138 | South Texas College of Law Houston |
| 139 | University of Arkansas–Little Rock (Bowen) |
| 139 | University of Baltimore |
| 141 | Gonzaga University |
| 141 | Liberty University |
| 141 | Pace University (Haub) |
| 141 | Quinnipiac University |
| 141 | University of Idaho |
| 146 | University of Louisville (Brandeis) |
| 146 | University of Memphis (Humphreys) |
| 148 | Creighton University |
| 148 | St. Mary’s University |
| 150 | Northern Illinois University |
| 150 | University of Toledo |
| 150 | Willamette University College of Law |
| 153 | Ave Maria School of Law |
| 154 | Mitchell Hamline School of Law |
| 154 | Southwestern Law School |
| 156 | CUNY School of Law |
| 156 | Santa Clara University |
| 158 | Elon University |
| 158 | Mississippi College |
| 158 | Oklahoma City University |
| 161 | University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth |
| 161 | University of North Dakota |
| 163 | University of North Texas–Dallas |
| 163 | University of the Pacific (McGeorge) |
| 163 | Vermont Law School |
| 166 | New England Law Boston |
| 166 | University of San Francisco |
| 166 | Western New England University |
| 169 | Lincoln Memorial University (Duncan) |
| 169 | Roger Williams University |
| 169 | Touro University (Fuchsberg) |
| 169 | University of Illinois–Chicago |
| 169 | Widener University–Delaware |
| 174 | Capital University |
| 175 | Southern Illinois University–Carbondale |
| 175 | University of Puerto Rico |
| 175 | Widener University–Pennsylvania (Commonwealth) |
| 178-195 | Appalachian School of Law |
| 178-195 | Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School |
| 178-195 | Barry University |
| 178-195 | California Western School of Law |
| 178-195 | Charleston School of Law |
| 178-195 | Cooley Law School |
| 178-195 | Faulkner University (Jones) |
| 178-195 | Florida A&M University |
| 178-195 | Inter-American University |
| 178-195 | North Carolina Central University |
| 178-195 | Nova Southeastern University (Broad) |
| 178-195 | Ohio Northern University (Pettit) |
| 178-195 | Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico |
| 178-195 | Southern University Law Center |
| 178-195 | St. Thomas University |
| 178-195 | Texas Southern University (Marshall) |
| 178-195 | University of the District of Columbia (Clarke) |
| 178-195 | Western State College of Law at Westcliff University |
| 178-195 | Golden Gate University |
| 178-195 | Jacksonville University College of Law |
U.S. News Law School Ranking 2025-2026 Top 10 List
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Stanford University |
| 1 | Yale University |
| 3 | University of Chicago |
| 4 | University of Virginia |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| 6 | Duke University |
| 6 | Harvard University |
| 8 | New York University |
| 8 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 10 | Columbia University |
| 10 | Northwestern University (Pritzker) |
Stanford University and Yale University have tied for the first in the 2025-2026 U.S. News Law School Rankings. In U.S. News Law School Rankings 2024, 2025 and 2026, Stanford University and Yale University have shared the top place. The steady performance and continued dominance of Stanford and Yale at the top of the American law university ranking shows their reputation on excellent academics, as well as the ability to cultivate the students to be prepared for their successful legal careers.
University of Chicago ranks the third in the 2025-2026 U.S. News Rankings Law Schools, which is the same as the previous year. University of Chicago, suited in the TOP 3 of law schools rankings U.S. News, solidifies its reputation for academic achievements and rigorous legal education.
University of Virginia got an impressive success in 2024-2025 Law School U.S. News Rankings, and in the latest 2025-2026 USNWR Law School Rankings, it still won a nice achievement, standing at the 4th place among the 198 law schools in the United States. University of Pennsylvania and New York University both moved up 1 place, while, Duke University and Harvard University both fall down to 8th in the rankings. Northwestern University (Pritzker) dropped to 9th and Columbia University dropped down 2 places to the 10th.
Part Time Law School U.S. News Rankings 2025-2026
Students in part-time programs can earn a J.D. in four-year study. For working professionals, they can also join the part-time law programs to balance a career by taking the evening or weekend courses. You can find the TOP 20 Part Time Law Schools in the U.S. News 2025-2026 Law School Rankings.
| U.S. News Law School Rankings – Part Time Law School | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Georgetown University |
| 2 | George Washington University |
| 3 | Fordham University |
| 4 | University of Maryland (Carey) |
| 5 | American University (Washington) |
| 5 | University of Houston Law Center |
| 7 | University of Connecticut |
| 7 | University of San Diego |
| 9 | George Mason University (Scalia) |
| 9 | Temple University (Beasley) |
| 11 | Brooklyn Law School |
| 11 | University of Denver (Sturm) |
| 13 | Loyola University Chicago |
| 14 | Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago-Kent) |
| 14 | Loyola Marymount University |
| 16 | Seattle University |
| 16 | University of Hawaii–Manoa (Richardson) |
| 18 | Santa Clara University |
| 18 | University of Nevada–Las Vegas (Boyd) |
| 20 | Rutgers University |
2025-2026 U.S. News and World Report Law School Rankings - in 13 Areas of Law
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Business/Corporate Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Harvard University |
| 2 | Columbia University |
| 2 | New York University |
| 2 | University of Chicago |
| 5 | Stanford University |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| 7 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 8 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| 8 | University of Virginia |
| 8 | Yale University |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Clinical Training Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Georgetown University |
| 2 | American University (Washington) |
| 2 | New York University |
| 4 | CUNY School of Law |
| 4 | University of Baltimore |
| 4 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 4 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 8 | Suffolk University |
| 8 | University of Denver (Sturm) |
| 8 | University of Maryland (Carey) |
| 8 | Yale University |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Constitutional Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Yale University |
| 2 | Harvard University |
| 2 | University of Chicago |
| 4 | Stanford University |
| 5 | Columbia University |
| 5 | New York University |
| 5 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 5 | University of Virginia |
| 9 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 9 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Contracts/Commercial Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Harvard University |
| 1 | Stanford University |
| 1 | University of Chicago |
| 4 | Columbia University |
| 4 | Yale University |
| 6 | New York University |
| 6 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 6 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 6 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| 6 | University of Virginia |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Criminal Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | New York University |
| 1 | Stanford University |
| 3 | Harvard University |
| 3 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 3 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| 3 | University of Virginia |
| 7 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 8 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| 9 | Columbia University |
| 9 | Duke University |
| 9 | Georgetown University |
| 9 | University of Chicago |
| 9 | Vanderbilt University |
| 9 | Yale University |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Dispute Resolution Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Ohio State University (Moritz) |
| 2 | Pepperdine University (Caruso) |
| 3 | Harvard University |
| 3 | Texas A&M University |
| 5 | University of Missouri |
| 5 | Yeshiva University (Cardozo) |
| 7 | Northwestern University (Pritzker) |
| 8 | Mitchell Hamline School of Law |
| 9 | Arizona State University (O’Connor) |
| 9 | University of Maryland (Carey) |
| 9 | University of Nevada–Las Vegas (Boyd) |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Environmental Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Pace University (Haub) |
| 2 | Lewis & Clark College (Northwestern) |
| 2 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 4 | Vermont Law School |
| 5 | Columbia University |
| 6 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| 7 | Harvard University |
| 7 | New York University |
| 7 | University of Colorado–Boulder |
| 7 | University of Oregon |
| 7 | University of Utah (Quinney) |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Health Care Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Saint Louis University |
| 2 | Boston University |
| 3 | Georgia State University |
| 4 | Loyola University Chicago |
| 4 | University of Maryland (Carey) |
| 6 | Harvard University |
| 7 | Stanford University |
| 8 | Georgetown University |
| 9 | Northeastern University |
| 9 | Seton Hall University |
| 9 | University of Houston Law Center |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Intellectual Property Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Stanford University |
| 2 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 3 | New York University |
| 4 | Santa Clara University |
| 5 | George Washington University |
| 6 | American University (Washington) |
| 6 | Texas A&M University |
| 6 | Yeshiva University (Cardozo) |
| 9 | Georgetown University |
| 9 | Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago-Kent) |
| 9 | University of Pennsylvania (Carey) |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – International Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | New York University |
| 2 | Harvard University |
| 3 | Columbia University |
| 3 | Georgetown University |
| 3 | Yale University |
| 6 | American University (Washington) |
| 6 | University of California, Berkeley |
| 8 | George Washington University |
| 8 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 10 | Stanford University |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Legal Writing Programs Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | University of Nevada–Las Vegas (Boyd) |
| 1 | University of Oregon |
| 3 | Arizona State University (O’Connor) |
| 3 | Stetson University |
| 3 | Suffolk University |
| 6 | Seattle University |
| 7 | Wake Forest University |
| 8 | University of Arizona (Rogers) |
| 8 | University of California–Irvine |
| 10 | University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Tax Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | New York University |
| 2 | University of Florida (Levin) |
| 3 | Georgetown University |
| 3 | Northwestern University (Pritzker) |
| 5 | University of Virginia |
| 6 | University of Chicago |
| 6 | University of Michigan–Ann Arbor |
| 8 | Columbia University |
| 8 | University of California–Irvine |
| 10 | Duke University |
| 10 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 – Trial Advocacy Law Top 10 | |
|---|---|
| Ranking | Institution |
| 1 | Stetson University |
| 2 | Temple University (Beasley) |
| 3 | Baylor University |
| 4 | Samford University (Cumberland) |
| 5 | Fordham University |
| 5 | University of California–Los Angeles |
| 7 | Loyola Marymount University |
| 8 | Drexel University (Kline) |
| 8 | Hofstra University (Deane) |
| 8 | Syracuse University |
| 8 | University of Denver (Sturm) |
Conclusion About U.S. News Law School Rankings
When making the choices on law schools in the United States of America, you can set the U.S. News Law School Rankings 2025-2026 as the references. Stanford University and Yale University in the USA provide students with a high-quality academic environment and opportunities in law. University of Chicago also attract international students with the excellence in the fields of law. Meanwhile, the other objective factors, such as tuition, cost of living, housing rentals, location, weather, program strength, career outcomes and more, are also necessary to be considered to help you choose the law schools in America that fit you most.
If you want to know more information about the student housing in USA, like the housing rentals, suitable student apartments for rent, or how to find the off-campus housing near your dream law schools in America, you can browse uhomes.com and contact us. Our professional team will give you a hand on evaluate some of the objective factors and assist you in finding your perfect new place.
FAQs
According to the latest data, the number of ABA-Approved Law Schools is 198, along with one law school provisionally accredited by the ABA.
In most cases, the answer is NO. Students graduated from the lower-ranked schools many face more difficulties on the job markets, especially you have strong personal connections or excellent career experience. Nevertheless, for the students who graduated from the top-ranked law schools with mediocregrades, they still have more advantages on securing legal internships, clerkships, and job interviews.
According to the latest statistics, the most challenging law school to get into in the US is Yale Law School. The Yale University Law School, with a standing-out reputation and excellent academics, is one of the most famous law schools in the world, attracting hundreds of thousands of students to apply for a study place. However, the acceptance rate is very low, just around 5.2%.
If you’re thinking about studying in the US, it’s crucial to find the right student accommodation. That’s where uhomes.com comes in. It’s a reliable platform that helps students like you find the perfect place to live in New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and many other cities. So far, they’ve helped more than 55,000 students successfully find their dream homes.
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