King’s College London is 16th in the world according to QS 2026 sustainability rankings

King’s College London (KCL) has officially ranked 16th in the world for sustainability in the QS World Rankings: Sustainability 2026. 

The annual rankings evaluate universities worldwide to assess their contribution to social and environmental sustainability. This includes criteria ranging from environmental impact, social impact, and governance, with the possibility of scoring 100 per cent in each.

This year’s league table saw almost 2,000 higher education institutions assessed.

Coming in at the top, Lund University Sweden was ranked the world’s most sustainable university, achieving a commendable overall score of 100.

KCL earned its place as 7th in the UK and 16th worldwide for the most sustainable university, achieving 97.2 overall.

The highest scoring categories included health and wellbeing, with an almost-perfect score of 99.2, and knowledge exchange and employability. In terms of assessing environmental impact, environmental research took the lead, whilst environmental education and environmental sustainability followed close behind.

KCL’s biggest rival, UCL, placed third with an impressive overall score of 99, making it the most sustainable London university.

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Other universities that ranked highly included the University of Toronto and the University of Edinburgh. 

In the QS World University Sustainability Rankings last year, KCL was recognised as 6th in the UK and 14th globally, which is a few places higher than this year.

However, between 2024 and 2025, KCL rose significantly from 44th to 14th globally, marking a considerable improvement from previous years. Not only that, in this year’s rankings, the university also beat both Bristol and Durham.

This success can be attributed to the sustainable measures introduced by the university, such as the KEATS Sustainability & Climate module designed for both staff and students. This reflects the ever-growing importance and commitment to sustainability and the environment.

In addition, King’s has several major climate initiatives that aim to increase education around sustainability, contribute to global research, and introduce more environmentally conscious practices to pave the way for a cleaner and greener future.

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