Spanish universities are among the best in the world by discipline according to the main international rankings, such as Times Higher Education, QS, and ARWU-Shanghai.

In this article, you’ll learn about the Main Universities in Spain that ensure an amazing college experience for their students. These universities are recognized for their high teaching standards and good infrastructure. They have large campuses with many facilities (which I’ll mention later in the article) and an academic structure allowing students to decide the type of education they wish to receive and job training for young people who want to enter the job market quickly.

And as if all this were not enough, tuition costs are undoubtedly lower in Spain compared to the United States, for example.

So, before we begin, I want to clarify that each region of Spain is very different, so students reading this article should base where they want to study not only on the University but also on the lifestyle and the region.

Now we’re ready. Let’s begin with The Best Universities in Spain according to the Times Higher Education Rank 2023.

1. Universitat de Barcelona

Public University in Barcelona

The Universitat de Barcelona is a Spanish public University founded in 1450. Did you know that it’s considered one of the oldest universities in Spain?! It’s the University with the largest higher education space in Catalonia and a leader in the number of students —more than 11,000 are foreign—

The University of Barcelona (UB), or what everyone calls the Central University, distinguishes itself from the other universities in the city in teaching, research, and innovation. According to the different international rankings, the UB is ranked among the firsts in Spain, 48th in Europe, and 132nd worldwide. It is also the only Spanish university member of the League of European Research Universities (LERU); isn’t this crazy?. 

 With almost 700,000 square meters of floor space, it has 100,000 square meters dedicated to health and sport, 7 campuses in and around Barcelona, 16 faculties and a doctoral school, a Science and Technology Center, and more than 500 research groups. 

It also has the second largest university library in Spain after the Library of the Complutense University of Madrid, with more than 1,611,721 books. This University offers:

• 73 undergraduate degrees and 16 double degrees in all fields of knowledge
• More than 150 official university master’s degrees
• More than 500 of its own degrees

2. Autonomous University of Barcelona

Public University in Barcelona

The Autonomous University of Barcelona UAB is a public university founded in 1968. If you are looking for where to study, this University offers studies in all areas of knowledge: more than 100 degrees, 300 official master’s and postgraduate programs, and nearly 70 doctorates. And why is this University so famous? One of the main reasons is that its teaching stands out for its high quality, international vocation, and multidisciplinary approach, making it a reference in research activities, being a pioneer in sustainability projects, and respecting the environment.

The UAB is considered one of the best teaching institutions nationally and internationally, ranking as the second University in Spain in THE WUR 2023 ranking, consolidating its position among the top 100 in Europe and among the top 200 worldwide!!

Where is it located? Its main campus is in Bellaterra, 25 minutes from the center of Barcelona, although they have centers in other locations: Sabadell, Sant Cugat del Vallés, Manresa, and Barcelona. The Bellaterra campus covers 263 hectares, 60% green areas. It offers all kinds of services: libraries, computer rooms and laboratories, a language school, a health center, a sports complex, a theater, a cinema, restaurants, stores, a hotel, and nearly 2,000 apartments to share.

So I’m telling you everything you can think of is on this campus. The campus is home to 50,000 students and welcomes nearly 10,000 international students worldwide.

3. Pompeu Fabra University

Public University in Barcelona

The Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) is a public University founded in 1990 by the Generalitat de Catalunya. Its main pillars focus on training in different dimensions of the human being, such as the biological, communicative, or social. But, above all, they are very focused on the field of research, ranking among the twenty European universities with the highest number of projects funded by the European Research Council.

This University also has a solid international and multilingual profile with professors with international experience and a wide range of bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English. It has 3 campuses in the center of Barcelona, with more than 50 degrees, and double degrees covering all fields: Medicine and Life Sciences, Economics and Business, Political and Social Sciences, Law, Humanities, Translation and Language Sciences, Communication, and Engineering and ICT.

Students who wish to learn Catalan have the perfect opportunity to live and study in Barcelona at this University — Catalan is the official language of UPF — and the Institution got its name after the linguist Pompeu Fabra, an expert on the Catalan language who gave it the status it holds today.

If you are interested in how many languages are spoken in Spain or what is the Catalan language, I suggest you read the following articles!

Is Catalan a language or a dialect? The Beloved Soul of Catalonia

The 6 Languages Similar to Spanish that are Easy to Learn

The 6 Official Languages in Spain and its Unique 8 Dialects

4. University of Navarra

Private University in Pamplona, Navarre.

The University of Navarra is one of the most prestigious universities in Spain, located in a wonderful green spot that offers its students quality of life while studying there. Pamplona, where it is located, is an excellent destination to focus on because it is a “university city” with the essential characteristics for all students to enjoy a comfortable environment to study.

This private Catholic University belongs to Opus Dei and was founded in Pamplona (Navarra) in 1952. It has six university centers on biomedical engineering, nutrition, tropical health or humanities, and social sciences. Moreover, it is home to the prestigious Clínica Universidad de Navarra, recognized as the best health center in Spain, where many famous Spanish football players go to their daily checkouts!

The latest The Times Higher Education (THE) teaching ranking also ranked third in Europe regarding teaching quality, behind Oxford (the #1 University Worldwide as of 2023) and Cambridge.

It has six campuses — Pamplona, San Sebastian, Madrid, Barcelona, Munich, and New York — With more than 11,500 students (more than 25% of whom are international), offering 38 bachelor’s degrees, 38 master’s degrees, and 20 doctoral programs.

The Pamplona campus (113 hectares of land) has received the international Green Flag Award for several consecutive years in recognition of the integral management of its green areas and spaces!! This award places it as one of the best European campuses for the level of excellence in its direction. Even the faculty of communication and the museum of the UNAV were designed by renowned architects from Spain. See everything about them here:

The 9 Best Spanish Architects and their Legacy in Spain

The Spanish Architecture and the 21 Wonderful Mediterranean Buildings

5. Autonomous University of Madrid

Public University in Madrid

The Autonomous University of Madrid, or the UAM, founded in 1968, is one of the six public universities of the Community of Madrid. Do you want to study Biology, Nursing, Medicine, Physics, or Law? The UAM It’s considered the best University in these fields. It combines high-quality teaching with an excellent vocation for research, which makes it the third-best Spanish University and ranks around the 215th in the world.

It is the Spanish University of reference from the research point of view. It has on its campus several university research institutes of its own and others in collaboration with the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Spanish National Research Council). Also, it is a pioneer in solidarity action and cooperation programs.

Its main campus in Cantoblanco has a total surface area of 2,252,000 m² and 5 faculties holding more than 30,000 students (of which more than 2,000 are international) who can access an offer of more than 250 programs distributed in degrees, masters, doctorates, and courses. It is considered one of the 24 environmentally sustainable campuses worldwide and offers various services to facilitate university life.

6. Complutense University of Madrid

Public University in Madrid

Did you know the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) is considered the oldest public University in Madrid? It was founded in 1822. It’s one of the most prestigious universities in Spain and reaches the highest academic and research excellence levels.

Its academic and service offer is very wide. It provides access to more than 50 University Degrees and Double Degrees, as well as master’s and PhDs, with teachers who are committed to innovation and learning in teaching. Moreover, it has the most extensive library in the country!! (after the National Library) with more than 3,000,000 books, an important historical heritage, and a wide range of cultural offerings.

The University has two campuses (Moncloa and Somosaguas) that comply with the most demanding principles of sustainability and have a total space of 1,300,000 m2 of green areas and 250,000 m2 of sports facilities where more than 20 different sports can be practiced. It’s also the first on-campus University and the third largest in Europe, one of the greenest in Spain, and one of the 50 greenest on the planet. It has also become a reference center for the Latin American continent.

7. IE University

Private University in Madrid

Instituto de Empresa (IE) University is a private Spanish University recognized among the best in the world and offers a high-quality teaching and learning experience. It’s considered the best Spanish University in terms of employability, seventh in Europe and 23rd in the world in the Global University Employability Ranking.

Did you know that the University offers state-of-the-art facilities with fully equipped classrooms, cafeterias, libraries, and the latest generation of workspaces? Its focus is clearly international, with collaboration agreements with the most prestigious companies and universities worldwide to offer its students the best academic and labor projection.

It is, indeed, one of Spain’s universities with the highest tuition fees. The price of a degree at IE University is around 25,000€ per year.

8. University of Salamanca

Public University in Salamanca

The University of Salamanca is a Spanish public university based in the city of Salamanca and founded in 1218, becoming, along with Paris, Oxford, and Bologna, one of the first European universities and the oldest in Spain!!

It’s recognized as one of the world’s leading university cities with a long humanistic and scientific tradition. The University has important historical buildings and emblematic spaces that receive numerous daily visits and maintains historical traditions such as the investiture ceremonies of honorary doctorates or the solemn opening of the beginning of the academic year by the rector. In terms of reputation, the University is well-recognized both nationally, and internationally!

It has 9 campuses in four cities (Salamanca, Zamora, Avila, and Béjar), 26 faculties and colleges, and 13 research institutes. It offers 68 and 26 double degrees and numerous masters and doctoral programs with more than 30,000 students.

The University attracts around 7,000 international students each year due to the high quality of its training centers for foreigners, making it the Alma Mater of Spanish-American universities and an important world reference in teaching and disseminating Spanish. Moreover, Salamanca is one of the Best places regarding security and safety. To see the other criteria and cities you should visit these posts:

The Best City in Spain according to your different wants and needs

Why Spain Has the Best Quality of Life: 11 OECD Criteria

9. Carlos III University of Madrid

Public University in Madrid

The University Carlos III of Madrid is a public university founded in 1989 that stands out for its innovative profile in teaching and research and international profile.

It has 4 campuses located in different strategic places near Madrid. Getafe is the headquarters of the University.

It is among the most prestigious universities in the country. It is ranked 35th in the world and twelfth in Europe in the QS ranking of the 50 best universities in the world under 50 years old. It’s also the only Spanish public University among the best European business schools, according to the Financial Times ranking!!

It offers a wide variety of degrees in all disciplines (Economics and Business, Engineering, Science, Law, Communication, Social Sciences, and Humanities). Furthermore, it has one of the largest offers of bilingual studies among Spanish universities: 71% of its degrees can be taken in English or in a bilingual option, and 51% of its almost 23,000 students have participated in international mobility programs. Isn’t this something fantastic for a public university in Madrid? Its offer includes 145 master’s degree programs and 20 doctoral courses.

10. Comillas Pontifical University

Private Catholic University in Madrid

Comillas Pontifical University (ICAI-ICADE) is a private Catholic university founded in 1890 in the city of Comillas, Cantabria (in Northern Spain) by the Society of Jesus (a private institution that manages more than 200 universities throughout the world).

It’s an exciting university providing huge academic rigor, individual student support, social awareness, internationalization, innovation, and social impact. All this, from a Christian humanistic perspective while it maintains a strong relationship with businesses, professional, and social organizations. It’s, in this sense, a university very present in acts, seminars, conferences, and events.

It currently has its headquarters in Madrid, and in its 7 Faculties and Schools of higher education, it offers more than 45 degrees and as many university master’s degrees to its more than 12,000 students, of which almost 2,000 are international students from all over the world.

There are plenty of reasons to study at a university in Spain. It is clear that the prestige, quality, and rigor of the educational programs, along with infrastructure, are some of the thousands of reasons that make Spain an ideal destination to study abroad.

As I said before, each region is different, so your experience goes hand in hand with the lifestyle that each city holds. I hope this post has been helpful for you and that you consider this destination for your professional development! I’m sure you’ll learn many things beyond your career!