Best Universities for Physics in the UK 2027
Durham University tops our 2027 physics ranking with 139 points, combining 92% academic support and 89% teaching quality. University of Exeter comes second with 138 points and 94% academic support. Northumbria University and Cardiff University are joint third with 128 points each. Northumbria achieves 100% academic support. We ranked 45 UK universities offering physics degrees across eight metrics: graduate earnings, teaching quality, student satisfaction, academic support, safety, cost of living, social life and sustainability.
Physics graduate earnings range from £22,000 (Northumbria, joint 3rd) to £40,000 (Imperial College London, 37th — last in the ranking). University of Manchester (13th) produces £34,000. Northumbria, Royal Holloway, Lancaster, Aberdeen and Dundee all achieve 100% academic support. University of Birmingham (36th) has the lowest academic support at 68%. Newcastle University (joint 27th) and University of Glasgow (35th) both score 69% on both teaching quality and academic support — the joint-lowest in the field.
For how these universities compare across all subjects, see the Unifresher best universities overall ranking and our best universities for employability.
Physics University Rankings 2027
| # | University | Grad Earnings | Satisfaction | Teaching Quality | Academic Support | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Durham University Durham |
£35,000 | 78% | 89% | 92% | 139 |
| 2 | University of Exeter Exeter |
£35,000 | 79% | 90% | 94% | 138 |
| 3 | Northumbria University, Newcastle Newcastle upon Tyne |
£22,000 | 74% | 93% | 100% | 128 |
| 3 | Cardiff University Cardiff |
£32,000 | 71% | 94% | 96% | 128 |
| 4 | Swansea University Swansea |
£25,000 | 79% | 92% | 84% | 123 |
| 4 | Royal Holloway, University of London Egham |
£32,000 | 74% | 96% | 100% | 123 |
| 5 | University of Lincoln Lincoln |
£26,000 | 78% | 89% | 96% | 122 |
| 6 | Lancaster University Lancaster |
£32,000 | 82% | 93% | 100% | 120 |
| 7 | University of St Andrews St Andrews |
£32,000 | 84% | 98% | 98% | 119 |
| 8 | University of Bristol Bristol |
£31,000 | 73% | 86% | 91% | 117 |
| 9 | University of East Anglia (UEA) Norwich |
£28,000 | 79% | 89% | 94% | 116 |
| 10 | University of Leeds Leeds |
£30,000 | 74% | 89% | 92% | 112 |
| 11 | Nottingham Trent University Nottingham |
£30,000 | 76% | 85% | 90% | 109 |
| 12 | Sheffield Hallam University Sheffield |
£29,500 | 73% | 90% | 90% | 106 |
| 13 | University of Manchester Manchester |
£34,000 | 70% | 89% | 88% | 105 |
| 14 | University of Liverpool Liverpool |
£30,000 | 71% | 88% | 85% | 104 |
| 15 | Keele University Newcastle-under-Lyme |
£24,000 | 81% | 96% | 88% | 103 |
| 16 | University of Warwick Coventry |
£33,500 | 74% | 88% | 96% | 101 |
| 17 | University of Salford Salford |
£24,000 | 73% | 88% | 96% | 100 |
| 18 | University of Bath Bath |
£33,000 | 80% | 82% | 89% | 99 |
| 18 | University of Portsmouth Portsmouth |
£33,000 | 77% | 97% | 97% | 99 |
| 19 | University of Hertfordshire Hertfordshire |
£29,000 | 71% | 89% | 91% | 97 |
| 20 | University of Sheffield Sheffield |
£28,500 | 75% | 85% | 94% | 96 |
| 21 | University of York York |
£32,000 | 77% | 82% | 80% | 95 |
| 21 | University of Kent Canterbury |
£30,000 | 72% | 82% | 90% | 95 |
| 22 | University of Sussex Brighton and Hove |
£30,000 | 77% | 88% | 97% | 93 |
| 22 | University of Leicester Leicester |
£30,500 | 73% | 89% | 94% | 93 |
| 23 | University of Surrey Guildford |
£31,000 | 78% | 86% | 91% | 92 |
| 24 | Queen Mary University of London London |
£30,000 | 69% | 97% | 94% | 90 |
| 25 | Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh |
£33,500 | 75% | 89% | 93% | 89 |
| 26 | UCL (University College London) London |
£34,000 | 68% | 83% | 89% | 88 |
| 27 | Newcastle University Newcastle upon Tyne |
£27,500 | 75% | 69% | 69% | 86 |
| 27 | University of Nottingham Nottingham |
£30,000 | 74% | 88% | 91% | 86 |
| 27 | University of Strathclyde Glasgow |
£30,000 | 75% | 92% | 92% | 86 |
| 28 | University of Aberdeen Aberdeen |
£28,500 | 76% | 82% | 100% | 85 |
| 29 | University of Dundee Dundee |
£26,500 | 75% | 96% | 100% | 84 |
| 30 | University of Edinburgh Edinburgh |
£31,000 | 74% | 83% | 84% | 83 |
| 30 | King's College London London |
£32,000 | 67% | 84% | 83% | 83 |
| 31 | University of Hull Hull |
£28,500 | 76% | 97% | 97% | 78 |
| 32 | University of the West of Scotland Glasgow |
£25,000 | 73% | 95% | 98% | 77 |
| 33 | University of Southampton Southampton |
£31,000 | 76% | 82% | 86% | 73 |
| 34 | University of Central Lancashire Preston |
£25,000 | 71% | 86% | 91% | 72 |
| 35 | University of Glasgow Glasgow |
£30,000 | 75% | 69% | 69% | 69 |
| 36 | University of Birmingham Birmingham |
£32,000 | 72% | 77% | 68% | 62 |
| 37 | Imperial College London London |
£40,000 | 66% | 76% | 75% | 57 |
What the ranking tells you about studying physics
Physics is one of the highest-value STEM degrees in the UK for long-term earnings and career flexibility. Physicists work in finance (quantitative analysis, trading), technology (software, machine learning), aerospace and defence, energy, medical physics, data science and academia. With 45 universities in this ranking, the variation in laboratory infrastructure, research-active faculty, placement partnerships and graduate outcomes is significant.
Imperial at 37th (last): £40,000 — the highest physics earnings in the UK from last position
Imperial College London ranks 37th — last in this ranking — with 57 points, and produces physics graduates earning £40,000 — the highest in the field by £5,000 above the next-highest (Durham and Exeter at £35,000). Imperial's physics graduates access quantitative finance, technology research, defence and engineering consultancy roles at a premium above the field average, driven by Imperial's brand positioning, London employer connections and research-industry partnerships. Imperial ranks last because London's maximum cost of living, the lowest student satisfaction in the field (66%), and course delivery scores of 76% teaching quality and 75% academic support — both among the lowest in this ranking — suppress the overall score. For students specifically targeting the highest-earning physics careers through a London research institution, Imperial's earnings data is the most significant in this table. But the 66% student satisfaction — the lowest in the field — is a real signal worth investigating.
Newcastle University at joint 27th: the course quality concern
Newcastle University ranks joint 27th with 86 points and achieves 69% on both teaching quality and academic support — joint-lowest in this field alongside University of Glasgow (35th). The field average teaching quality is approximately 89% and average academic support approximately 90%. Newcastle overall is a well-regarded Russell Group institution, but its physics department course delivery scores are substantially below the field average for both metrics. Students attracted to Newcastle by its overall university reputation should treat the physics-specific course delivery figures as the primary data point to investigate at open day.
University of St Andrews at 7th achieves the highest satisfaction (84%) and joint-highest course delivery in the top 10 (98% on both metrics). St Andrews ranks 7th with 119 points, combining the best student satisfaction in this ranking, 98% on both course delivery metrics and £32,000 graduate earnings. Its 7th-place position reflects St Andrews' low sustainability score — otherwise its course delivery profile is the strongest in the top 10. University of Portsmouth (joint 18th) achieves 97% on both metrics from a position suppressed by low safety and sustainability scores — the strongest course delivery outside the top 10 by the same standard.
For a broader view of how these universities compare, see the Unifresher overall best universities ranking. For graduate employment data, see the employability ranking.
