Most lists of the best universities for economics in Europe rank research. We wanted to rank a decision. So we did it twice. First, we asked a student what matters to her and scored ten universities by her priorities. Then we scored the same ten by what counts when the degree lands on a desk in Zurich.
The two lists disagree, and that is the interesting part. Bocconi wins the student’s ranking. LSE wins Zurich’s. Harvard, our benchmark, is second on our list and nearly last on hers. And Sydney, our second benchmark, finishes last of all and shows what a beach does to a CV.
The short answer: by research rank, the best universities for economics in Europe are LSE, Oxford and Cambridge.[1] However, for a student who wants to live well and start a career in Zurich afterwards, the field narrows to three: Bocconi, the University of Zurich and St. Gallen. The rest of this page therefore shows the numbers behind both answers, so you can weigh them yourself.
Updated on 11 November 2026 with the QS 2026 subject ranks, published 2026/27 fees and Q3 2026 rents.
Key takeaways
- Student view: Bocconi leads with 77.8 points out of 100, ahead of St. Gallen (77.2) and the University of Zurich (76.6). In other words, three universities sit within 1.2 points.
- CV view: LSE leads with 94.5, ahead of the University of Zurich and Bocconi (84.0 each).
- Only three universities are strong on both lists: Bocconi, the University of Zurich and St. Gallen.
- A place of your own is the hidden criterion. In the city of Zurich, 0.11% of flats are empty. In St. Gallen, 1.95% are.
- Sydney ranks level with Mannheim in economics. However, it costs about AUD 56,500 a year, and Zurich reads it differently.
How we ranked the best universities for economics in Europe
Every university receives 0 to 10 points on eight criteria. We then apply two sets of weights. The first set comes from a student. She rated each criterion on the Swiss school scale from 1 to 6: brand and quality received a 6, social life a 5, food and cost a 4. She also added a point we had missed, which is a place of her own. We turned her marks into percentages, merged social life, style and food into one criterion, and gave safety more weight than her marks alone implied. Distance to Zurich no longer moves the score; the travel time stays in the facts table as information.
The second set is ours. It contains only what a hiring manager in Zurich can see on a CV: quality, brand, standing in Switzerland and languages. We call it the CV view.
| Criterion | Student view | CV view | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | 18% | 30% | Editorial judgement: how the name lands on a CV |
| Quality | 18% | 35% | QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026, Economics & Econometrics[1] |
| Social life, style and food | 16% | – | Editorial judgement, checked against QS Best Student Cities 2027[2] |
| Safety and quality of life | 12% | – | Mercer 2024, EIU Global Liveability Index 2026, Global Peace Index 2026[9] |
| Tuition | 12% | – | Published fees 2026/27 for a Swiss or EU student |
| A place of your own | 12% | – | Rents for a studio and vacancy rates, where published |
| Standing in Switzerland | 6% | 25% | Editorial judgement: how the name is known and valued by Swiss employers — graduates move, the name travels with them |
| Language | 6% | 10% | Everyday language of the city |
The scoring rules
- Quality: QS rank 1–10 earns 10 points, 11–25 earns 9, 26–50 earns 8, 51–100 earns 7, 101–150 earns 6 and 151–200 earns 5.
- Tuition: up to EUR 2,000 a year earns 10 points, up to 4,000 earns 9, up to 10,000 earns 7, up to 20,000 earns 5, up to 30,000 earns 3 and up to 45,000 earns 2. Anything above earns 1.
- Language: German earns 10, French 9 and Italian 8, because these are the languages of Swiss banking besides English. English-only cities earn 7, and other languages earn 5.
- Brand, social life and food, housing and standing in Switzerland: bands from 1 to 10, set by us. The merged criterion takes the average of our former social-life and food scores, so half points appear. Where data exist, we name them below.
In short, five of the eight criteria rest on published figures, and three are judgement. We say which is which, so that you can disagree with precision.
Best universities for economics in Europe: the two rankings
Here are the best universities for economics in Europe on both lists. The order follows the student view.
| # | University | Student view | CV view | Rank in CV view |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bocconi University, Milan | 77.8 | 84.0 | 2 (tie) |
| 2 | University of St. Gallen (HSG) | 77.2 | 80.0 | 4 |
| 3 | University of Zurich (UZH) | 76.6 | 84.0 | 2 (tie) |
| 4 | LMU Munich | 73.8 | 74.0 | 5 |
| 5 | Paris School of Economics | 73.6 | 67.5 | 6 (tie) |
| 6 | University of Mannheim | 73.0 | 67.5 | 6 (tie) |
| 7 | London School of Economics (LSE) | 72.0 | 94.5 | 1 |
| 8 | Pompeu Fabra University (UPF), Barcelona | 71.0 | 61.0 | 10 |
| 9 | University of Bonn | 70.4 | 65.5 | 8 |
| 10 | University of Lausanne (HEC Lausanne) | 68.0 | 64.5 | 9 |
| – | Benchmark: UNSW Sydney | 62.6 | 57.5 | – |
| – | Benchmark: Harvard University | 65.4 | 92.0 | – |
The top three sit within 1.2 points of each other; half a weighting point at safety changes the order, and we say so rather than hide it. Ranks in the CV view count the ten European universities only.
The facts behind the points
These are the numbers behind the best economics universities in Europe on our list. Therefore, check any figure against the numbered footnotes before you rely on it.
| University | QS Economics 2026 | To Zurich | Tuition (Swiss or EU student) | A place of your own |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bocconi | 18 | 3h17, direct train | EUR 17,000 (≈ CHF 15,600) per year (bachelor’s) | Furnished studio in Milan: EUR 1,100 (≈ CHF 1,010) a month |
| UZH | =38 | In Zurich | CHF 720 per semester | Vacancy rate in the city: 0.11% |
| HSG | =111 | About 1h by train | CHF 1,310.50 per semester (Swiss), CHF 3,343.50 (foreign) | Vacancy rate in the city: 1.95% |
| Paris School of Economics | 40 | 4h04 by TGV | French public fees | Furnished studio in Paris: EUR 1,300 (≈ CHF 1,190) a month |
| LMU Munich | 47 | 3h32, direct train | No general tuition fees | Model flat of 30 m²: EUR 880 (≈ CHF 810) a month |
| LSE | 6 | Flight, approx. 1h45 | GBP 39,900 (≈ CHF 43,800) per year (overseas, BSc Economics) | Student room: GBP 295 (≈ CHF 320) a week on average |
| UPF Barcelona | =31 | Flight, approx. 1h50 | Regulated public fees | Tourist-flat licences end in November 2028 |
| Mannheim | =56 | 3h14, direct train | None for EU/EEA students | Model flat of 30 m²: EUR 550 (≈ CHF 500) a month |
| Lausanne | =172 | About 2h10 by train | CHF 580 per semester | Tight market, no comparable figure |
| Bonn | 50 | About 5h35 by train | No general tuition fees | Moderate market, no comparable figure |
| UNSW Sydney | =56 | About a day, one stop | About AUD 56,500 (≈ CHF 31,900) per year (international, 2026) | Expensive, no comparable figure |
| Harvard | 1 | Flight, approx. 8h30 | USD 62,226 (≈ CHF 50,900) per year | Students live in college houses |
Fees for 2026/27 as published by the universities; they depend on passport and place of schooling. Rents: HousingAnywhere (Milan Q3 2026, Paris Q4 2025), MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026 (Munich, Mannheim), Unipol and HEPI (London, 2024/25).[3][4][7][17] CHF equivalents at European Central Bank reference rates of 9 November 2026, rounded.[18]
The points
| University | Brand | Quality | Social & food | Safety | Tuition | Housing | Standing (CH) | Language |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bocconi | 9 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| HSG | 8 | 6 | 5.5 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 10 |
| UZH | 7 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 10 | 10 |
| LMU Munich | 7 | 8 | 7.5 | 8 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 10 |
| Paris School of Economics | 6 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| Mannheim | 6 | 7 | 5.5 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 10 |
| LSE | 10 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 7 |
| UPF Barcelona | 6 | 8 | 9.5 | 7 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| Bonn | 5 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 10 |
| Lausanne | 6 | 5 | 6.5 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 9 |
| UNSW Sydney | 7 | 7 | 9.5 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| Harvard | 10 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 7 |
Appeal and signal: four kinds of university
The student view measures appeal. The CV view measures signal, which is what the name tells an employer. Put the two together, and the best universities for economics in Europe fall into four groups.
- Appeal and signal: Bocconi, the University of Zurich and St. Gallen. You enjoy the years, and the CV works afterwards.
- Signal first: LSE and Harvard. The name is unbeatable. However, the price and the distance are too.
- Appeal first: the Paris School of Economics, LMU Munich and Pompeu Fabra. These are wonderful places to study, although Zurich knows them less well.
- Value for money: Mannheim, Lausanne and Bonn. They are solid and affordable, but they will not start a conversation at a dinner table.
Neither list is right. The student lives the four years, and the employer reads one line. Therefore the sensible choice sits in the first group, or is a conscious trade between the others.
The best universities for economics in Europe, one by one
1. Bocconi University: the one that has both
Bocconi ranks 18th in the world for economics, and the name carries from Milan to London. The city scores a full ten for food and for style. In addition, a furnished studio costs a median of EUR 1,100 a month, less than a year ago.[3] Tuition is the price of all this: EUR 17,000 a year for a bachelor’s degree.[12] Zurich is 3h17 away by direct train, and Italian opens the door to Lugano.
2. University of St. Gallen: the network
QS ranks its economics 111th, so St. Gallen wins on brand and on access, not on research. Its Master in Banking and Finance reports an average starting salary of CHF 100,000.[11] Moreover, a flat is easy to find by Swiss standards, with a vacancy rate of 1.95%.[6] Social life is the low point. St. Gallen is a small town, and Zurich is an hour away.
3. University of Zurich: best value, hardest flat hunt
UZH ranks 38th for economics and costs CHF 720 per semester. No university on this list sits closer to the jobs. The weakness is housing. On 1 June 2026, only 252 flats stood empty in the whole city, a vacancy rate of 0.11%.[5] As a result, privacy in Zurich is a question of luck and budget. The university’s own rector puts a student’s living costs at about CHF 2,300 a month.[10]
4. LMU Munich: the balanced choice
LMU ranks 47th and charges no general tuition fees. Munich shares fifth place among the world’s student cities in the QS ranking for 2027.[2] The catch is rent. A model student flat of 30 square metres costs about EUR 880 a month, the highest figure in Germany.[4] Still, LMU is the only university that scores almost the same on both lists.
5. Paris School of Economics: for the mind and the evenings
PSE ranks 40th and teaches at master’s and doctoral level. Paris earns top marks for food and for social life, and public fees are low. However, a furnished studio costs about EUR 1,300 a month, and rooms are small. Few Swiss wealth managers recruit there. So it scores far better with a student than in Zurich.
6. University of Mannheim: quiet quality
Mannheim ranks 56th in economics, third in Germany. A model student flat costs about EUR 550 a month, the lowest rent on this list.[4] EU and EEA students pay no tuition. Zurich is 3h14 away by direct train. Mannheim is not glamorous, and it does not try to be. For a student who wants a flat of her own on a normal budget, it is the easiest answer.
7. London School of Economics: first in Zurich, seventh for her
LSE is sixth in the world for economics and wins our CV view by a wide margin. Then come the bills. The overseas fee for the BSc in Economics is GBP 39,900 for 2026/27, and most Swiss and EU students pay it.[13] A student room costs GBP 295 a week on average.[7] In other words, LSE is the best signal that money can buy, and it takes a lot of money.
8. Pompeu Fabra University: the lifestyle choice
UPF ranks 31st and shares its campus with the Barcelona School of Economics. Barcelona scores ten for social life and nine for food. On the other hand, the city will end all tourist-flat licences in November 2028, so short stays will become harder to book.[8] In Zurich, the name is little known. Consequently, UPF shows the widest gap in the student’s favour.
9. University of Bonn: strong and far
Bonn ranks 50th in economics and charges no general tuition fees. Unfortunately, the fastest train to Zurich takes about five and a half hours, and the name says little outside academia. That keeps it out of the top half, although its research is better than its rank here suggests.
10. University of Lausanne: the French-speaking door
Geneva’s private banks work in French, and Lausanne is about forty minutes away. Tuition is CHF 580 per semester for every nationality. However, QS ranks its economics 172nd, and the housing market around Lake Geneva is tight. It remains the practical choice for a student who wants Geneva.
The Bondi test: what Sydney does to a CV
UNSW Sydney ranks 56th in the world for economics, exactly level with Mannheim. Sydney is joint fifth among the world’s student cities and fourth in the EIU liveability index.[9] Its campus lies a few kilometres from Bondi Beach. So why does it finish behind every European university on both of our lists?
First, the price. International students pay about AUD 56,500 a year in tuition.[15] Second, the distance: Zurich is about a day away. Third, and this is the uncomfortable part, the signal. A reader in Zurich does not see rank 56. He sees a beach. That is unfair, because the university is as good as Mannheim. Yet perception is part of a brand, and nobody suspects a Mannheim graduate of choosing the city for its coastline.
None of this speaks against Sydney. It speaks for having a good answer ready. An exchange semester there is a pleasure and reads as curiosity. A full degree needs a reason that survives the first interview question.
The benchmark: Harvard, second and second-last
Harvard is first in the QS economics table and second in our CV view. It trails LSE only because London sits closer to the Swiss job market. In the student view, however, only Sydney scores lower. Tuition is USD 62,226 for 2026–27, the full billed cost is USD 91,634, and students live in college houses rather than in a flat of their own.[16] Furthermore, the United States ranks 134th of 163 countries in the Global Peace Index 2026, while Switzerland ranks third.[9]
A place of your own: the criterion we had missed
When we first built this ranking of the best universities for economics in Europe, we looked at tuition and forgot the flat. The student we asked corrected us. For her, independence means a door she can close, whether in a studio, a serviced apartment or a longer rental. That changes the map.
Across 25 European cities, the median rent for a furnished studio was EUR 1,100 in the third quarter of 2026, according to HousingAnywhere.[3] Moreover, 27 students were interested in each studio in August. Milan and Vienna sit almost exactly on that median. Paris is higher, at about EUR 1,300. In Germany, a model student flat costs about EUR 880 in Munich and EUR 550 in Mannheim. London is another world: the average student room costs GBP 295 a week.
Switzerland is cheap on tuition and hard on housing. The city of Zurich counted 252 empty flats on 1 June 2026. Consequently, the best-value university on our list is also the hardest place to find a home. Start the search before you accept the offer.
What this ranking cannot tell you
First, QS measures reputation and citations, not teaching. Second, three of our eight criteria are judgements, so another editor would set them differently. Third, fees and rents change every year. Finally, the student weights come from one person. Yours will differ, and so will your list.
So treat these best universities for economics in Europe as a starting point, and change the weights yourself with our interactive calculator. For the business-school version, see our ranking of the best business schools in Europe. For what the first job pays, read our guide to the private banking salary in Switzerland. And for the path after graduation, start with how to become a wealth manager in Switzerland and our note on the best school for independent wealth managers. Still torn between business studies and economics? Then read BWL or VWL: which study path is best for private banking, and for the step from campus to the desk, from student to relationship manager.
Three questions before you choose
No list of the best universities for economics in Europe can make the decision for you. These three questions usually do.
- Can you afford the city, not just the tuition? First, multiply the monthly rent by twelve and add the fees. Indeed, the cheapest tuition on this list rarely comes with the cheapest room.
- Where do you want the first job? If the answer is Zurich or Geneva, weight brand, standing and language the way our CV view does. If it is London, Milan or Paris, in contrast, build your own second list with that city’s employers in mind.
- Does the name need an explanation? A degree that needs a good answer in the first interview is not a mistake. Therefore, have the answer ready before you apply, not after.
Frequently asked questions
In the QS subject ranking 2026, LSE is the highest-placed European university for economics at sixth worldwide, followed by Oxford (8th), Cambridge (10th), UCL (17th) and Bocconi (18th). ETH Zurich is 23rd and the University of Zurich is 38th.
By QS subject rank, ETH Zurich (23rd) and the University of Zurich (38th) lead. For a classic economics degree with direct access to the Zurich job market, the University of Zurich is our first choice. St. Gallen is the stronger brand for banking and management.
On our combined score for social life, style and food, Bocconi in Milan and the Paris School of Economics lead, followed by Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona and LSE in London. Among the world’s student cities, QS ranks London third, Munich joint fifth and Paris seventh for 2027.
Tuition at the University of Zurich is CHF 720 per semester, plus CHF 500 for bachelor’s students with foreign schooling. Living costs are the larger item: the university’s rector puts them at about CHF 2,300 a month, and flats are scarce.
Not in itself. UNSW Sydney ranks level with Mannheim in economics. However, the degree costs about AUD 56,500 a year, and you should expect the question why you chose it. A clear answer turns the beach into a non-issue.
Sources and footnotes
- QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026: Economics & Econometrics, published 25 March 2026.
- QS Best Student Cities 2027, published 21 July 2026.
- HousingAnywhere International Rent Index by City, Q3 2026, published 14 October 2026; Q4 2025 edition for Paris.
- MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026 (Munich, Mannheim).
- City of Zurich: vacant dwellings on 1 June 2026.
- Canton of St. Gallen: vacancy count 2026 (PDF), published 28 September 2026.
- Unipol and HEPI, accommodation costs survey 2024/25, via Times Higher Education.
- idealista: Barcelona’s 2028 deadline for tourist flats.
- Mercer Quality of Living City Ranking 2024; Economist Intelligence Unit, Global Liveability Index 2026; Global Peace Index 2026.
- University of Zurich: fees; rector’s estimate via SWI swissinfo.ch.
- University of St. Gallen: tuition fees from autumn 2026; MBF career figures.
- Bocconi University: tuition and fees 2026–27.
- LSE: Table of Fees 2026/27.
- University of Mannheim: QS subject rankings 2026.
- UNSW Sydney: Bachelor of Economics, indicative international fee 2026.
- Harvard University: tuition and fees 2026–27.
- Train times: SBB and Deutsche Bahn timetables, 2026. Flight times are approximate.
- European Central Bank: euro foreign exchange reference rates, 9 November 2026 (EUR/CHF 0.9164; GBP, USD and AUD converted via the euro). CHF equivalents are rounded and move with the franc.
Data as of 11 November 2026. Scores for brand, social life and food, housing and standing in Switzerland are the editorial judgement of the VAPA Editorial Team. We used AI tools to help research and compile this article; the editorial team checked the figures and takes responsibility for the content. This article is general information, not study or career advice for your individual case.
Source: https://vapa.ch/best-universities-for-economics-in-europe/ · vapa.ch
