Hong Kong’s ranking among the world’s best cities for international students jumped to 17th as more students found it desirable to study in the territory, according to the QS Best Student Cities 2026 rankings released on Tuesday.

The city’s ranking jumped five spots compared to last year as its scores under the categories of affordability, student views, desirability, student mix, and university rankings improved.

Hong Kong ranked 7th in Asia in the annual list, while Seoul topped the rankings globally, followed by Tokyo.

Among the six key categories considered in the ranking, Hong Kong’s score improved the most on affordability, increasing from 32.7 to 38.8 this year.

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Its score on desirability—which considers public safety, pollution levels, and the number of students wanting to study in the city—also improved from 75.2 to 78.8.

To be included in the list, a city must have a population of over 250,000 and at least two universities included in the most recent QS World University Rankings.

READ MORE: Five HK universities enter world’s top 100, with HKU ranked record 11th

In the 2026 QS World University Rankings released last month, five Hong Kong universities secured positions in the top 100, with the University of Hong Kong (HKU) rising to 11th globally — the highest place obtained by a Chinese university in the ranking’s history.