| Subject | QS | THE | ARWU | U.S. News |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physics & Astronomy | #23 | — | #16 | #13 |
| Communication & Media | #43 | — | #19 | — |
| Automation & Control | — | — | #20 | — |
| Materials Science | #22 | — | #76-100 | #105 |
| Linguistics | #31 | — | — | — |
| Natural / Physical Sciences | #46 | #33 | — | — |
| Geography | #51-100 | — | #33 | — |
| Biological Sciences | #137 | — | #301-400 | #35 |
| Earth & Geosciences | #51-100 | — | #76-100 | #39 |
| Economics & Econometrics | #154 | — | #41 | #239 |
| Environmental Science | #111 | — | #48 | #55 |
| Psychology | #151-200 | #84 | #49 | #156 |
| Theology & Religious Studies | #51-100 | — | — | — |
| Electrical & Electronic Engineering | #83 | — | #51-75 | #342 |
| Sociology | #101-150 | — | #51-75 | — |
| Water Resources | — | — | #51-75 | — |
| Metallurgical Engineering | — | — | #51-75 | — |
| Engineering & Technology | #137 | #55 | — | #310 |
| Computer Science | #198 | #58 | #101-150 | #164 |
| Chemical Engineering | #72 | — | — | — |
| Arts & Humanities | #204 | #74 | — | #76 |
| Chemistry | #95 | — | #76-100 | #96 |
| Social Sciences & Management | #451-500 | #79 | — | — |
| Education | #201-250 | #88 | #151-200 | — |
| English Language & Literature | #101-150 | — | — | — |
| Anthropology | #101-200 | — | — | — |
| Political Science & IR | #251-300 | — | #101-150 | — |
| Nanoscience & Nanotechnology | — | — | #101-150 | #199 |
| Life Sciences & Medicine | #357 | #126-150 | — | — |
| Polymer Science | — | — | — | #148 |
| Archaeology | #151-200 | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | #201-250 | — | #151-200 | #285 |
| Agriculture & Forestry | — | — | #151-200 | #173 |
| Business & Management | — | — | #151-200 | — |
| Public Health | — | — | — | #160 |
| History | #201-250 | — | — | — |
| Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering | #201-250 | — | — | — |
| Statistics | #201-250 | — | #201-300 | — |
| Artificial Intelligence | — | — | #201-300 | — |
| Medicine / Clinical | #401-450 | — | — | — |
University of California, Santa Barbara ranks #179 in QS 2026, #72 in THE 2026, #70 in ARWU 2025 and #91 in U.S. News 2026. Its consensus position across the major rankings is #80 globally.
QS weights employer reputation and international metrics more heavily; THE places more weight on research influence and teaching environment. Differences of this size between the two systems are common — see our methodology comparison.