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July 11, 2026
10 min read

Best Law Schools In Each State

Arush Chandna
Co-Founder of Juris Education
Contents
Our Rankings of the Best Law Schools In Each State
Methodology of How We Ranked the Best Law Schools in Each State
FAQs

Finding the right fit for your goals is the most important part of building your law school list. But when I speak with students, that's rarely where they start. 

The first factors they consider are always the same: the numbers. They want to compare acceptance rates, median GPAs, and median LSAT scores to figure out which schools are realistic options before taking a deeper look. 

At the same time, many students don't realize just how many excellent law schools are available to them in and outside of their home state, making it hard to know which schools to consider in the first place.

That's why I created this guide. Together with the law school admissions experts on my team, I ranked the best law schools in every state to bring the admissions data students care about most into one place. 

If you’re interested, I’ve also created this comprehensive guide of the top 10 law schools in the US and how to get into them.

Privacy guaranteed. No spam, ever.

Our Rankings of the Best Law Schools In Each State

Below is a state-by-state ranking of the best law schools in the US. Each table includes every school's median LSAT, median GPA, and acceptance rate, as reported in the Standard 509 ABA Reports, and my overall ranking so you can quickly compare your options.

Alabama

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of Alabama School of Law 3.97 167 25.63%
2 Samford University Cumberland School of Law 3.63 156 48.97%
3 Faulkner University Thomas Goode Jones School of Law 3.33 150 53.87%

Alaska

There are no ABA-accredited law schools located in Alaska.

Arizona

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law 3.91 165 19.78%
2 The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law 3.78 163 27.91%

Arkansas

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Arkansas School of Law 3.71 158 26.63%
2 University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law 3.41 153 54.89%

California

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Stanford Law School 3.96 173 6.10%
2 University of California, Los Angeles School of Law 3.95 171 12.05%
3 University of California, Berkeley School of Law 3.92 170 14.84%
4 University of Southern California Gould School of Law 3.91 169 11.17%
5 University of California, Davis School of Law 3.70 165 21.06%
6 University of California, Irvine School of Law 3.80 169 14.92%
7 Pepperdine Caruso School of Law 3.85 164 23.36%
8 Loyola Marymount University Loyola Law School 3.74 163 26.05%
9 University of California College of the Law, San Francisco 3.71 161 27.48%
10 University of San Diego School of Law 3.84 163 23.51%

Colorado

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Colorado Law School 3.81 164 27.56%
2 University of Denver Sturm College of Law 3.66 160 41.33%

Connecticut

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Yale Law School 3.96 174 4.06%
2 University of Connecticut School of Law 3.78 162 20.05%
3 Quinnipiac University School of Law 3.65 155 43.10%

Delaware

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Widener University Delaware Law School 3.33 152 59.68%
2 Wilmington University School of Law 3.13 149 52.01%

District of Columbia

My Ranking Law School Median UGPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Georgetown University Law Center 3.93 171 15.75%
2 The George Washington University Law School 3.86 168 27.21%
3 The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law 3.68 161 32.40%
4 American University Washington College of Law 3.63 162 33.28%
5 Howard University School of Law 3.63 156 24.05%

Florida

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law 3.91 169 16.52%
2 Florida State University College of Law 3.93 166 15.97%
3 University of Miami School of Law 3.79 164 24.65%
4 Florida International University College of Law 3.80 161 18.77%
5 Stetson University College of Law 3.63 159 36.44%
6 Jacksonville University College of Law 3.48 156 35.14%
7 Florida A&M University College of Law 3.48 152 34.67%
8 Barry University School of Law 3.23 150 55.94%

Georgia

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Georgia School of Law 3.92 169 12.72%
2 Emory University School of Law 3.82 166 30.15%
3 Georgia State University College of Law 3.64 160 30.57%
4 Mercer University School of Law 3.62 157 37.75%
5 Atlanta's John Marshall Law School 3.13 152 32.65%

Hawaii

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Hawai'i at Mānoa William S. Richardson School of Law 3.62 158 26.24%

Idaho

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Idaho College of Law 3.54 153 66.76%

Illinois

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of Chicago Law School 3.97 174 9.74%
2 Northwestern Pritzker School of Law 3.96 173 12.30%
3 University of Illinois College of Law 3.81 166 32.93%
4 Loyola University Chicago School of Law 3.70 161 28.18%
5 Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology 3.72 161 38.61%

Indiana

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Notre Dame The Law School 3.89 170 16.07%
2 Indiana University Maurer School of Law 3.91 164 35.77%
3 Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law 3.58 155 55.86%

Iowa

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Iowa College of Law 3.78 164 44.43%
2 Drake University Law School 3.67 156 54.82%

Kansas

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of Kansas School of Law 3.85 162 39.08%

Kentucky

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law 3.72 159 40.78%
2 University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law 3.67 157 63.39%
3 Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law 3.41 154 58.70%

Louisiana

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Tulane University Law School 3.67 161 39.97%
2 Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center 3.74 157 38.55%
3 Loyola University New Orleans College of Law 3.47 154 50.93%
4 Southern University Law Center 3.15 147 56.55%

Maine

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Maine School of Law 3.70 158 37.27%

Maryland

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law 3.72 164 26.08%
2 University of Baltimore School of Law 3.45 155 49.50%

Massachusetts

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Harvard Law School 3.96 174 9.20%
2 Boston University School of Law 3.88 170 12.08%
3 Boston College Law School 3.83 168 8.48%
4 Northeastern University School of Law 3.77 164 24.22%
5 University of Massachusetts School of Law 3.36 152 52.17%

Michigan

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Michigan Law School 3.88 171 8.57%
2 Wayne State University Law School 3.89 164 24.81%
3 Michigan State University College of Law 3.73 162 26.02%
4 University of Detroit Mercy School of Law 3.52 156 41.41%
5 Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School 3.09 147 52.91%

Minnesota

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Minnesota Law School 3.88 171 26.70%
2 University of St. Thomas School of Law 3.72 159 57.62%
3 Mitchell Hamline School of Law 3.29 154 51.40%

Mississippi

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of Mississippi School of Law 3.68 157 41.96%
2 Mississippi College School of Law 3.37 152 59.80%

Missouri

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Washington University in St. Louis School of Law 3.96 175 18.96%
2 University of Missouri School of Law 3.72 161 41.98%
3 Saint Louis University School of Law 3.61 157 56.43%
4 University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law 3.65 156 45.94%

Montana

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Montana Alexander Blewett III School of Law 3.64 156 51.41%

Nebraska

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Nebraska College of Law 3.81 160 40.15%
2 Creighton University School of Law 3.51 153 64.54%

Nevada

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Nevada, Las Vegas William S. Boyd School of Law 3.76 160 30.78%

New Hampshire

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law 3.50 155 51.96%

New Jersey

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Seton Hall University School of Law 3.71 161 34.27%
2 Rutgers Law School 3.66 158 33.54%

New Mexico

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of New Mexico School of Law 3.56 157 41.41%

New York

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Columbia Law School 3.92 173 11.84%
2 New York University School of Law 3.92 172 13.39%
3 Cornell Law School 3.92 173 18.19%
4 Fordham University School of Law 3.79 168 16.22%
5 Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University 3.78 165 29.56%
6 St. John's University School of Law 3.81 164 23.05%
7 Brooklyn Law School 3.59 161 44.00%
8 Syracuse University College of Law 3.60 158 34.59%
9 New York Law School 3.63 157 39.67%
10 Hofstra University Maurice A. Deane School of Law 3.65 157 40.56%

North Carolina

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Duke University School of Law 3.91 171 12.88%
2 University of North Carolina School of Law 3.89 168 11.19%
3 Wake Forest University School of Law 3.79 166 24.63%
4 Campbell University School of Law 3.51 156 50.68%
5 North Carolina Central University School of Law 3.31 151 39.06%

North Dakota

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of North Dakota School of Law 3.48 151 63.09%

Ohio

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law 3.91 168 24.62%
2 Case Western Reserve University School of Law 3.76 162 34.80%
3 University of Cincinnati College of Law 3.80 159 32.74%
4 University of Dayton School of Law 3.60 157 30.66%
5 The University of Akron School of Law 3.51 154 58.53%
6 The University of Toledo College of Law 3.53 153 52.46%

Oklahoma

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Oklahoma College of Law 3.73 162 33.36%
2 The University of Tulsa College of Law 3.45 157 56.58%
3 Oklahoma City University School of Law 3.56 151 51.61%

Oregon

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Lewis & Clark Law School 3.59 161 54.72%
2 University of Oregon School of Law 3.62 160 54.97%
3 Willamette University College of Law 3.48 154 61.42%

Pennsylvania

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School 3.95 173 8.05%
4 Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law 3.76 160 29.64%
3 Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law 3.80 164 25.93%
2 Temple University Beasley School of Law 3.76 165 24.38%
5 University of Pittsburgh School of Law 3.54 160 34.87%

Puerto Rico

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Puerto Rico School of Law 3.77 152 39.69%
2 Inter American University of Puerto Rico School of Law 3.39 144 50.92%
3 Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law 3.33 139 61.54%

Rhode Island

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Roger Williams University School of Law 3.43 150 61.32%

South Carolina

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law 3.67 162 29.90%
2 Charleston School of Law 3.51 154 50.20%

South Dakota

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law 3.47 152 62.47%

Tennessee

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Vanderbilt University Law School 3.91 170 13.26%
2 University of Tennessee College of Law 3.89 164 24.77%
3 Belmont University College of Law 3.84 161 37.62%
4 The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law 3.53 155 41.07%
5 Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law 3.44 153 52.17%

Texas

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 The University of Texas School of Law 3.89 172 13.99%
2 Texas A&M University School of Law 4.00 169 12.10%
3 Baylor University School of Law 3.77 164 20.59%
4 Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law 3.81 167 24.59%
5 Texas Tech University School of Law 3.69 159 25.61%
6 University of Houston Law Center 3.79 163 22.99%

Vermont

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 Vermont Law and Graduate School 3.25 152 58.53%

Virginia

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Virginia School of Law 3.99 173 10.17%
2 Washington and Lee University School of Law 3.75 167 22.73%
3 William & Mary Law School 3.82 166 21.97%
4 University of Richmond School of Law 3.81 164 39.64%
5 Regent University School of Law 3.68 158 44.32%

Washington

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Washington School of Law 3.76 165 19.61%
2 Seattle University School of Law 3.60 159 38.93%
3 Gonzaga University School of Law 3.55 155 51.14%

West Virginia

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 West Virginia University College of Law 3.65 155 40.34%

Wisconsin

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Wisconsin Law School 3.81 167 19.12%
2 Marquette University Law School 3.70 158 22.11%

Wyoming

My Ranking Law School Median GPA Median LSAT Acceptance Rate
1 University of Wyoming College of Law 3.55 156

For help getting into any of these schools, you can get comprehensive law school admissions consulting. Work with Juris Education's admissions experts to strengthen your application and improve your chances of acceptance.

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Methodology of How We Ranked the Best Law Schools in Each State

Every school in this guide holds full accreditation from the American Bar Association (ABA). Schools without ABA accreditation limit your ability to sit for the bar in most states, so we excluded them entirely.

I weighted four main factors when ranking these schools: 

  • Faculty and library resources: Student-to-faculty ratio reflects how much individual attention and mentorship a school can offer. Library and research resources signal the depth of a school's institutional investment in legal scholarship and the tools available to you throughout your three years.
  • Program depth: We reviewed the breadth of clinical programs, legal centers, academic concentrations, law journals, advocacy programs, and externship partnerships each school offers. 
  • Peer and practitioner reputation: Faculty, peers, practicing lawyers, and judges assess schools through annual surveys. Schools with strong recognition from the legal community tend to open more doors for graduates entering a competitive job market.
  • Graduate outcomes: We evaluated overall graduate success, including the percentage of graduates employed in full-time, long-term, bar-required or JD-advantage positions within 10 months of graduation, quality of placements (large law firms and federal clerkships), and bar exam performance. 

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FAQs

What Are the Top Law Schools on the East Coast?

The top law schools on the East Coast are: 

  • Yale Law School
  • Harvard Law School
  • The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
  • Columbia Law School
  • New York University School of Law 

All five place in the national top 10, and each delivers elite employment outcomes, faculty depth, and resources.

Which Law Schools Have the Strongest Entertainment Law Programs?

UCLA School of Law is the top law school for entertainment law, largely because of the Ziffren Institute for Media, Entertainment, Technology, and Sports Law and its deep alumni pipeline into Los Angeles firms and studios. 

Southwestern Law School (through the Biederman Entertainment and Media Law Institute) and Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (through the FAME Center for Fashion, Art, Media, and Entertainment Law) are the other standout programs for entertainment law.

What Are the Top Law Schools for Environmental Law? 

Pace University's Elisabeth Haub School of Law, UC Berkeley School of Law, and UCLA School of Law have the best environmental law programs. All three offer deep environmental law curricula, dedicated clinics, and strong faculty specialization in the field.

What Are the Best Law Schools for Constitutional Law?

The following schools have the greatest reputation for their constitutional law programs:

  • Georgetown University Law Center
  • Harvard Law School
  • Yale Law School
  • Columbia Law School
  • University of Chicago Law School

Georgetown University Law Center is the strongest because its location in Washington, DC, gives students direct access to Supreme Court litigation clinics and federal appellate externships that few other programs can match.

Privacy guaranteed. No spam, ever.

Privacy guaranteed. No spam, ever.

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Arush Chandna

Arush Chandna

Co-Founder of Juris Education, Dartmouth College

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