| # | University | City | World rank | In-country | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Addis Ababa University | not ranked | #1 | 1,331,927 | |
| 2 | Madawalabu University | not ranked | #12 | 123,298 | |
| 3 | Gondar University | not ranked | #3 | 750,628 | |
| 4 | Mekelle University | not ranked | #4 | 745,833 | |
| 5 | Jimma University | not ranked | #2 | 744,578 | |
| 6 | Bahir Dar University | not ranked | #5 | 498,499 | |
| 7 | Haramaya University | not ranked | #6 | 358,399 | |
| 8 | Hawassa University | not ranked | #7 | 243,993 | |
| 9 | Debre Markos University | not ranked | #8 | 204,911 | |
| 10 | Arba Minch University | not ranked | #9 | 167,479 | |
| 11 | Wollo University | not ranked | #10 | 143,423 | |
| 12 | Mizan Tepi University | not ranked | #11 | 127,958 | |
| 13 | Debre Birhan University | not ranked | #13 | 121,832 | |
| 14 | Wolaita Sodo University | not ranked | #14 | 115,943 | |
| 15 | Adama Science and Technology University | not ranked | #15 | 112,156 | |
| 16 | Addis Ababa Science & Technology University | not ranked | #16 | 109,349 | |
| 17 | Wollega University | not ranked | #17 | 98,784 | |
| 18 | Aksum University | not ranked | #19 | 80,400 | |
| 19 | Ambo University | not ranked | #18 | 79,434 | |
| 20 | Dilla University | not ranked | #20 | 77,764 | |
| 21 | Adigrat University | not ranked | #21 | 62,562 | |
| 22 | Wolkite University | not ranked | #23 | 59,622 | |
| 23 | Jigjiga University | not ranked | #22 | 59,234 | |
| 24 | Semera University | not ranked | #24 | 37,100 | |
| 25 | Dire Dawa University | not ranked | #26 | 26,160 | |
| 26 | Ethiopian Civil Service University | not ranked | #25 | 23,769 | |
| 27 | Bule Hora University | not ranked | #27 | 21,840 | |
| 28 | Assosa University | not ranked | #28 | 20,583 |
What the two columns mean
In-country is the position the ranking record gives the university among those in its own country, and it is often the more useful number: a university ranked 480th in the world may still be third at home. It is carried over as published, so it does not always follow the order of the other two columns. World rank is the university's QS World University Rankings position. Citations are the number of times work published by the university has been cited, as recorded in OpenAlex; it is the measure used to order universities that QS does not rank at all.
The two do not always agree. A large research university can out-cite a smaller one that sits above it in QS, because QS weighs reputation surveys and staff ratios as well as research.