Quad

Head-to-head

UCLA
UT Austin

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    UCLA is 3.0× more selective than UT Austin

    Acceptance rate
  2. 2

    UCLA's grants cover 28% of its full price on average, vs. 16% at UT Austin

    Aid generosity
  3. 3

    UCLA has 11 pts more first-gen students than UT Austin (38% vs. 28%)

    First-generation students
  4. 4

    UCLA graduates 8 pts more of its students than UT Austin (93% vs. 85%)

    Graduation rate
  5. 5

    UCLA grads earn $7.4K more ten years out than UT Austin's ($82,511 vs. $75,121)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  6. 6

    UT Austin costs about $3K less per year on average than UCLA ($29,224 vs. $32,201, all students)

    Average cost, all students

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Hollow dots at the center mean that measure isn't reported.

Who's hardest to get into

UCLA admits 9.0%, UT Austin 27%; UCLA's yield is higher, at 48%.

Acceptance rate
UCLA9.0%
UT Austin27%
Quad's selectivity
  • UCLAUltra selective
  • UT AustinHighly selective
SAT middle 50%Axis 1100–1600
UCLATest-blind
UT Austin
1250–1510
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • UCLAGPA, school record, and prep program required
  • UT AustinSchool record and prep program required

Who's on each campus

UT Austin is a bit larger than UCLA (42,855 vs. 33,475 undergrads); UCLA has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
UCLA33.5K
UT Austin42.9K
Pell Grant share
UCLA28%
UT Austin26%

Majors and faculty

Econometrics and Quantitative Economics leads at UCLA, and Biology/Biological Sciences at UT Austin; UT Austin has 18 students per faculty member to UCLA's 20.

Students per faculty member
UCLA20 to 1
UT Austin18 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • UCLAEconometrics and Quantitative Economics8%
  • UT AustinBiology/Biological Sciences, General7%

What each costs

UT Austin costs about $3K less a year than UCLA on average; UCLA's grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
UCLA$32.2K
UT Austin$29.2K
Aid generosity
UCLA28%
UT Austin16%

What each pays off

UCLA's former students earn more, a median $82.5K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 80% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
UCLA$82.5K
UT Austin$75.1K
Graduation rate
UCLA93%
UT Austin85%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • UCLAGrowing+69%
  • UT AustinGrowing+88%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Sources:University of California-Los Angeles (Fall 2026), Fall 2026;IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Student Financial Aid survey, 2023–24;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard, 2023–24;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018;The University of Texas at Austin (Fall 2025), Fall 2025About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why