Law School Acceptance Rates 2026: Latest ABA Admissions Data

^{Last Updated: August 2026}

Law school acceptance rates can vary dramatically. At the most selective law schools, fewer than one in ten applicants may receive an offer of admission, while many other ABA-approved law schools admit a much larger share of their applicant pools.

For prospective students, however, an acceptance rate should be viewed as a measure of a law school's overall selectivity—not as your personal probability of admission. Your undergraduate GPA, LSAT or other accepted test results, academic history, application materials, experience, and the strength of that year's applicant pool can all affect your chances.

This guide uses the latest complete, comparable admissions information available from 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosures and is updated for applicants researching law schools in 2026. The American Bar Association identifies its Required Disclosures database as the source for the most current individual law-school reports and national data compilations.

Applicants who are beginning to build their school list should also review the TLS Law School Admissions Strategy guide and the 2026–2027 Law School Application Strategy.

Law School Acceptance Rates at a Glance

The 2025 ABA disclosure cycle shows just how competitive legal education has become at the most selective institutions.

According to an analysis of the 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosures:

The average law school acceptance rate was approximately 36%.
Seven law schools had acceptance rates below 10%.
56 law schools admitted fewer than 25% of applicants.
50 law schools admitted at least half of their applicants.
Yale Law School reported the lowest acceptance rate at approximately 4.06%.

These figures demonstrate why applicants should avoid judging their chances based solely on broad national averages. A school admitting 35% of applicants may still be a significant reach for someone whose academic credentials fall below its entering-class medians, while another school with a lower overall rate could be more realistic for an applicant whose credentials closely match its profile.

Most Selective Law Schools by Acceptance Rate

The following schools were among the most selective in the latest 2025 admissions data. The percentages below measure selectivity only; they are not a ranking of law-school quality, career outcomes, or academic reputation.

Law School	Acceptance Rate
Yale Law School	4.06%
Stanford Law School	6.10%
University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School	8.05%
Boston College Law School	8.48%
University of Michigan Law School	8.57%
Harvard Law School	9.20%
University of Chicago Law School	9.74%
University of Virginia School of Law	10.17%
USC Gould School of Law	11.17%
UNC School of Law	11.19%
Columbia Law School	11.84%
UCLA School of Law	12.05%
Boston University School of Law	12.08%
Texas A&M University School of Law	12.10%
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law	12.30%
University of Georgia School of Law	12.72%
Duke University School of Law	12.88%
Vanderbilt Law School	13.26%
NYU School of Law	13.39%
University of Texas School of Law	13.99%

The difference between today's rates and older admissions data can be substantial. Yale, for example, reported 5,562 completed applications and 226 offers of admission, producing its 4.06% acceptance rate. Its entering class also reported a 174 median LSAT and 3.96 median undergraduate GPA.

Competitive Law Schools With Acceptance Rates Between 15% and 30%

Not every competitive law school has a single-digit acceptance rate. Many well-regarded national and regional law schools admit between approximately 15% and 30% of applicants, making them selective while offering somewhat broader admission opportunities than the most selective schools in the country.

Applicants should still compare their LSAT scores, undergraduate GPA, experience, and overall application profile with each school's most recent entering-class statistics. An acceptance rate in this range does not necessarily make a school a target or likely option for every applicant.

Law School	Acceptance Rate
Georgetown University Law Center	15.75%
Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University	15.87%
UC Davis School of Law	15.97%
Florida State University College of Law	15.97%
Notre Dame Law School	16.07%
Fordham University School of Law	16.22%
University of Florida Levin College of Law	16.52%
Cornell Law School	18.19%
Florida International University College of Law	18.77%
Washington University School of Law	18.96%
University of Wisconsin Law School	19.12%
University of Washington School of Law	19.61%
Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law	19.78%
University of Connecticut School of Law	20.05%
Chapman University Fowler School of Law	20.53%
Baylor University School of Law	20.59%
William & Mary Law School	21.97%
Marquette University Law School	22.11%
Washington and Lee University School of Law	22.73%
BYU J. Reuben Clark Law School	22.80%
University of Houston Law Center	22.99%
St. John's University School of Law	23.05%
Pepperdine Caruso School of Law	23.36%
University of San Diego School of Law	23.51%
Howard University School of Law	24.05%
Northeastern University School of Law	24.22%
Temple University Beasley School of Law	24.38%
SMU Dedman School of Law	24.59%
Ohio State University Moritz College of Law	24.62%
Wake Forest University School of Law	24.63%
University of Miami School of Law	24.65%
University of Tennessee College of Law	24.77%
Wayne State University Law School	24.81%
University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law	25.28%
Texas Tech University School of Law	25.61%
University of Alabama School of Law	25.63%
Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law	25.93%
Michigan State University College of Law	26.02%
Loyola Law School, Los Angeles	26.05%
University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law	26.08%
University of Minnesota Law School	26.70%
George Washington University Law School	27.21%
University of California College of the Law, San Francisco	27.48%
University of Colorado Law School	27.56%
University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law	27.91%
Loyola University Chicago School of Law	28.18%
CUNY School of Law	28.65%
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law	29.56%
Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law	29.64%
University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law	29.90%

These schools illustrate why acceptance rates should be interpreted alongside each institution's median LSAT, median GPA, class size, employment outcomes, tuition, scholarships, and geographic placement. A school admitting 20% to 30% of applicants can still be highly competitive depending on the strength of its applicant pool and the credentials of the students it enrolls.

Law Schools With the Highest Acceptance Rates

Applicants frequently search for the "easiest law schools to get into," but that phrase can be misleading. A school with a relatively high acceptance rate is not necessarily easy for every applicant to enter, and admission standards can still include significant academic and application requirements.

Law School	Acceptance Rate
Thomas Jefferson School of Law	72.50%
University of Idaho College of Law	66.76%
Capital University Law School	65.90%
Creighton University School of Law	64.54%
Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville	63.39%

A higher acceptance rate should therefore be considered only one factor when deciding where to apply. Applicants should also investigate bar passage, employment outcomes, tuition, scholarships, geographic placement, academic programs, and whether the school supports their intended career path.

For a broader framework, see LawCrossing's guide to choosing the right law school.

What Is a Law School Acceptance Rate?

A law school's acceptance rate represents the percentage of completed applicants who receive an offer of admission.

Acceptance Rate = Offers of Admission ÷ Completed Applications × 100

For example, if a law school receives 5,000 completed applications and offers admission to 500 applicants, its acceptance rate would be 10%.

ABA Standard 509 reports distinguish between completed applications, offers of admission, and students who ultimately enroll. Understanding those separate numbers is important because an offer of admission does not necessarily result in enrollment.

Acceptance Rate vs. Yield Rate

Acceptance rate tells you how many applicants a law school admits.

Yield rate tells you how many admitted applicants ultimately choose to enroll.

These figures measure two different aspects of admissions. A highly selective school can have both a low acceptance rate and a high yield because many students who receive offers decide to attend. Another school may admit a larger proportion of applicants but enroll a smaller percentage of those who receive offers.

This distinction matters because acceptance rate measures selectivity, while yield can provide insight into how frequently admitted students choose that particular school over their other options.

What Is the Average Law School Acceptance Rate?

Across the latest 2025 disclosure cycle, the average acceptance rate was approximately 36%.

That figure should not be interpreted as meaning that a typical applicant has a 36% chance of admission to any particular law school.

Applicant pools differ dramatically. Yale, Stanford, Harvard, Chicago, and other highly selective schools attract enormous numbers of academically strong applicants. Regional programs may draw applicants with different geographic, academic, and professional profiles.

The more useful question is:

How competitive are my credentials relative to the students a particular law school actually enrolls?

Does a Low Acceptance Rate Mean a Better Law School?

No. A low acceptance rate means that a law school admitted a relatively small percentage of its applicants. It does not, by itself, tell you whether that school is the best choice for your career.

When comparing schools, consider factors such as:

Employment outcomes;
Bar passage rates;
Total cost of attendance;
Scholarship offers and conditions;
Geographic placement;
Practice-area strengths;
Alumni networks;
Clinical and experiential opportunities;
Faculty and academic programs;
Class size; and
The types of employers that recruit from the school.

A law school can be highly selective but still be a poor fit for an applicant's particular career or financial goals.

LawCrossing's How to Choose the Right Law School for You provides additional considerations for evaluating schools beyond selectivity.

How LSAT Scores and GPA Affect Law School Admission

Acceptance rates tell you about the applicant pool as a whole. LSAT scores and undergraduate GPA provide more personalized context.

Law schools' Standard 509 disclosures typically report the 25th percentile, median, and 75th percentile credentials of their entering classes. Applicants can compare their own numbers with these ranges to get a better sense of how competitive they may be.

As a general framework:

Above both 75th percentiles: Your numerical credentials may be especially competitive, although admission is never guaranteed.
Near the school's medians: The school may be a realistic target depending on the rest of your application.
Between the 25th percentile and median: Admission may still be possible, but other strengths can become more important.
Below both 25th percentiles: The school will generally represent a more ambitious reach based on numbers alone.

Those categories are guidelines rather than guarantees.

Law-school admissions decisions can consider much more than two numbers. Academic rigor, grade trends, work experience, recommendations, essays, accomplishments, leadership, personal background, and other qualities may affect how an application is evaluated.

LawCrossing's discussion of how law schools determine whom to admit provides a useful overview of the broader admissions process.

Applicants interested in numerical forecasting can also review TLS's Guide to Law School Prediction Calculators while remembering that no calculator can predict an individual admissions decision with certainty.

Are Law Schools Still Requiring the LSAT?

Testing policies are evolving, making it particularly important to verify the requirements of every school before applying.

The LSAT remains highly relevant throughout legal education admissions, but some law schools accept other standardized tests, and the ABA has also permitted certain schools to seek variances involving admission without the traditional standardized-test requirement.

LawCrossing has covered the ABA's move allowing law schools to seek greater flexibility beyond the LSAT.

Because policies can change between admissions cycles, applicants should always confirm current requirements directly with each law school.

How to Use Acceptance Rates to Build Your Law School List

Acceptance-rate data becomes most useful when combined with your own credentials and goals.

A balanced application list usually includes schools across several levels of competitiveness.

Reach Schools

These are schools where admission would be ambitious based on your academic profile, the school's entering-class medians, its selectivity, or a combination of those factors.

Reach schools can absolutely be worth applying to. They simply should not make up your entire application strategy.

Target Schools

At target schools, your academic credentials and overall profile are reasonably aligned with recently enrolled students.

A target is not a guarantee. Admissions outcomes can change significantly from one cycle to the next.

Likely Schools

These are schools where your credentials appear particularly competitive relative to recent entering classes.

Even here, avoid treating admission as automatic. Application quality, school-specific priorities, timing, and other factors can still influence the result.

TLS provides a more complete framework in its Law School Admissions Strategy guide, including how to think about likely, target, and reach schools.

Why You Should Not Apply Based on Acceptance Rate Alone

Imagine two schools with acceptance rates of 15% and 30%.

At first glance, the 30% school appears easier to enter. But suppose your LSAT and GPA are above the 75th percentiles at the 15% school and significantly below the 25th percentiles at the 30% school.

The headline acceptance rates would not tell the full story.

This is why applicants should evaluate several pieces of information together:

Acceptance rate
Median LSAT
Median undergraduate GPA
25th and 75th percentile LSAT/GPA ranges
Number of applicants
Entering-class size
Application requirements
Your own academic and professional background

The objective is not simply to identify schools that admit the largest percentage of applicants. It is to identify schools where you have a credible admissions case and where attending would make sense academically, financially, professionally, and geographically.

How Competitive Are T14 Law School Acceptance Rates?

Applicants interested in the traditionally most selective national law schools should expect particularly low acceptance rates.

Many schools commonly associated with the T14 admit only a small fraction of their applicant pools, and several schools outside the traditional T14 can be similarly selective in a given admissions cycle. That is another reason applicants should avoid treating an informal ranking category as an admissions formula.

Instead, compare your credentials with each school's latest Standard 509 profile individually.

Strong applicants should also remember that applying only to nationally prominent schools can create unnecessary risk. A balanced application strategy can preserve more options for scholarships, geographic flexibility, and final enrollment decisions.

How Many ABA-Approved Law Schools Are There?

This figure can differ depending on the exact reporting date.

The ABA's 2025 Standard 509 Data Overview stated that there were 196 Council-approved law schools offering the J.D. degree at that reporting date, including provisionally approved schools.

The ABA's current approved-school list can subsequently change as additional schools receive provisional or full approval. For this reason, the number of institutions on a current 2026 ABA list may not exactly match the number represented in a completed 2025 admissions dataset.

For a page comparing acceptance rates, schools should be compared using data from the same reporting cycle wherever possible rather than mixing admissions figures from different years.

Frequently Asked Questions About Law School Acceptance Rates

Which law school has the lowest acceptance rate?

In the 2025 ABA disclosure data, Yale Law School had an acceptance rate of approximately 4.06%, making it the most selective law school by this measure.

What is the average law school acceptance rate?

The average across the 2025 disclosure cycle was approximately 36%. Individual law-school rates, however, ranged from single digits to well above 50%.

What are the hardest law schools to get into?

Based strictly on acceptance rate, Yale, Stanford, Penn Carey, Boston College, Michigan, Harvard, and Chicago were among the law schools admitting the smallest percentage of applicants in the latest 2025 data.

"Hardest to get into" should not be confused with an overall law-school ranking. Admissions difficulty depends on both school-wide selectivity and an individual applicant's credentials.

What law schools have the highest acceptance rates?

Among schools tracked in the 2025 data, Thomas Jefferson School of Law appeared at the high end, followed by schools including Idaho, Capital, Creighton, and Louisville.

Is a 50% law school acceptance rate good?

There is no universal "good" acceptance rate. A 50% acceptance rate simply means approximately half of completed applicants received admission offers. It does not tell you whether the school is academically strong, affordable, a good employment fit, or likely to admit a particular applicant.

Is a law school with a high acceptance rate a safety school?

Not automatically.

A likely or "safety" school should be identified by comparing your credentials and profile with the school's recent entering class—not simply by looking for the highest acceptance percentage.

Do law school acceptance rates change every year?

Yes. Applicant volume, applicant credentials, class-size targets, admissions strategies, and other factors can cause acceptance rates to rise or fall from one cycle to another.

That is why applicants should rely on the most recent available admissions data rather than historical percentages from several years earlier.

What is the difference between acceptance rate and enrollment rate?

Acceptance rate measures the percentage of applicants offered admission. Enrollment-related measures track the number or percentage who ultimately matriculate. An applicant can be admitted to several law schools but enroll at only one.

Methodology and Data Source

This guide is updated for 2026, while the school-level comparisons rely on the 2025 ABA Standard 509 reporting cycle, the latest complete comparable dataset available for this update.

The ABA publishes Standard 509 required disclosures containing information that includes:

Completed applications;
Offers of admission;
Acceptance rates;
First-year enrollment;
LSAT percentile data;
Undergraduate GPA percentile data; and
Other required consumer information.

Applicants should verify individual school information before making an application or enrollment decision because admissions policies, tuition, testing requirements, deadlines, and other data can change.

More Law School Admissions Resources

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