24 Best universities for Mechanical Engineering in South Africa

Updated: March 02, 2025

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in South Africa ranked based on their research performance in Mechanical Engineering. A graph of 667K citations received by 41.1K academic papers made by 24 universities in South Africa was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of Cape Town

South Africa | Cape Town

For Mechanical Engineering

#1 in Africa

#435 in the World

Founded: 1874

2. University of Stellenbosch

South Africa | Stellenbosch

For Mechanical Engineering

#2 in Africa

#446 in the World

Founded: 1918

3. University of Pretoria

South Africa | Pretoria

For Mechanical Engineering

#4 in Africa

#485 in the World

Enrollment: 48,174
Founded: 1908

4. University of the Witwatersrand

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Mechanical Engineering

#5 in Africa

#529 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Founded: 1922

5. University of Johannesburg

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Mechanical Engineering

#6 in Africa

#638 in the World

Enrollment: 49,910
Founded: 2005

6. University of KwaZulu-Natal

South Africa | Durban

For Mechanical Engineering

#8 in Africa

#719 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Founded: 2004

7. North-West University

South Africa | Potchefstroom

For Mechanical Engineering

#14 in Africa

#931 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 83%
Founded: 2004

8. Tshwane University of Technology

South Africa | Pretoria

For Mechanical Engineering

#22 in Africa

#1204 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Founded: 2003

9. University of South Africa

South Africa | Pretoria

For Mechanical Engineering

#23 in Africa

#1228 in the World

Enrollment: 420,000
Founded: 1873

10. University of the Free State

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Mechanical Engineering

#42 in Africa

#1680 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Enrollment: 37,000
Founded: 1904

11. Nelson Mandela University

South Africa | Port Elizabeth

For Mechanical Engineering

#47 in Africa

#1750 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 57%
Founded: 2005

12. University of the Western Cape

South Africa | Bellville

For Mechanical Engineering

#49 in Africa

#1799 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 24,754
Founded: 1959

13. Rhodes University

South Africa | Makhanda

For Mechanical Engineering

#50 in Africa

#1802 in the World

Enrollment: 8,200
Founded: 1904

14. Cape Peninsula University of Technology

South Africa | Cape Town

For Mechanical Engineering

#73 in Africa

#2097 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Enrollment: 35,047
Founded: 2005

15. Durban University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Mechanical Engineering

#79 in Africa

#2306 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Founded: 2002

16. Central University of Technology

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Mechanical Engineering

#93 in Africa

#2540 in the World

Founded: 1981

17. Vaal University of Technology

South Africa | Vanderbijlpark

For Mechanical Engineering

#100 in Africa

#2658 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Founded: 1966

18. University of Fort Hare

South Africa | Alice

For Mechanical Engineering

#112 in Africa

#2879 in the World

Enrollment: 11,074
Founded: 1916

19. University of Limpopo

South Africa | Mankweng

For Mechanical Engineering

#122 in Africa

#3077 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1959

20. University of Venda

South Africa | Thohoyandou

For Mechanical Engineering

#139 in Africa

#3400 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Founded: 1982

21. University of Zululand

South Africa | Kwadlangezwa

For Mechanical Engineering

#152 in Africa

#3674 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1960

22. Walter Sisulu University

South Africa | Mthatha

For Mechanical Engineering

#182 in Africa

#4287 in the World

Founded: 2005

23. Mangosuthu University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Mechanical Engineering

#193 in Africa

#4415 in the World

Founded: 1979

24. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University

South Africa | Pretoria

For Mechanical Engineering

#226 in Africa

#4777 in the World

Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 2014

The best cities to study Mechanical Engineering in South Africa based on the number of universities and their ranks are Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Pretoria, and Johannesburg.