What It Is: An annually updated grades-based ranking of a variety of considerations from insider ratings and industry ratings to firm morale and culture.

Why It Matters To You: The ranking is easily sortable by categories so you can weigh the various considerations for yourself. Look at rankings based on the aspects that matter most to you from location, compensation, hours, culture, and more.

Considerations: The methodology is thorough with a minimum threshold of survey responses based on firm size required to be included, but it is important to note that not all firms featured are ranked in all categories. The average response overall is tabulated as a “B.”

Created By: Above The Law

What It Is: This ranking keeps track of the top market players today. These are the firms that set the pace on lawyer pay and compete for the wealthiest clients. These are the market leaders.

Why It Matters to You: An updated methodology for looking at market leaders beyond revenue. Firms are rewarded for maintaining low leverage, or for offering a better chance for incoming associates to eventually ascend to partnership.

Considerations: This ranking most heavily looks at reputation and compensation ratings in determining overall scores. Reputation is measured by both the reputed strength and quality of a firm’s practice and the perceived desirability of the firm as a potential employer.

Created By: Above The Law

What It Is: Most rankings compare law firms nationally or solely within specific regions. This ranking looks at specific offices and ranks them against each other and against other firms to capture the strength and relevance of major law firms in today’s market.

Why It Matters To You: Law firm rankings are important, but not all offices are created equal, even within the same firm. Some offices are standouts in their field, while others may not even be on the map. This additional information provides insights into which firm offices are more desirable and which firms have the strongest presence in specific regions

Considerations: The Office 100 blends objective data points with subjective feedback, most heavily weighing a market-specific reputation survey. The result is a more complete picture of each individual office, encompassing employee satisfaction, compensation, reputation, desirability as an employer, and data-driven measures of firm growth.

Created By: Above The Law

What It Is: This is a ranking that provides a targeted look at the top firms in 9 major markets: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Silicon Valley and Washington, DC.

Why It Matters To You: Most legal careers are dependent on personal and professional connections in a particular community, each with its own courthouse culture and folkways. This might be less true for those practicing in a more “globalized” large law firm context, yet a firm’s practice and culture in one market do not necessarily translate everywhere.

Considerations: Included in this ranking are market-specific questions, inquiring about both the reputation of firms in each survey participant's city as well as each firm's desirability as a potential employer. City-specific firm choices are limited to offices with at least 50 lawyers.

Created By: Above The Law

What It Is: Rankings of largest law firms.

Why It Matters To You: Law firms are listed by size only, but are easily sortable by base office city, changes in the past year, and number of attorneys/partners/associates.

Considerations: ILRG deletes old data when a new ranking comes out, so it's difficult to trace trends over time.

Created By: Internet Legal Research Group

What It Is: An annual ranking of the largest law firms in the country.

Why It Matters To You: This list ranks the largest U.S.-based law firms and vereins with a U.S. component as measured by domestic attorney headcount.

Considerations: This is a size-based ranking and considers only headcount.

Created By: Law360

What It Is: List of midsized law firms recognized for excellence.

Why It Matters To You: Unlike other listings, the Midsize Hot List puts the spotlight on outstanding law firms with 50+ lawyers.

Considerations: The methodology isn’t objective and only about 20 firms receive the honor each year.

Created By: The American Lawyer

What It Is: Top 100 performers from annual survey of law firms nationwide, with focus on key financial metrics: gross revenue, revenue per lawyer, and profits per partner. Separate rankings are available for each metric, as well as an overall performer ranking.

Why It Matters To You: In addition to showing individual firms’ rise and fall, the Am Law 100 reveals many trends in law firm performance that have direct and indirect impact on legal hiring, compensation, and opportunities for advancement.

Considerations: Law firms are very aware of this ranking, and do what they can to influence their data. Some industry insiders have questioned whether such focus on these four financial metrics (which have changed the business of law) is healthy for law firms or for the legal industry.

Created By: American Lawyer

What It Is: The second tier of top performers from annual survey of law firms nationwide, with focus on key financial metrics: gross revenue, revenue per lawyer, and profits per partner. Separate rankings are available for each metric, as well as an overall performance ranking.

Why It Matters To You: While the Am Law 100 focuses on nationwide firms, the Am Law 200 gives numbers on many regional powerhouses. These are often up-and-coming law firms that may reach the Am Law 100, become merger or acquisition targets, or remain regional players. In addition to showing individual firms’ rise and fall, the Am Law 200 reveals many trends in law firm performance that have direct and indirect impact on legal hiring, compensation, and opportunities for advancement.

Considerations: Again, law firms are very aware of this ranking, and do what they can to influence their data. Some industry insiders have questioned whether such focus on these four financial metrics (which have changed the business of law) is healthy for law firms or for the legal industry.

Created By: The American Lawyer

What It Is: Worldwide annual survey of law firms, with focus on key financial metrics: gross revenue, revenue per lawyer, and profits per partner. Separate rankings are available for each metric, as well as an overall performance ranking.

Why It Matters To You: Like many other businesses, law firms are becoming more global. The Global 100 reveals many trends in law firm performance that have direct and indirect impact on legal hiring, compensation, and opportunities for advancement.

Considerations: Again, law firms are very aware of this ranking, and do what they can to influence their data. Some industry insiders have questioned whether such focus on these four financial metrics (which have changed the business of law) is healthy for law firms or for the legal industry.

Created By: The American Lawyer

What It Is: Annual survey of the nation’s largest law firms.

Why It Matters To You: In addition to showing individual firms’ rise and fall, the ranking reveals many trends in law firm performance that have direct and indirect impact on legal hiring, compensation, and opportunities for advancement.

Considerations: This survey only considers size, measured by average number of full-time equivalent attorneys.

Created By: The American Lawyer

What It Is: Yearly ranking of firms by regions, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Mountain States, New York, Pacific Northwest, Southern California, Texas, and Washington, D.C.

Why It Matters To You: Associates rate the reputations of peer firms in their own region. These rankings reveal the most prestigious law firms by region across the U.S.

Considerations: Each regional ranking is based on associates who actually work in that region. There is a significant backlog of years in order to easily trace the rise and fall of various regional law firms and includes more specific regions than a lot of the other rankings that either focus solely on metropolises or combine large swaths of the country into neat categories.

Created by: Vault

What It Is: This is a ranking of the leading midsize firms based on what associates say their work life is really like.

Why It Matters To You: Easily sortable by a variety of factors ranging from an overall ranking to rankings based on compensation, diversity, firm culture, hours, quality of work, and satisfaction.

Considerations: Associates are asked to rank their own firm on a 1-to-10 scale for each of several quality of life categories. Since these rankings are based on perceptions of attorneys who work at each for each firm, it is important to note that some of them may be biased in favor (or against) their firms.

Created by: Vault

What It Is: List of leading midsize law firms with fewer than 150 attorneys.

Why It Matters To You: Check this out if you like the idea of being a big fish in a small pond, work-life balance, and a better chance at making partner.

Considerations: Easily sorted by practice areas and locations, although the firms are not ranked. Prioritizes leading law firms with fewer attorneys.

Created By: Vault