Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP vs. Sidley Austin LLP
Category by category. Sources: Vault 2027, Am Law 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown.
Who Wins Each Category
Each row stands on its own. There is no overall winner; weigh what matters to you.
| Category | Davis Polk & Wardwell | Sidley Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Higher pay winsTie | $225,000Market base | $225,000+Market base |
| Higher wins | $9.80M (wins this category) | $5.97M |
| Lower rank wins | #7 (wins this category) | #11 |
| Lower rank wins | #14 | #6 (wins this category) |
| Higher wins | $3.20B | $3.74B (wins this category) |
| More lawyers wins | 1,000 | 2,300 (wins this category) |
| OfficesMore offices wins | 12 | 20 (wins this category) |
| Nationwide, Chambers USA 2026More Band 1 tables wins | 17 tables (wins this category) | 15 tables |
| 2L OpensEarlier date winsNot Comparable | Open nowSummer 2028 (rolling) | Opened Nov 1, 2026Summer 2028 |
| 1L OpensEarlier date winsNot Comparable | Expected early OctoberClass of 2030 | Not announcedSummer 2027 |
Sources: Vault 2027 and Am Law 200 FY2025 rankings, Chambers USA 2026, first-year pay as each firm or the market reports it, and program dates from firm career pages on the Job Board. Missing data reads Not Reported and never counts as a loss.
Full Comparison
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Est. 1849
- Sidley Austin LLP
Est. 1866 · Chicago
Est. 1849
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is a 1,000-plus-attorney firm, Vault #7 / Am Law #14. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Antitrust, Banking & Finance, and Bankruptcy/Restructuring. Operates from 12 offices worldwide.
Est. 1866 · Chicago
Sidley Austin LLP is a 2,000-plus-attorney global firm, Vault #11 / Am Law #6, founded in Chicago, IL. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Accountant and Auditor Liability, Banking & Finance, and Capital Markets: Securitization: ABS.
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP#7
- Sidley Austin LLP#11
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP#14
- Sidley Austin LLP#6
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP29 records
- Sidley Austin LLP29 records
- #7
- #14
- 29 records
- Vault rank
- #11
- Am Law rank
- #6
- Reported Chambers Band 1 records
- 29 records
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$225,000
- Sidley Austin LLP$225,000+
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$9.80M
- Sidley Austin LLP$5.97M
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$3.20B
- Sidley Austin LLP$3.74B
Revenue per lawyer
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$2.59M
- Sidley Austin LLP$1.83M
- $225,000
- $9.80M
- $3.20B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $2.59M
- First-Year Comp
- $225,000+
- Profits Per Partner
- $5.97M
- Firm revenue
- $3.74B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $1.83M
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLP2,000
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP3.5:1
- Sidley Austin LLP1.9:1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP~1,000
- Sidley Austin LLP~2,300
Offices
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP12
- Sidley Austin LLP20
- Not Reported
- Not Reported
- 3.5:1
- ~1,000
- Offices
- 12
- Billable target
- 2,000
- Partnership track
- Not Reported
- US associates per partner
- 1.9:1
- Firm size (rounded to 50)
- ~2,300
- Offices
- 20
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP99.4%
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
Class size
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP220 (year not confirmed)
- Sidley Austin LLP198 (year not confirmed)
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPCentralized staffing
- Sidley Austin LLPFree market
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNo
- Sidley Austin LLPCase by Case
- 99.4%
- Class size
- 220 (year not confirmed)
- Centralized staffing
- No
- Offer rate
- Not Reported
- Class size
- 198 (year not confirmed)
- How associates get work
- Free market
- Specific practice area
- Case by Case
1L program
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNo 1L summer program
- Sidley Austin LLP1L events
1L applications open
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPExpected early October
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
2L applications open
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPOpen now
- Sidley Austin LLPOpened Nov 1
2L deadline
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot announced
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
- 1L program
- No 1L summer program
- 1L applications open
- Expected early October
- 2L applications open
- Open now
- 2L deadline
- Not announced
- 1L program
- 1L events
- 1L applications open
- Not announced
- 2L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L deadline
- Not announced
Green marks the stronger for the same practice, market and year. Shared results are listed once. split some top tables.
Shared rankings
Rank differences
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 5
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3 · Elite
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 5 · Elite
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2
Firm-only and additional rankings remain available on each firm profile so missing coverage is not mistaken for a head-to-head loss.
See which of these firms are open on the Job Board
Data sources: Vault 2027, Am Law 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown. Chambers record counts can span years and reporting coverage varies; missing years or markets are not compared. Current Chambers bands were checked against each firm’s Chambers profile on Sep 26, 2026; where Chambers splits a table, every Elite firm ranks above every Highly Regarded firm. Missing values read “Not Reported”.
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- Latham & Watkins vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
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- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Sidley Austin
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Sidley Austin
Firm data comes from each firm’s own publications, Chambers USA and Vault; see Davis Polk & Wardwell and Sidley Austin for sources and dates.