Kirkland & Ellis LLP vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell 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 | Kirkland & Ellis | Davis Polk & Wardwell |
|---|---|---|
| Higher pay winsTie | $225,000 | $225,000Market base |
| Higher wins | $11.12M (wins this category) | $9.80M |
| Lower rank wins | #6 (wins this category) | #7 |
| Lower rank wins | #1 (wins this category) | #14 |
| Higher wins | $10.56B (wins this category) | $3.20B |
| More lawyers wins | 4,145 (wins this category) | 1,000 |
| OfficesMore offices wins | 27 (wins this category) | 12 |
| Nationwide, Chambers USA 2026More Band 1 tables wins | 26 tables (wins this category) | 17 tables |
| 2L OpensEarlier date winsNot Comparable | Opened Nov 1, 2026Summer 2028 | Open nowSummer 2028 (rolling) |
| 1L OpensEarlier date winsNot Comparable | Opened Nov 1, 2026Summer 2027 (1L stint for 2L offer holders; apply once for the 2L summer) | Expected early OctoberClass of 2030 |
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
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Est. 1909
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
Est. 1849
Est. 1909
Kirkland & Ellis LLP is a 2,000-plus-attorney global firm, Vault #6 / Am Law #1. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Antitrust, Asset Management M&A, and Banking & Finance. Operates from 27 offices worldwide.
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.
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP#6
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP#7
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP#1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP#14
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP65 records
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP29 records
- #6
- #1
- 65 records
- Vault rank
- #7
- Am Law rank
- #14
- Reported Chambers Band 1 records
- 29 records
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$225,000
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$225,000
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$11.12M
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$9.80M
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$10.56B
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$3.20B
Revenue per lawyer
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$2.55M
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP$2.59M
- $225,000
- $11.12M
- $10.56B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $2.55M
- First-Year Comp
- $225,000
- Profits Per Partner
- $9.80M
- Firm revenue
- $3.20B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $2.59M
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot Reported
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot Reported
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP6 years
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot Reported
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP1.2:1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP3.5:1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP~4,150
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP~1,000
Offices
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP27
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP12
- Not Reported
- 6 years
- 1.2:1
- ~4,150
- Offices
- 27
- Billable target
- Not Reported
- Partnership track
- Not Reported
- US associates per partner
- 3.5:1
- Firm size (rounded to 50)
- ~1,000
- Offices
- 12
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot Reported
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP99.4%
Class size
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP957 (year not confirmed)
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP220 (year not confirmed)
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPFree market
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPCentralized staffing
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPYes
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNo
- Not Reported
- Class size
- 957 (year not confirmed)
- Free market
- Yes
- Offer rate
- 99.4%
- Class size
- 220 (year not confirmed)
- How associates get work
- Centralized staffing
- Specific practice area
- No
1L program
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP1L summer program
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNo 1L summer program
1L applications open
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPOpened Nov 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPExpected early October
2L applications open
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPOpened Nov 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPOpen now
2L deadline
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot announced
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPNot announced
- 1L program
- 1L summer program
- 1L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L deadline
- Not announced
- 1L program
- No 1L summer program
- 1L applications open
- Expected early October
- 2L applications open
- Open now
- 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
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 3
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 2
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 2
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 2
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 4
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 3
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 2
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 2
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 3
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. Kirkland & Ellis
- Latham & Watkins vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Kirkland & Ellis
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Milbank
Firm data comes from each firm’s own publications, Chambers USA and Vault; see Kirkland & Ellis and Davis Polk & Wardwell for sources and dates.