Sullivan & Cromwell 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 | Sullivan & Cromwell | Sidley Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Higher pay wins | $235,000+ (wins this category) | $225,000+Market base |
| Higher wins | $7.57M (wins this category) | $5.97M |
| Lower rank wins | #5 (wins this category) | #11 |
| Lower rank wins | #25 | #6 (wins this category) |
| Higher wins | $2.28B | $3.74B (wins this category) |
| More lawyers wins | 1,000 | 2,300 (wins this category) |
| OfficesMore offices wins | 11 | 20 (wins this category) |
| Nationwide, Chambers USA 2026More Band 1 tables wins | 12 tables | 15 tables (wins this category) |
| 2L OpensSummer 2028Earlier date winsTie | Opened Nov 1, 2026 | Opened Nov 1, 2026 |
| 1L OpensEarlier date wins | No 1L Program | 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
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Est. 1879
- Sidley Austin LLP
Est. 1866 · Chicago
Est. 1879
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP is a 1,000-plus-attorney firm, Vault #5 / Am Law #25. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Corporate Crime & Investigations, Corporate/M&A, and Corporate/M&A: Takeover Defense. Operates from 11 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.
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP#5
- Sidley Austin LLP#11
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP#25
- Sidley Austin LLP#6
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP21 records
- Sidley Austin LLP29 records
- #5
- #25
- 21 records
- Vault rank
- #11
- Am Law rank
- #6
- Reported Chambers Band 1 records
- 29 records
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP$235,000+
- Sidley Austin LLP$225,000+
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP$7.57M
- Sidley Austin LLP$5.97M
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP$2.28B
- Sidley Austin LLP$3.74B
Revenue per lawyer
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP$2.51M
- Sidley Austin LLP$1.83M
- $235,000+
- $7.57M
- $2.28B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $2.51M
- First-Year Comp
- $225,000+
- Profits Per Partner
- $5.97M
- Firm revenue
- $3.74B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $1.83M
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLP2,000
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP2.4:1
- Sidley Austin LLP1.9:1
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP~1,000
- Sidley Austin LLP~2,300
Offices
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP11
- Sidley Austin LLP20
- Not Reported
- Not Reported
- 2.4:1
- ~1,000
- Offices
- 11
- Billable target
- 2,000
- Partnership track
- Not Reported
- US associates per partner
- 1.9:1
- Firm size (rounded to 50)
- ~2,300
- Offices
- 20
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP100%
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
Class size
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLP216 (2026)
- Sidley Austin LLP198 (year not confirmed)
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPCentralized staffing
- Sidley Austin LLPFree market
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPNo
- Sidley Austin LLPCase by Case
- 100%
- Class size
- 216 (2026)
- 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
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPNo 1L summer program
- Sidley Austin LLP1L events
1L applications open
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
2L applications open
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPOpened Nov 1
- Sidley Austin LLPOpened Nov 1
2L deadline
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPMar 5, 2027
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
- 1L program
- No 1L summer program
- 1L applications open
- Not Reported
- 2L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L deadline
- Mar 5, 2027
- 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
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2 · Elite
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4 · Elite
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 1 · Highly Regarded
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 4
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 1
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 3
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 1
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4 · Elite
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3 · Elite
- Sullivan & Cromwell LLPBand 2
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 1
- Sullivan & Cromwell 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”.
More head-to-head comparisons
- Cravath, Swaine & Moore vs. Sullivan & Cromwell
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- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom vs. Sullivan & Cromwell
- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom vs. Sidley Austin
- Latham & Watkins vs. Sullivan & Cromwell
- Latham & Watkins vs. Sidley Austin
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Kirkland & Ellis
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Milbank
Firm data comes from each firm’s own publications, Chambers USA and Vault; see Sullivan & Cromwell and Sidley Austin for sources and dates.