Belgium's Top 2% Scientists 2026: Career-Long List

Belgium has 2,294 scientists on the 2026 career-long Top 2% list, up 4.8% from 2,188 in 2025. That places Belgium 17th in the world by number of listed scientists, up 1 place. KU Leuven has the most listed scientists (365), followed by Universiteit Gent (341).

Single Year

2,182

+58 (+2.7%) vs 2025

Career Data

2,294

+106 (+4.8%) vs 2025

World rank by count

#17

up 1 place vs 2025

Institutes

271

+27 (+11.1%) vs 2025

Scientists in Belgium on the list, by year

The career-long count has grown 62% since 2020.

Career-long list, change on the previous year

2021+17.9%

2022+6.2%

2023+5.2%

2024+7.3%

2025+9.6%

2026+4.8%

Show the numbers

Year	Single Year	Change	Career Data	Change
2020	1,503		1,413
2021	1,780	+18.4%	1,666	+17.9%
2022	1,872	+5.2%	1,769	+6.2%
2023	1,935	+3.4%	1,861	+5.2%
2024	2,007	+3.7%	1,997	+7.3%
2025	2,124	+5.8%	2,188	+9.6%
2026	2,182	+2.7%	2,294	+4.8%

Top 10 institutes in Belgium

By number of listed scientists

Career-long list2026

Show the list

1KU Leuven365
2Universiteit Gent341
3UCLouvain158
4Université Libre de Bruxelles140
5Universiteit Antwerpen121
6Université de Liège117
7KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven89
8Vrije Universiteit Brussel89
9European Commission Joint Research Centre55
10Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent41

All 2,294 scientists

Career-long list2026

Showing the 2026 career-long list. Looking for single-year rankings? See the single-year list

The first 100 are free to browse.

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Rank in Belgium	World rank	Scientist	Institute	Sub-field	Rank in sub-field
1	70	CP Carmeliet, Peter F.M.	KU Leuven	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 8
2	90	VJ Vincent, Jean Louis	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Emergency & Critical Care Medicine	Rank 1
3	107	DC De Clercq, Erik D.	KU Leuven	Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry	Rank 1
4	763	RP Rutgeerts, Paul J.	KU Leuven	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 13
5	866	BK Binnemans, Koen	KU Leuven	Organic Chemistry	Rank 25
6	939	Cani, Patrice D.	UCLouvain	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 32
7	1,234	SJ Scheen, J. Jacques	Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Liege	General & Internal Medicine	Rank 26
8	1,328	VD Van Den Berghe, G. H.a.	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 38
9	1,440	RP Rousseeuw, Peter J.	KU Leuven	Statistics & Probability	Rank 14
10	1,545	VC van Cutsem, Éric J.D.G.	KU Leuven	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 60
11	1,548	NS Nolan, Steven Patrick	Universiteit Gent	Organic Chemistry	Rank 43
12	1,747	RJ Reginster, Jean Yves	Université de Liège	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 48
13	1,836	VD van der Bruggen, Bart	KU Leuven	Chemical Engineering	Rank 7
14	2,475	TJ Tack, Jan F.	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 45
15	2,508	CD Collen, Désiré C.	Departement Cardiovasculaire Wetenschappen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 118
16	2,643	BR Bouillon, Roger A.	Departement Chronische Ziekten, Metabolisme en Veroudering	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 89
17	2,866	VP Vandenabeele, Peter	Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 113
18	2,911	HG Hofstede, Geert H.	European Institute for Advanced Studies in Management	Business & Management	Rank 28
19	2,950	NB Nilius, Bernd	KU Leuven	Physiology	Rank 7
20	3,023	SJ Staessen, Jan A.	KU Leuven	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 139
21	3,041	VD van de Werf, Frans J.J.	Departement Cardiovasculaire Wetenschappen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 142
22	3,205	DM Dorigo, Marco	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 92
23	3,295	VW Verbeke, Wim A.J.	Universiteit Gent	Food Science	Rank 10
24	3,643	RY Rosseel, Yves	Universiteit Gent	Social Sciences Methods	Rank 7
25	3,667	PM Piccart-Gebhart, Martine J.	Institut Jules Bordet	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 147
26	3,986	BM Brysbaert, Marc	Universiteit Gent	Experimental Psychology	Rank 73
27	3,998	LB Lambrecht, Bart Norbert	Universiteit Gent	Immunology	Rank 150
28	4,114	RM Roberfroid, Marcel B.	Université Catholique de Louvain	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 168
29	4,197	GX Gonze, Xavier C.	UCLouvain	Applied Physics	Rank 116
30	4,610	SJ Suykens, Johan A.K.	KU Leuven	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 124
31	4,778	VS Vermeire, Sèverine A.R.A.	Departement Chronische Ziekten, Metabolisme en Veroudering	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 86
32	4,835	VD Van de Peer, Y.	Universiteit Gent	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 33
33	4,987	KJ Kruth, Jean Pierre	KU Leuven	Industrial Engineering & Automation	Rank 37
34	5,147	DH de Houwer, Jan	Universiteit Gent	Experimental Psychology	Rank 91
35	5,206	LS Laureys, Steven T.	Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 437
36	5,286	BJ Balzarini, Jan M.	Rega Institute	Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry	Rank 12
37	5,306	VW Verstraete, Willy Henry	Universiteit Gent	Microbiology	Rank 128
38	5,925	VJ Verweij, Jaap	Cancer Drug Development Forum	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 254
39	6,076	BA Bogaerts, Annemie A.M.B.	Universiteit Antwerpen	Applied Physics	Rank 152
40	6,098	TP Tompa, Péter S.	Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 254
41	6,148	GH Goossens, Herman J.	Universiteit Antwerpen	Microbiology	Rank 145
42	6,359	PF Peeters, François Maria	Universiteit Antwerpen	Applied Physics	Rank 163
43	6,448	VR Vanholder, Raymond Camille	European Kidney Health Alliance	Urology & Nephrology	Rank 53
44	6,541	DJ Donnez, Jacques M.D.	UCLouvain	Obstetrics & Reproductive Medicine	Rank 28
45	7,014	DV De Vuyst, Luc	Vrije Universiteit Brussel	Microbiology	Rank 172
46	7,311	KJ Koenderink, Jan J.	KU Leuven	Experimental Psychology	Rank 124
47	7,679	PR Pauwels, Romain A.R.	Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent	Respiratory System	Rank 74
48	7,975	HR Hoogenboom, Richard	Universiteit Gent	Polymers	Rank 58
49	8,008	NY Nesterov, Yu E.	UCLouvain	Operations Research	Rank 18
50	8,170	CG Cornélis, Guy Richard	Université de Namur	Microbiology	Rank 210
51	8,518	MC Mathieu, Chantal	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 238
52	8,526	LN Lameire, Norbert Hendrik	Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent	Urology & Nephrology	Rank 75
53	8,542	Í Inze ́, Dirk G.	Universiteit Gent	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 76
54	8,545	DY Dufréne, Yves Frédéric	UCLouvain	Microbiology	Rank 222
55	8,702	VJ Van-Humbeeck, Jan	KU Leuven	Materials	Rank 103
56	8,742	VY Vandenplas, Yván	Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 146
57	8,771	DB de Backer, Daniel P.	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Emergency & Critical Care Medicine	Rank 32
58	8,772	DV Desmet, Valeer Julien	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 147
59	9,074	SJ Schoenen, Jean E.	Université de Liège	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 731
60	9,155	GW Glänzel, Wolfgang	KU Leuven	Science Studies	Rank 10
61	9,191	DN Delzenne, Nathalie Maria	UCLouvain	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 71
62	9,217	NR Naeije, Robert	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Respiratory System	Rank 90
63	9,287	VI VERGOTE, Ignace B.P.	Leuvens Kankerinstituut	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 406
64	9,741	LP Lancellotti, Patrizio M.D.	Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Liege	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 467
65	9,793	FR Feyereisen, Renè	Universiteit Gent	Entomology	Rank 8
66	9,802	BG Boeckxstaens, Guy E.E.	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 172
67	9,923	MP Maquet, Pierre A.	Université de Liège	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 794
68	10,199	HJ Henquin, Jean Claude	Faculté de Médecine et Médecine Dentaire	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 284
69	10,273	BA Berger, André L.	UCLouvain	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 122
70	10,277	VJ Vermorken, Jan Baptist	Faculteit Geneeskunde en Gezondheidswetenschappen	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 446
71	11,093	LH Lijnen, Henri Roger	Departement Cardiovasculaire Wetenschappen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 514
72	11,195	MS Muyldermans, Serge V.	Vrije Universiteit Brussel	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 479
73	11,333	VP Vandamme, Peter A.	Ghent University, Laboratory of Microbiology	Microbiology	Rank 272
74	11,453	DM Decramer, Marc L.A.	KU Leuven	Respiratory System	Rank 110
75	11,617	RT Roskams, Tania A.D.	KU Leuven Beeldvorming & Pathologie	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 202
76	11,689	FW Fiers, Walter C.	Universiteit Gent	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 499
77	11,749	BM Buyse, Marc E.	Universiteit Hasselt	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 508
78	11,856	MJ Maertens, Johan A.	Departement Microbiologie, Immunologie en Transplantatie	Microbiology	Rank 280
79	12,081	GS Goriely, Stéphane	Brussels Laboratory of the Universe - BLU-ULB	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 161
80	12,085	VS van Steenberghe, Daniël	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Dentistry	Rank 45
81	12,242	FG Froment, Gilbert F.	Universiteit Gent	Chemical Engineering	Rank 46
82	12,413	MA Maas, Andrew I.R.	Universitair Ziekenhuis Antwerpen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 980
83	12,430	DB de Backer, Guy G.	Universiteit Gent	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 574
84	12,477	Coenye, Tom	Universiteit Gent	Microbiology	Rank 298
85	12,737	BH Brüssow, Harald	Departement Biosystemen	Microbiology	Rank 304
86	12,848	TJ Thevelein, Johan M.	NovelYeast	Microbiology	Rank 310
87	12,908	LM Lamkanfi, Mohamed	Universiteit Gent	Immunology	Rank 445
88	12,946	CJ Charlier, Jean Christophe	UCLouvain	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 215
89	12,948	CJ Cornil, Jérǒme	Université de Mons	Chemical Physics	Rank 285
90	13,054	VJ Vansteenkiste, Johan Filip	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 560
91	13,168	VA Vermeulen, Alex	Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 362
92	13,205	GG Govers, Gerard	KU Leuven	Geography	Rank 41
93	13,210	HJ Harvey, Jeremy Noel	KU Leuven	Chemical Physics	Rank 292
94	13,229	DP Dubois, Philippe H.	Université de Mons	Polymers	Rank 100
95	13,402	VS van Steirteghem, André C.	Vrije Universiteit Brussel	Obstetrics & Reproductive Medicine	Rank 78
96	13,556	BC Blanpain, Cédric D.	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Developmental Biology	Rank 573
97	13,633	BJ Body, Jean–Jacques	Université Libre de Bruxelles	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 584
98	13,705	FJ Fryns, Jean Pierré	KU Leuven– University Hospital Leuven	Genetics & Heredity	Rank 48
99	13,740	BP Brugada, Pedro	Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 621
100	13,814	BT Boon, Thierry	de Duve Institute	Immunology	Rank 471
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Countries with a similar count

Career-long list2026

Sweden3,661 scientists

South Korea2,889 scientists

Denmark2,309 scientists

Israel2,293 scientists

Taiwan2,025 scientists

Hong Kong1,619 scientists

Explore other countries

Career-long list2026

Germany12,809 scientists

France7,613 scientists

Netherlands5,001 scientists

Switzerland3,759 scientists

Austria1,566 scientists

Luxembourg74 scientists

All countries on the world map

Frequently asked questions

How many scientists from Belgium are in the 2026 Stanford Top 2% list?

2,182 scientists affiliated with Belgium are on the 2026 single-year list, and 2,294 are on the career-long list.

Which institute in Belgium has the most Top 2% scientists?

On the 2026 career-long list, KU Leuven has the most listed scientists from Belgium, with 365. It is followed by Universiteit Gent with 341.

How has the number of Top 2% scientists in Belgium changed since 2020?

On the career-long list, Belgium went from 1,413 scientists in 2020 to 2,294 in 2026, a change of +62.3%.

What is the difference between the single-year and career-long lists?

The single-year list ranks scientists on the citations their work received in one year. The career-long list ranks them on citations across their whole career. Both lists are published every year, and a scientist can be on one, both or neither.

What is the official source of this data?

The rankings come from the science-wide author databases of standardized citation indicators published by Ioannidis et al. in the Elsevier Data Repository, updated every year. TOPSCINET, an independent platform, organises that data by country, year, institute and field, so you can compare and explore it.