France's Top 2% Scientists 2021: Career-Long List

France has 5,912 scientists on the 2021 career-long Top 2% list, up 17.1% from 5,048 in 2020. That places France 8th in the world by number of listed scientists. Sorbonne Universite has the most listed scientists (382), followed by Universite Paris-Saclay (347).

Single Year

5,274

+772 (+17.1%) vs 2020

Career Data

5,912

+864 (+17.1%) vs 2020

World rank by count

No change vs 2020

Institutes

1,078

+37 (+3.6%) vs 2020

Scientists in France on the list, by year

The career-long count has grown 17% since 2020.

Career-long list, change on the previous year

2021+17.1%

2022+6.3%

2023+3.8%

2024+6.1%

2025+5.2%

Show the numbers

Year	Single Year	Change	Career Data	Change
2020	4,502		5,048
2021	5,274	+17.1%	5,912	+17.1%
2022	5,509	+4.5%	6,284	+6.3%
2023	5,588	+1.4%	6,522	+3.8%
2024	5,781	+3.5%	6,921	+6.1%
2025	5,886	+1.8%	7,284	+5.2%

Top 10 institutes in France

By number of listed scientists

Career-long list2021

Show the list

1Sorbonne Universite382
2Universite Paris-Saclay347
3Université de Paris210
4Universite Grenoble Alpes194
5CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique167
6Université de Montpellier155
7Université de Bordeaux149
8Université de Strasbourg128
9Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1107
10Université de Lorraine92

All 5,912 scientists

Career-long list2021

The first 100 are free to browse.

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Rank in France	World rank	Scientist	Institute	Sub-field	Rank in sub-field
1	40	KG Kroemer, Guido	Université de Paris	Immunology	Rank 3
2	103	LJ Lehn, Jean Marie	Université de Strasbourg	General Chemistry	Rank 4
3	133	DG de Gennes, Pierre Gilles	Institut Curie	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 3
4	185	MA Møller, A. P.	Laboratoire Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 2
5	204	TJ Tarascon, Jean Marie	Collège de France	Energy	Rank 2
6	270	CP Chambon, Pierre	Université de Strasbourg	Developmental Biology	Rank 22
7	290	DS Dehaene, Stanislas	Collège de France	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 33
8	383	RD Raoult, Didier	Aix Marseille Université	Microbiology	Rank 5
9	407	FG Férey, Gérard	Institut Universitaire de France	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 4
10	500	DP Delmas, P.	Inserm	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 24
11	619	MS Mallat, Stéphane	Collège de France	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 13
12	871	BY Ben-Ari, Yehezkel	Ben-Ari Institute of Neuroarcheology	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 87
13	906	ET Ebbesen, Thomas	Université de Strasbourg	Applied Physics	Rank 34
14	909	AD Astruc, Didier	Université de Bordeaux	Organic Chemistry	Rank 30
15	931	BJ Bousquet, Jean	MACVIA-France	Allergy	Rank 3
16	963	DT Damour, T.	Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 10
17	1,049	MM Millan, Mark J.	Servier	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 9
18	1,059	GD Gubler, Duane J.	Partnership for Dengue Control	Tropical Medicine	Rank 2
19	1,100	SR Spitzer, Robert	Université de Bordeaux	Psychiatry	Rank 33
20	1,110	LP Lions, Pierre Louis	Collège de France	General Mathematics	Rank 1
21	1,373	DA Dufresne, Alain	Universite Grenoble Alpes	Polymers	Rank 8
22	1,380	SB Staels, Bart	Université de Lille	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 77
23	1,423	CJ Changeux, Jean Pierre	Collège de France	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 147
24	1,580	DM Dougados, Maxime	Université de Paris	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 10
25	1,643	PM Pileni, Marie Paule	Sorbonne Universite	Chemical Physics	Rank 57
26	1,716	LM Loreau, Michel	CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique	Ecology	Rank 29
27	1,744	SJ Savéant, Jean Michel	Université de Paris	Energy	Rank 15
28	1,755	DD Dubois, D.	Universite Paul Sabatier Toulouse III	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 41
29	1,793	JM Jeannerod, Marc	Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 184
30	1,841	LB Le Bihan, D.	Universite Paris-Saclay	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 189
31	1,871	RF Rousset, François	Université de Montpellier	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 29
32	1,912	TW Thuiller, Wilfried	Universite Grenoble Alpes	Ecology	Rank 32
33	1,916	FD Forman, David	International Agency for Research on Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 83
34	1,969	PJ Pawlotsky, Jean Michel	Hôpital Henri Mondor	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 30
35	2,127	RM Rinaudo, Marguerite	Biomaterials Applications	Polymers	Rank 10
36	2,167	CB Coiffier, Bertrand	Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 94
37	2,186	FM Fink, Mathias	Ecole Superieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris	Acoustics	Rank 1
38	2,219	SM Safar, Michel E.	Hôpital Hotel-Dieu AP-HP	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 115
39	2,232	ZR Zana, Raoul	Institut Charles Sadron	Chemical Physics	Rank 73
40	2,250	SJ Sauvage, Jean Pierre	Université de Strasbourg	General Chemistry	Rank 33
41	2,255	SM Schlumberger, Martin	Universite Paris-Saclay	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 82
42	2,307	BP Boyle, Peter	International Agency for Research on Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 106
43	2,345	HM Humbert, Marc	Universite Paris-Saclay	Respiratory System	Rank 19
44	2,415	DG Decher, Gero	Université de Strasbourg	Chemical Physics	Rank 81
45	2,442	ZL Zitvogel, Laurence	Universite Paris-Saclay	Immunology	Rank 97
46	2,469	CG Chabrier, Gilles	École Normale Supérieure de Lyon	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 8
47	2,547	SP Sansonetti, Philippe J.	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 46
48	2,632	BF Bray, Freddie	International Agency for Research on Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 123
49	2,728	MH Markus, Hugh S.	Université de Bordeaux	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 255
50	2,825	CP Couvreur, Patrick	Institut Galien Paris-Sud	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 19
51	2,849	BJ Bach, Jean François	Université de Paris	Immunology	Rank 113
52	2,881	AC Allègre, Claude J.	Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 26
53	2,882	QD Quéré, David	École polytechnique	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 21
54	2,916	FA Fischer, Alain	Hôpital Necker Enfants Malades	Immunology	Rank 118
55	2,948	LG London, Gerard	Hospital and FCRIN INI-CRCTC	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 144
56	2,960	GÉ Gluckman, Éliane	Université de Paris	Immunology	Rank 120
57	3,023	KO Kahn, Olivier	Institut de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Bordeaux	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 21
58	3,073	CP Cossart, Pascale	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 60
59	3,095	MP Marcellin, Patrick	Hôpital Beaujon	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 55
60	3,162	BE Baulieu, Etienne Emile	Universite Paris-Saclay	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 167
61	3,173	EJ Endicott, Jean	Université de Bordeaux	Psychiatry	Rank 97
62	3,179	LB Latour, Bruno	Sciences Po	Science Studies	Rank 3
63	3,238	DH Duffau, Hugues	Université de Montpellier	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 308
64	3,279	MF Mégraud, Francis	Université de Bordeaux	Microbiology	Rank 65
65	3,313	CP Courvalin, Patrice	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 68
66	3,357	LL Leibler, Ludwik	Ecole Superieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris	Polymers	Rank 20
67	3,379	SA Scalbert, Augustin	International Agency for Research on Cancer	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 26
68	3,394	PT Poynard, Thierry	Sorbonne Universite	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 59
69	3,460	FA Fert, Albert	Universite Paris-Saclay	Applied Physics	Rank 98
70	3,627	RJ Rodriguez-Carvajal, Juan	Institut Laue-Langevin	Applied Physics	Rank 105
71	3,692	LJ Lutz, Jean François	Université de Strasbourg	Polymers	Rank 22
72	3,747	AP Amarenco, P.	Hôpital Bichat-Claude-Bernard AP-HP	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 347
73	3,806	HJ Hoffmann, Jules A.	Université de Strasbourg	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 206
74	3,844	LD Le Douarin, Nicole M.	Sorbonne Universite	Developmental Biology	Rank 227
75	3,919	ZF Zannad, Faiez	Université de Lorraine	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 196
76	3,954	RJ Roujeau, Jean Claude	Université Paris-Est Créteil	Dermatology & Venereal Diseases	Rank 12
77	3,962	BH Bismuth, Henri	Hopital Paul-Brousse	Surgery	Rank 18
78	3,982	GL Guillevin, Loïc	Hopital Cochin AP-HP	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 23
79	4,014	DB Dubois, Bruno	Sorbonne Universite	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 366
80	4,064	LJ Livage, Jacques	Collège de France	Materials	Rank 46
81	4,065	HJ Herrmann, Jean Marie	Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1	Physical Chemistry	Rank 19
82	4,210	AF Albarède, Francis	École Normale Supérieure de Lyon	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 39
83	4,233	DB Derrida, Bernard	Collège de France	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 34
84	4,256	GP Garnero, Patrick	Hopital Edouard Herriot	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 131
85	4,325	FP Fenaux, Pierre	Hôpital Saint-Louis	Immunology	Rank 180
86	4,393	BP Bourdieu, Pierre	École Pratique des Hautes Études	Sociology	Rank 7
87	4,416	LJ Latgé, Jean Paul	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 104
88	4,461	AI Antoniadis, Ignatios	Sorbonne Universite	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 65
89	4,541	WH Weimerskirch, Henri	Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé	Ecology	Rank 82
90	4,557	BM Bousser, Marie Germaine	Hôpital Lariboisiere AP-HP	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 419
91	4,629	VG Veneziano, Gabriele	Collège de France	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 70
92	4,703	HG Horowitz, Gilles	Laboratoire de Physique des Interfaces et des Couches Minces	Applied Physics	Rank 126
93	4,739	BA Benabid, Alim Louis	Universite Grenoble Alpes	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 432
94	4,789	CP Ciais, Philippe	Universite Paris-Saclay	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 52
95	4,799	AD Annane, Djillali	Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines	Emergency & Critical Care Medicine	Rank 20
96	4,884	RD Ruelle, David	Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques	Mathematical Physics	Rank 6
97	4,886	BF Bach, Francis	Université PSL	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 94
98	4,888	CJ Cardoso, Jean François	Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 28
99	4,908	EB Escudier, B.	Stabilité génétique et oncogenèse	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 227
100	4,936	CJ Chaboche, J. L.	Département Matériaux et Structures	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 27
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Countries with a similar count

Career-long list2021

Japan7,362 scientistsin 2021

China6,943 scientistsin 2021

Australia6,369 scientistsin 2021

Italy4,956 scientistsin 2021

Netherlands3,857 scientistsin 2021

Switzerland2,974 scientistsin 2021

Explore other countries

Career-long list2021

Germany9,986 scientistsin 2021

Belgium1,666 scientistsin 2021

Austria1,162 scientistsin 2021

Luxembourg42 scientistsin 2021

United Kingdom17,237 scientistsin 2021

Sweden2,889 scientistsin 2021

All countries on the world map

Frequently asked questions

How many scientists from France are in the 2021 Stanford Top 2% list?

5,274 scientists affiliated with France are on the 2021 single-year list, and 5,912 are on the career-long list.

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

On the 2021 career-long list, Sorbonne Universite has the most listed scientists from France, with 382. It is followed by Universite Paris-Saclay with 347.

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

On the career-long list, France went from 5,048 scientists in 2020 to 5,912 in 2021, a change of +17.1%.

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.