France's Top 2% Scientists 2023: Career-Long List

France has 6,522 scientists on the 2023 career-long Top 2% list, up 3.8% from 6,284 in 2022. That places France 8th in the world by number of listed scientists. Sorbonne Université has the most listed scientists (289), followed by Université Paris-Saclay (235).

Single Year

5,588

+79 (+1.4%) vs 2022

Career Data

6,522

+238 (+3.8%) vs 2022

World rank by count

No change vs 2022

Institutes

1,361

+286 (+26.6%) vs 2022

Scientists in France on the list, by year

The career-long count has grown 29% 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 list2023

Show the list

1Sorbonne Université289
2Université Paris-Saclay235
3CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique177
4Université Paris Cité177
5Université Grenoble Alpes175
6Université de Montpellier131
7Université de Lorraine89
8Université de Bordeaux87
9Hôpital Universitaire Pitié Salpêtrière76
10Université de Strasbourg74

All 6,522 scientists

Career-long list2023

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	36	KG Kroemer, Guido	Centre de Recherche des Cordeliers	Immunology	Rank 3
2	117	LJ Lehn, Jean Marie	Institut de Science et d’Ingénierie Supramoléculaires	Organic Chemistry	Rank 1
3	152	DG de Gennes, Pierre Gilles	Collège de France	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 3
4	158	KM Karplus, Martin	Université de Strasbourg	Chemical Physics	Rank 5
5	187	TJ Tarascon, J. M.	Chimie du Solide et Energie Lab	Energy	Rank 3
6	196	PM Pape Møller, Anders	Laboratoire Écologie, Systématique et Évolution	Ecology	Rank 2
7	283	DS Dehaene, Stanislas	Neuroimagerie Cognitive	Experimental Psychology	Rank 6
8	313	CP Chambon, Pierre	Collège de France	Developmental Biology	Rank 22
9	321	RD Raoult, Didier	MEPHI - Microbes, Evolution, Phylogénie et Infections	Microbiology	Rank 4
10	442	FG Férey, Gérard	Institut Universitaire de France	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 4
11	560	DP Delmas, P.	Inserm	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 27
12	583	MS Mallat, Stéphane	Collège de France	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 16
13	881	AD Astruc, Didier	Institut des Sciences Moléculaires	Organic Chemistry	Rank 24
14	936	DT Damour, Thibault	Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 9
15	975	ET Ebbesen, Thomas W.	Institut de Science et d’Ingénierie Supramoléculaires	Applied Physics	Rank 38
16	992	BY Ben-Ari, Yehezkel	Campus scientifique de Luminy	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 101
17	1,067	SR Spitzer, Robert	Université de Bordeaux	Psychiatry	Rank 34
18	1,092	DA Dufresne, Alain	Université Grenoble Alpes	Polymers	Rank 8
19	1,118	LP Lions, Pierre Louis	Université Paris-Dauphine	General Mathematics	Rank 1
20	1,434	LB Le Bihan, Denis	Université Paris-Saclay	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 143
21	1,454	SB Staels, Bart	Université de Lille	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 81
22	1,482	DM Dougados, Maxime	Hopital Cochin AP-HP	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 10
23	1,492	CJ Changeux, Jean Pierre	Collège de France	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 149
24	1,538	BF Bray, Freddie	Centre international de Recherche sur le Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 67
25	1,586	LM Loreau, Michel	Station d’Ecologie Théorique et Expérimentale	Ecology	Rank 29
26	1,682	TW Thuiller, Wilfried	Université Grenoble Alpes	Ecology	Rank 31
27	1,761	DD Dubois, Didier	Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 47
28	1,848	SJ Savéant, Jean Michel	Université Paris Cité	Energy	Rank 19
29	1,921	FD Forman, David	Centre international de Recherche sur le Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 85
30	1,926	PJ Pawlotsky, Jean Michel	Université Paris-Est Créteil Val de Marne	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 32
31	1,930	PM Pileni, M. P.	Sorbonne Université	Chemical Physics	Rank 63
32	2,001	TJ Tirole, Jean	Institut d‘Économie Industrielle, Toulouse	Economics	Rank 15
33	2,026	RF Rousset, François	Université de Montpellier	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 31
34	2,039	JM Jeannerod, M.	Inserm	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 196
35	2,049	RM Rinaudo, Marguerite	Biomaterials Applications	Polymers	Rank 11
36	2,079	HM Humbert, Marc	Université Paris-Saclay	Respiratory System	Rank 13
37	2,090	FM Fink, Mathias	École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris	Acoustics	Rank 1
38	2,132	ZL Zitvogel, Laurence	Institut de Cancerologie Gustave Roussy	Immunology	Rank 79
39	2,244	SM Safar, Michel	Hôpital Hotel-Dieu AP-HP	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 113
40	2,269	SM Schlumberger, Martin	Institut de Cancerologie Gustave Roussy	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 83
41	2,294	RC Robert, Caroline	Université Paris-Saclay	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 99
42	2,349	CB Coiffier, Bertrand	Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 105
43	2,389	SJ Sauvage, Jean Pierre	Université de Strasbourg	General Chemistry	Rank 29
44	2,431	CG Chabrier, Gilles	École Normale Supérieure de Lyon	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 8
45	2,483	DH Duffau, Hugues	Université de Montpellier	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 234
46	2,488	BP Boyle, Peter	Centre international de Recherche sur le Cancer	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 112
47	2,543	OR Olfati-Saber, Reza	Sanofi S.A.	Industrial Engineering & Automation	Rank 12
48	2,597	ZR Zana, Raoul	Institut Charles Sadron	Chemical Physics	Rank 79
49	2,604	LB Latour, Bruno	SciencesPo Paris	Science Studies	Rank 3
50	2,683	SP Sansonetti, Philippe J.	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 47
51	2,768	CP Couvreur, Patrick	Institut Galien Paris-Saclay	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 14
52	2,824	DG Decher, Gero	Institut Charles Sadron	Chemical Physics	Rank 84
53	2,936	QD Quérét, David	Laboratoire d'Hydrodynamique de l'Ecole Polytechnique	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 21
54	3,096	BJ Bach, Jean Francois	Institut Necker-Enfants Malades (INEM)	Immunology	Rank 123
55	3,104	LG London, Gerard	Manhes Hospital	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 152
56	3,129	AY Agid, Yves	Hôpital Universitaire Pitié Salpêtrière	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 299
57	3,144	ZF Zannad, Faiez	Université de Lorraine	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 159
58	3,147	VG Veneziano, G.	Collège de France	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 40
59	3,187	AC Allègre, Claude J.	Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 28
60	3,263	FA Fert, Albert	Université Paris-Saclay	Applied Physics	Rank 105
61	3,267	CP Cossart, Pascale	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 68
62	3,281	KA Klamt, Andreas	Dassault Systemes	Chemical Physics	Rank 99
63	3,289	CJ Casanova, Jean Laurent	Hôpital Necker Enfants Malades	Immunology	Rank 129
64	3,330	MF Megraud, Francis	Université de Bordeaux	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 60
65	3,379	SA Scalbert, Augustin	Centre international de Recherche sur le Cancer	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 28
66	3,409	HP Hohenberg, P. C.	École Normale Supérieure	Applied Physics	Rank 108
67	3,413	AD Annane, Djillali	Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines	Emergency & Critical Care Medicine	Rank 15
68	3,478	MP Marcellin, P.	Hôpital Beaujon	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 63
69	3,489	FA Fischer, Alain	Collège de France	Immunology	Rank 136
70	3,497	LL Leibler, Ludwik	École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris	Polymers	Rank 20
71	3,523	RJ Rodríguez-Carvajal, Juan	Institut Laue-Langevin	Applied Physics	Rank 109
72	3,586	CP Courvalin, Patrice	Institut Pasteur, Paris	Microbiology	Rank 76
73	3,600	AP Amarenco, Pierre	Université Paris Cité	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 331
74	3,645	BE Baulieu, Etienne Emile	Institut Professeur Baulieu	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 182
75	3,691	EJ Endicott, Jean	Université de Bordeaux	Psychiatry	Rank 114
76	3,708	KO Kahn, Olivier	Institut de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Bordeaux	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 20
77	3,771	DB Dubois, Bruno	Hôpital Universitaire Pitié Salpêtrière	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 344
78	3,828	SJ Silk, Joseph	Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 21
79	3,857	GL Guillevin, Loic	Hopital Cochin AP-HP	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 23
80	3,871	BP Bourdieu, Pierre	École Pratique des Hautes Études	Sociology	Rank 8
81	3,875	SP Simon, Patrice	Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier	Energy	Rank 43
82	3,884	BF Bach, Francis	École Normale Supérieure	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 90
83	3,918	PT Poynard, Thierry	Sorbonne Université	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 67
84	3,945	LJ Lutz, Jean François	Institut de Science et d’Ingénierie Supramoléculaires	Polymers	Rank 24
85	4,047	CP Ciais, Philippe	Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 42
86	4,237	HJ Hoffmann, Jules A.	Université de Strasbourg	Immunology	Rank 171
87	4,312	LD Le Douarin, Nicole M.	Sorbonne Université	Developmental Biology	Rank 231
88	4,327	RJ Roujeau, Jean Claude	Université Paris-Est Créteil Val de Marne	Dermatology & Venereal Diseases	Rank 12
89	4,514	EB Escudier, Bernard	Institut de Cancerologie Gustave Roussy	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 206
90	4,519	GP Garnero, Patrick	Hopital Edouard Herriot	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 144
91	4,526	SP Steg, Philippe Gabriel	Université Paris Cité	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 225
92	4,532	AF Albarède, Francis	École Normale Supérieure de Lyon	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 44
93	4,538	FP Fenaux, Pierre	Hôpital Saint-Louis	Immunology	Rank 183
94	4,577	HJ Herrmann, Jean Marie	Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1	Physical Chemistry	Rank 22
95	4,602	LJ Livage, Jacques	Sorbonne Université	Materials	Rank 52
96	4,612	DB Derrida, Bernard	Collège de France	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 35
97	4,637	BH Bismuth, Henri	Hopital Paul-Brousse	Surgery	Rank 22
98	4,730	BP Bedossa, Pierre	Hôpital Beaujon	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 75
99	4,784	FJ Fruchart, Jean Charles	Institut Pasteur de Lille	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 240
100	4,892	LS Laurent, Stephane	Université Paris Cité	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 248
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Countries with a similar count

Career-long list2023

Canada8,815 scientistsin 2023

Japan8,126 scientistsin 2023

Australia7,002 scientistsin 2023

Italy5,723 scientistsin 2023

Netherlands4,259 scientistsin 2023

Switzerland3,261 scientistsin 2023

Explore other countries

Career-long list2023

Germany10,990 scientistsin 2023

Belgium1,861 scientistsin 2023

Austria1,311 scientistsin 2023

Luxembourg50 scientistsin 2023

United Kingdom18,692 scientistsin 2023

Spain3,230 scientistsin 2023

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Frequently asked questions

How many scientists from France are in the 2023 Stanford Top 2% list?

5,588 scientists affiliated with France are on the 2023 single-year list, and 6,522 are on the career-long list.

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

On the 2023 career-long list, Sorbonne Université has the most listed scientists from France, with 289. It is followed by Université Paris-Saclay with 235.

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 6,522 in 2023, a change of +29.2%.

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.