Germany's Top 2% Scientists 2025

Germany has 10,666 scientists on the 2025 single-year Top 2% list, up 2.3% from 10,422 in 2024. That places Germany 4th in the world by number of listed scientists. Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists (293), followed by Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (191).

Single Year

10,666

+244 (+2.3%) vs 2024

Career Data

12,166

+593 (+5.1%) vs 2024

World rank by count

No change vs 2024

Institutes

1,387

+315 (+29.4%) vs 2024

Scientists in Germany on the list, by year

The single-year count has grown 30% since 2020.

Single-year list, change on the previous year

2021+15.4%

2022+5.6%

2023+1.3%

2024+3.3%

2025+2.3%

Show the numbers

Year	Single Year	Change	Career Data	Change
2020	8,177		8,792
2021	9,436	+15.4%	9,986	+13.6%
2022	9,961	+5.6%	10,562	+5.8%
2023	10,088	+1.3%	10,990	+4.1%
2024	10,422	+3.3%	11,573	+5.3%
2025	10,666	+2.3%	12,166	+5.1%

Top 10 institutes in Germany

By number of listed scientists

Single-year list2025

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All 10,666 scientists

Single-year list2025

The first 100 are free to browse.

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Rank in Germany	World rank	Scientist	Institute	Sub-field	Rank in sub-field
1	5	GS Grimme, Stefan	Universität Bonn	Chemical Physics	Rank 1
2	29	NF Neese, Frank	FAccTs GmbH	Chemical Physics	Rank 2
3	62	SG Sheldrick, George M.	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 1
4	67	ID Ivanov, Dmitry	Hochschule für Wirtschaft und Recht Berlin	Operations Research	Rank 1
5	75	RM Rillig, Matthias C.	Berlin-Brandenburgisches Institut für Biodiversitätsforschung	Ecology	Rank 2
6	107	KY Kuzyakov, Yakov	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 2
7	113	RD Raabe, Dierk	Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH	Materials	Rank 3
8	164	SM Sarstedt, Marko	Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg	Marketing	Rank 3
9	165	SH Sies, Helmut	Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 3
10	172	LJ Lehmann, Johannes	Institute for Advanced Study of Technical University of Munich	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 4
11	188	BP Blöchl, Peter E.	Technische Universität Clausthal	Applied Physics	Rank 6
12	206	SV Springel, Volker	Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 1
13	212	SA Stamatakis, Alexandros P.	Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas	Bioinformatics	Rank 4
14	299	WF Weigend, Florian	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Chemical Physics	Rank 7
15	301	van der Aalst, Wil M.P.	Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 21
16	413	BM Blüher, Matthias	Universitätsklinikum Leipzig und Medizinische Fakultät	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 7
17	414	NM Neurath, Markus Friedrich	Universitätsklinikum Erlangen	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 8
18	465	SB Schölkopf, Bernhard	ELLIS Institute Tübingen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 30
19	467	WM Winkler, Michael	Paderborn University	General Mathematics	Rank 1
20	470	MM Mann, Matthias	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Developmental Biology	Rank 17
21	483	PM Pinquart, Martin	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Developmental & Child Psychology	Rank 6
22	536	LR Ley, Ruth E.	Max Planck Campus Tübingen	Microbiology	Rank 4
23	543	BH Brenner, Hermann	German Cancer Research Center	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 12
24	599	SA Stukowski, Alexander	OVITO GmbH	Materials	Rank 11
25	606	HS Hofmann, Stefan G.	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Clinical Psychology	Rank 4
26	632	TF Tacke, Frank	Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 12
27	649	BJ Behler, Jörg	Ruhr-Universitat Bochum	Chemical Physics	Rank 12
28	690	SS Sonnentag, Sabine	Universität Mannheim	Business & Management	Rank 24
29	699	NM Netea, Mihai Gheorghe	Universität Bonn	Immunology	Rank 18
30	728	BP Bork, Peer	Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine	Developmental Biology	Rank 22
31	779	RJ Rockström, Johan	Universität Potsdam	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 7
32	785	IM Ismael, Mohamed H.	Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover	Chemical Physics	Rank 15
33	839	BP Bürkner, Paul Christian	Technische Universität Dortmund	Statistics & Probability	Rank 16
34	871	SR Schlögl, Robert F.	Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society	Physical Chemistry	Rank 3
35	877	DS Dhillon, Sohita	Springer Nature	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 5
36	899	AL Ackermann, Lutz	Deutsches Zentrum für Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung e. V.	Organic Chemistry	Rank 5
37	903	MP Murray, Peter J.	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Immunology	Rank 27
38	927	PM Pfaffl, Michael W.	Technische Universität München	Dairy & Animal Science	Rank 1
39	949	KS Keam, Susan J.	Springer Nature	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 6
40	979	WM Winter, Martin	University of Münster	Energy	Rank 30
41	1,030	SG Schett, Georg Andreas	Universitätsklinikum Erlangen	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 5
42	1,042	ĐI Đikić, Ivan	Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main	Developmental Biology	Rank 34
43	1,053	GG Gigerenzer, Gerd	Universität Potsdam	Experimental Psychology	Rank 23
44	1,070	Ringle, Christian M.	Hamburg University of Technology	Marketing	Rank 11
45	1,083	WF Würthner, Frank	Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 10
46	1,189	BA Boccaccini, Aldo R.	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Materials	Rank 22
47	1,193	PH Pörtner, Hans-O. Otto	Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung	Physiology	Rank 1
48	1,212	CP Crutzen, Paul Jozef	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 13
49	1,242	GA Geiger, Andreas	Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 76
50	1,270	KI Kógel-Knabner, Ingrid	Technische Universität München	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 7
51	1,276	ET Efferth, Thomas H.	Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz	Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry	Rank 5
52	1,310	BL Bornmann, Lutz	Administrative Headquarters of the Max Planck Society	Information & Library Sciences	Rank 4
53	1,327	RD Rueckert, Daniel L.	Klinikum Rechts der Isar	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 81
54	1,344	NM Nauck, Michael Albrecht	Universitätsmedizin Greifswald	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 21
55	1,370	LS Lewandowsky, Stephan	Universität Potsdam	Experimental Psychology	Rank 28
56	1,372	SA Stang, Andreas	Universitätsklinikum Essen	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 24
57	1,391	DC Dormann, Carsten F.	Universität Freiburg	Ecology	Rank 35
58	1,394	SP Strasser, Peter	Technische Universität Berlin	Energy	Rank 38
59	1,424	PM Plenio, Martin B.	Universität Ulm	General Physics	Rank 14
60	1,428	MJ Maier, Joachim	Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research	Energy	Rank 39
61	1,431	HS Hoy, Sheridan M.	Springer Nature	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 9
62	1,440	SS Schaltegger, Stefan C.	Leuphana Universität Lüneburg	Business & Management	Rank 55
63	1,475	MA Markham, Anthony	Springer Nature	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 10
64	1,495	Schubert, Ulrich S.	Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena	Polymers	Rank 11
65	1,504	RS Rose-John, Stefan T.	Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel	Immunology	Rank 36
66	1,509	SF Schwendicke, Falk	Klinikum der Universität München	Dentistry	Rank 1
67	1,526	PS Parkin, Stuart S.P.	Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics	Applied Physics	Rank 42
68	1,529	FA Fernie, Alisdair Robert	Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 17
69	1,535	KK Kümmerer, Klaus	Leuphana Universität Lüneburg	Environmental Sciences	Rank 33
70	1,543	WM Wink, Michael	Universität Heidelberg	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 18
71	1,562	HG Heusch, Gerd	Universitätsklinikum Essen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 39
72	1,577	TT Tscharntke, Teja	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Ecology	Rank 40
73	1,587	SS Seuring, Stefan A.	Universität Kassel	Business & Management	Rank 59
74	1,619	DT Dietz, Thomas M.	University of Münster	Ecology	Rank 41
75	1,622	CC Correll, Christophe U.	Berliner Institut für Gesundheitsforschung	Psychiatry	Rank 37
76	1,643	DR Dolan, Ray Joseph	Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 89
77	1,650	AS Anker, Stefan D.	Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 42
78	1,669	KA Klamt, Andreas	COSMOlogic GmbH and Co. KG	Chemical Physics	Rank 29
79	1,730	ZM Zimmermann, Michaël Bruce	Hannover Medical School	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 4
80	1,763	MV Mechtcherine, Viktor	Technische Universität Dresden	Building & Construction	Rank 14
81	1,766	ZH Zacher, Hannes	Universität Leipzig	Business & Management	Rank 66
82	1,832	CJ Chase, Jonathan M.	Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg	Ecology	Rank 48
83	1,833	BI Bloch, Immanuel	Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München	General Physics	Rank 17
84	1,835	AM Antonietti, Markus	Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und Grenzflächenforschung	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 64
85	1,871	PH Pretzsch, Hans	Technische Universität München	Forestry	Rank 1
86	1,887	LH Lichtenthaler, Hartmut Karl	Karlsruher Institut für Technologie	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 23
87	1,899	MA Macdonald, A. H.	Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research	Applied Physics	Rank 50
88	1,933	BM Bau, Michael	Constructor University	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 16
89	1,955	SY Syed, Yahiya Y.	Springer Nature	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 12
90	1,976	RM Reck, Martin	German Center for Lung Research	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 43
91	1,989	FP Fries, Pascal	Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 103
92	1,991	BH Braak, Heiko	Universität Ulm	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 105
93	2,028	TM Thommes, Matthias	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Chemical Physics	Rank 36
94	2,030	LW Löscher, Wolfgang	Hannover Medical School	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 108
95	2,044	CJ Cirac, J. Ignacio	Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics	General Physics	Rank 18
96	2,080	FA Friederici, Angela D.	Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences	Experimental Psychology	Rank 38
97	2,102	AA Abate, Antonio	Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB)	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 78
98	2,108	LE Latz, Eicke	Deutsches Rheuma-Forschungszentrum	Immunology	Rank 46
99	2,153	BM Beller, Matthias	Leibniz Institute for Catalysis	Organic Chemistry	Rank 25
100	2,179	GT Gneiting, Tilmann	Karlsruher Institut für Technologie	Statistics & Probability	Rank 29
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Countries with a similar count

Single-year list2025

United States73,020 scientists

China31,697 scientists

United Kingdom18,125 scientists

Australia8,555 scientists

Canada8,303 scientists

Italy7,991 scientists

Explore other countries

Single-year list2025

France5,886 scientists

Netherlands4,727 scientists

Switzerland3,549 scientists

Belgium2,124 scientists

Austria1,433 scientists

Luxembourg90 scientists

All countries on the world map

Frequently asked questions

How many scientists from Germany are in the 2025 Stanford Top 2% list?

10,666 scientists affiliated with Germany are on the 2025 single-year list, and 12,166 are on the career-long list.

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

On the 2025 single-year list, Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists from Germany, with 293. It is followed by Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg with 191.

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

On the single-year list, Germany went from 8,177 scientists in 2020 to 10,666 in 2025, a change of +30.4%.

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.