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

Germany has 10,990 scientists on the 2023 career-long Top 2% list, up 4.1% from 10,562 in 2022. That places Germany 3rd in the world by number of listed scientists. Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists (297), followed by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (246).

Single Year

10,088

+127 (+1.3%) vs 2022

Career Data

10,990

+428 (+4.1%) vs 2022

World rank by count

No change vs 2022

Institutes

1,302

+6 (+0.5%) vs 2022

Scientists in Germany on the list, by year

The career-long count has grown 25% since 2020.

Career-long list, change on the previous year

2021+13.6%

2022+5.8%

2023+4.1%

2024+5.3%

2025+5.1%

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

Career-long list2023

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All 10,990 scientists

Career-long list2023

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	33	GS Grimme, Stefan	Universität Bonn	Chemical Physics	Rank 2
2	42	SG Sheldrick, George M.	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 1
3	127	MM Mann, Matthias	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Developmental Biology	Rank 11
4	154	SH Sies, Helmut	Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 7
5	210	NF Neese, Frank	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Chemical Physics	Rank 6
6	225	BP Bork, Peer	European Molecular Biology Laboratory Heidelberg	Developmental Biology	Rank 17
7	263	van der Aalst, Wil M.P.	Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 7
8	317	AL Ackermann, Lutz	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Organic Chemistry	Rank 6
9	347	FA Fürstner, Alois	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 8
10	362	BP Blöchl, Peter E.	Technische Universität Clausthal	Applied Physics	Rank 17
11	385	RM Reetz, Manfred T.	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 9
12	403	SV Springel, Volker	Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 1
13	426	MJ Maier, Joachim	Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research	Energy	Rank 6
14	432	AM Antonietti, Markus	Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und Grenzflächenforschung	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 15
15	484	WH Wittchen, Hans Ulrich	Technische Universität Dresden	Psychiatry	Rank 15
16	489	BK Binder, Kurt	Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 5
17	507	CP Crutzen, P. J.	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 2
18	511	BH Brenner, Hermann	German Cancer Research Center	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 20
19	536	SA Stamatakis, Alexandros	Karlsruher Institut für Technologie	Bioinformatics	Rank 3
20	559	HW Herrmann, Wolfgang A.	Technische Universität München	Organic Chemistry	Rank 14
21	658	JJ Jonas, Jost Bruno	Universität Heidelberg	Ophthalmology & Optometry	Rank 3
22	677	SW Singer, Wolf	Ernst Strüngmann Institut gGmbH	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 67
23	685	HF Holsboer, Florian	Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry	Psychiatry	Rank 24
24	691	KS Kaufmann, Stefan H.E.	Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology	Immunology	Rank 33
25	692	DH Diener, Hans Christoph	Medizinischen Fakultät	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 69
26	697	HA Hashmi, A. Stephen K.	Universität Heidelberg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 20
27	699	HS Hell, Stefan W.	Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry	Optics	Rank 4
28	718	Schubert, Ulrich S.	Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena	Polymers	Rank 5
29	781	NM Neurath, Markus F.	Universitätsklinikum Erlangen	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 11
30	793	AM Andreae, Meinrat O.	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 4
31	804	HF Hartl, F. Ulrich	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Developmental Biology	Rank 52
32	807	RD Raabe, Dierk	Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH	Materials	Rank 10
33	814	FA Friederici, Angela D.	Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences	Experimental Psychology	Rank 14
34	874	LN Logothetis, Nikos K.	Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 88
35	886	LW Löscher, Wolfgang	Tierärztliche Hochschule Hannover	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 91
36	935	PM Pfaffl, Michael W.	Technische Universität München	Dairy & Animal Science	Rank 1
37	947	WF Würthner, Frank	Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 27
38	951	LB List, Benjamin	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 28
39	964	RP Russell, P. St J.	Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light	Optics	Rank 5
40	968	BH Braak, Heiko	Universitätsklinikum Ulm	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 97
41	989	BJ Bousquet, Jean	Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin	Allergy	Rank 3
42	1,000	MK Müllen, Klaus	Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 30
43	1,017	JC Janiak, Christoph	Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 8
44	1,046	ZH zur Hausen, Harald	German Cancer Research Center	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 43
45	1,073	EG Ertl, Gerhard	Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society	Chemical Physics	Rank 34
46	1,103	BC Brabec, Christoph J.	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 32
47	1,114	NE Neher, Erwin	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 116
48	1,140	SK Simons, Kai	Lipotype GmbH	Developmental Biology	Rank 74
49	1,141	SB Schölkopf, Bernhard	Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 32
50	1,182	GP Grassberger, Peter	Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 11
51	1,186	MM Manns, Michael	Hannover Medical School	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 19
52	1,220	SF Schüth, Ferdi	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 35
53	1,262	BP Baeuerle, Patrick A.	Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München	Immunology	Rank 50
54	1,315	CR Conrad, Ralf	Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology	Microbiology	Rank 21
55	1,355	BM Beller, Matthias	Leibniz Institute for Catalysis	Organic Chemistry	Rank 40
56	1,421	HA Henglein, Arnim	Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB)	Chemical Physics	Rank 45
57	1,425	KW Kabsch, Wolfgang	Max Planck Institute for Medical Research	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 77
58	1,484	PS Parkin, S. S.P.	Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics	Applied Physics	Rank 59
59	1,500	WF Watt, Fiona M.	European Molecular Biology Laboratory Heidelberg	Developmental Biology	Rank 98
60	1,551	FS Fulda, Simone	Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 68
61	1,571	BC Bolm, Carsten	Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen	Organic Chemistry	Rank 44
62	1,583	KY Kuzyakov, Yakov	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 4
63	1,585	WO Wolfbeis, Otto S.	Universität Regensburg	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 4
64	1,591	DS Dimmeler, Stefanie	Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 91
65	1,671	GH Gleiter, H.	Karlsruher Institut für Technologie, Campus Nord	Materials	Rank 21
66	1,708	BM Breteler, Monique M.B.	Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 176
67	1,723	SR Schlögl, Robert	Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society	Physical Chemistry	Rank 8
68	1,731	RB Rost, Burkhard	Technische Universität München	Bioinformatics	Rank 11
69	1,734	PS Pääbo, Svante	Max-Planck-Institut für Evolutionäre Anthropologie	Developmental Biology	Rank 107
70	1,740	ZS Zeuzem, Stefan	Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 25
71	1,774	RK Rajewsky, Klaus	Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine	Immunology	Rank 69
72	1,790	PB Persson, Bo N.J.	Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH	Chemical Physics	Rank 58
73	1,796	WH Werner, H. J.	Universität Stuttgart	Chemical Physics	Rank 59
74	1,847	RE Ritz, Eberhard	Universität Heidelberg	Urology & Nephrology	Rank 17
75	1,853	SD Svergun, Dmitri	European Molecular Biology Laboratory Hamburg	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 93
76	1,873	WR Waser, Rainer	Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH	Applied Physics	Rank 70
77	1,881	HA Hofmann, Albrecht W.	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 11
78	1,915	MH Möller, Hans Jürgen	Klinikum der Universität München	Psychiatry	Rank 66
79	1,918	HG Heusch, Gerd	Universitätsklinikum Essen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 103
80	1,923	WD Weigel, Detlef	Max Planck Campus Tübingen	Developmental Biology	Rank 119
81	1,946	RW Risau, Werner	Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research - W. G. Kerckhoff Institute	Developmental Biology	Rank 120
82	1,990	MP Malfertheiner, Peter	Klinikum der Universität München	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 35
83	2,012	HP Hänggi, Peter	Universität Augsburg	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 15
84	2,031	GG Gigerenzer, Gerd	Max Planck Institute for Human Development	Experimental Psychology	Rank 35
85	2,034	TT Ternes, Thomas A.	Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde	Environmental Sciences	Rank 5
86	2,035	AR Amann, Rudolf I.	Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology	Microbiology	Rank 31
87	2,103	GF Glorius, Frank	Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster	Organic Chemistry	Rank 57
88	2,105	HA Hirsch, Andreas	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 58
89	2,117	SP Seeburg, Peter H.	Max Planck Institute for Medical Research	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 203
90	2,131	HS Hofmann, Stefan G.	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Clinical Psychology	Rank 10
91	2,159	GD Guldi, Dirk M.	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 60
92	2,160	KP Krammer, Peter H.	German Cancer Research Center	Immunology	Rank 81
93	2,163	RM Rillig, Matthias C.	Freie Universität Berlin	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 7
94	2,167	HC Haass, Christian	Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 208
95	2,173	CJ Cirac, J. Ignacio	Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics	General Physics	Rank 16
96	2,174	BN Birbaumer, Niels	Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 210
97	2,176	TT Tscharntke, Teja	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Ecology	Rank 41
98	2,180	PH Pörtner, Hans Otto	Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung	Physiology	Rank 5
99	2,209	HR Huber, Robert	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 103
100	2,254	NM Nauck, Michael A.	Katholisches Klinikum Bochum	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 82
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Countries with a similar count

Career-long list2023

United States81,159 scientistsin 2023

United Kingdom18,692 scientistsin 2023

China9,013 scientistsin 2023

Canada8,815 scientistsin 2023

Japan8,126 scientistsin 2023

Australia7,002 scientistsin 2023

Explore other countries

Career-long list2023

France6,522 scientistsin 2023

Netherlands4,259 scientistsin 2023

Switzerland3,261 scientistsin 2023

Belgium1,861 scientistsin 2023

Austria1,311 scientistsin 2023

Luxembourg50 scientistsin 2023

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Frequently asked questions

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

10,088 scientists affiliated with Germany are on the 2023 single-year list, and 10,990 are on the career-long list.

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

On the 2023 career-long list, Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists from Germany, with 297. It is followed by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München with 246.

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

On the career-long list, Germany went from 8,792 scientists in 2020 to 10,990 in 2023, a change of +25.0%.

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.