Germany's Top 2% Scientists 2025: Career-Long List

Germany has 12,166 scientists on the 2025 career-long Top 2% list, up 5.1% from 11,573 in 2024. That places Germany 4th in the world by number of listed scientists, down 1 place. Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists (325), followed by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (249).

Single Year

10,666

+244 (+2.3%) vs 2024

Career Data

12,166

+593 (+5.1%) vs 2024

World rank by count

down 1 place vs 2024

Institutes

1,708

+344 (+25.2%) vs 2024

Scientists in Germany on the list, by year

The career-long count has grown 38% 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 list2025

Show the list

All 12,166 scientists

Career-long 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	23	GS Grimme, Stefan	Universität Bonn	Chemical Physics	Rank 1
2	45	SG Sheldrick, George M.	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 1
3	120	NF Neese, Frank	FAccTs GmbH	Chemical Physics	Rank 4
4	140	MM Mann, Matthias	Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie	Developmental Biology	Rank 10
5	143	SH Sies, Helmut	Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 5
6	219	BP Bork, Peer	Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine	Developmental Biology	Rank 15
7	229	van der Aalst, Wil M.P.	Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 9
8	308	AL Ackermann, Lutz	Deutsches Zentrum für Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung e. V.	Organic Chemistry	Rank 6
9	310	BP Blöchl, Peter E.	Technische Universität Clausthal	Applied Physics	Rank 15
10	334	DR Dolan, Ray Joseph	Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 37
11	360	SV Springel, Volker	Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics	Astronomy & Astrophysics	Rank 1
12	396	FA Fürstner, Alois	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 8
13	434	RM Reetz, Manfred T.	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 9
14	435	MJ Maier, Joachim	Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research	Energy	Rank 8
15	456	BH Brenner, Hermann	German Cancer Research Center	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 21
16	463	AM Antonietti, Markus	Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und Grenzflächenforschung	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 18
17	480	SA Stamatakis, Alexandros P.	Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas	Bioinformatics	Rank 4
18	521	RD Raabe, Dierk	Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH	Materials	Rank 9
19	542	CP Crutzen, Paul Jozef	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 3
20	562	WH Wïttchen, Hans Ülrich	Klinikum der Universität München	Psychiatry	Rank 18
21	573	BK Binder, Kurt	Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 5
22	624	NM Neurath, Markus Friedrich	Universitätsklinikum Erlangen	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 11
23	678	HW Herrmann, Wolfgang Anton	Technische Universität München	Organic Chemistry	Rank 18
24	703	DH Diener, Hans Christoph W.	Medizinischen Fakultät	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 66
25	719	Schubert, Ulrich S.	Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena	Polymers	Rank 5
26	728	HS Hell, Stefan W.	Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry	Optics	Rank 4
27	742	HA Hashmi, A. Stephen K.	Universität Heidelberg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 21
28	747	KY Kuzyakov, Yakov	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 2
29	764	LJ Lehmann, Johannes	Institute for Advanced Study of Technical University of Munich	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 3
30	783	KS Kaufmann, Stefan Hugo Ernst	Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology	Immunology	Rank 34
31	797	FA Friederici, Angela D.	Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences	Experimental Psychology	Rank 14
32	833	HF Holsboer, Florian J.	HMNC Holding GmbH	Psychiatry	Rank 28
33	837	SW Singer, Wolf J.	Ernst Strüngmann Institut gGmbH	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 84
34	867	LW Löscher, Wolfgang	Hannover Medical School	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 88
35	873	PM Pfaffl, Michael W.	Technische Universität München	Dairy & Animal Science	Rank 1
36	877	WF Würthner, Frank	Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg	Organic Chemistry	Rank 25
37	887	SB Schölkopf, Bernhard	ELLIS Institute Tübingen	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 28
38	899	HF Hartl, Franz Ulrich	Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy)	Developmental Biology	Rank 52
39	1,022	JC Janiak, Christoph	Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 6
40	1,025	LB List, Benjamin	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 29
41	1,027	BH Braak, Heiko	Universität Ulm	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 102
42	1,035	MK Müllen, Klaus	Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 30
43	1,065	BC Brabec, Christoph J.	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 36
44	1,093	RM Rillig, Matthias C.	Berlin-Brandenburgisches Institut für Biodiversitätsforschung	Ecology	Rank 25
45	1,107	BJ Bousquet, Jean J.	Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP	Allergy	Rank 3
46	1,109	RP Russell, Philip St John	Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light	Optics	Rank 7
47	1,223	EG Ertl, Gerhard	Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society	Chemical Physics	Rank 37
48	1,238	ZH Zur Hausen, Harald	German Cancer Research Center	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 51
49	1,257	CR Conrad, Ralf	Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology	Microbiology	Rank 21
50	1,264	BM Beller, Matthias	Leibniz Institute for Catalysis	Organic Chemistry	Rank 37
51	1,277	SF Scḧuth, Ferdi Ferdinand	Max Planck Institute for Coal Research	Organic Chemistry	Rank 38
52	1,331	SK Simons, Kai	European Molecular Biology Laboratory Heidelberg	Developmental Biology	Rank 83
53	1,335	MM Manns, Michael Peter	Hannover Medical School	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 20
54	1,347	NE Neher, Erwin	Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 130
55	1,376	SR Schlögl, Robert F.	Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society	Physical Chemistry	Rank 7
56	1,377	PS Parkin, Stuart S.P.	Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics	Applied Physics	Rank 51
57	1,402	GP Grassberger, Peter	Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 11
58	1,502	FS Fulda, Simone	Universitätsklinikum Ulm	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 60
59	1,547	MA Macdonald, A. H.	Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research	Applied Physics	Rank 57
60	1,582	HG Heusch, Gerd	Universitätsklinikum Essen	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 88
61	1,587	HS Hofmann, Stefan G.	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Clinical Psychology	Rank 8
62	1,588	BM Blüher, Matthias	Universitätsklinikum Leipzig und Medizinische Fakultät	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 44
63	1,657	NM Netea, Mihai Gheorghe	Universität Bonn	Immunology	Rank 62
64	1,685	WO Wolfbeis, Otto S.	Universität Regensburg	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 5
65	1,688	BC Bolm, Carsten U.	Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen	Organic Chemistry	Rank 48
66	1,715	PB Persson, Bo N.J.	Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH	Chemical Physics	Rank 52
67	1,739	HA Henglein, Arnini	Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB)	Chemical Physics	Rank 54
68	1,743	GG Gigerenzer, Gerd	Universität Potsdam	Experimental Psychology	Rank 31
69	1,772	PS Pääbo, Svante H.	Max-Planck-Institut für Evolutionäre Anthropologie	Developmental Biology	Rank 106
70	1,790	DS Dimmeler, Stefanie	Deutsches Zentrum für Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung e. V.	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 97
71	1,798	SD Svergun, Dmitri I.	BIOSAXS GmbH	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 81
72	1,817	SG Schett, Georg Andreas	Universitätsklinikum Erlangen	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 14
73	1,843	PH Pörtner, Hans-O. Otto	Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung	Physiology	Rank 3
74	1,844	MP Malfertheiner, P.	Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 27
75	1,855	WH Werner, Hans Joachim	Universität Stuttgart	Chemical Physics	Rank 58
76	1,876	TT Tscharntke, Teja	Georg-August-Universität Göttingen	Ecology	Rank 39
77	1,877	BA Boccaccini, Aldo R.	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg	Materials	Rank 27
78	1,886	RB Rost, Burkhard	Technische Universität München	Bioinformatics	Rank 12
79	1,894	GF Glorius, Frank	University of Münster	Organic Chemistry	Rank 52
80	1,914	WR Waser, Rainer M.	Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH	Applied Physics	Rank 69
81	1,920	NM Nauck, Michael Albrecht	Universitätsmedizin Greifswald	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 61
82	1,956	CK Choi, Kyuha	Max Planck Campus Tübingen	Developmental Biology	Rank 112
83	1,961	HA Hofmann, Albrecht W.	Max Planck Institute for Chemistry	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 17
84	1,971	BM Breteler, Monique M.B.	Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 186
85	2,006	ZS Zeuzem, Stefan S.	Universitätsklinikum des Saarlandes Medizinische Fakultät der Universität des Saarlandes	Gastroenterology & Hepatology	Rank 31
86	2,008	TT Ternes, Thomas A.	Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde	Environmental Sciences	Rank 6
87	2,083	RD Rueckert, Daniel L.	Klinikum Rechts der Isar	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 60
88	2,106	MH Möller, Hans Jürgen	Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München	Psychiatry	Rank 72
89	2,125	KW Kabsch, Wolfgang	Max Planck Institute for Medical Research	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 93
90	2,126	FP Fratzl, Peter	Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und Grenzflächenforschung	Materials	Rank 30
91	2,128	CJ Cirac, J. Ignacio	Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics	General Physics	Rank 14
92	2,134	RK Rajewsky, Klaus	Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine	Immunology	Rank 76
93	2,168	RE Ritz, Eberhardt R.	Universität Heidelberg	Urology & Nephrology	Rank 18
94	2,199	HP Hänggi, Peter	Universität Augsburg	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 16
95	2,235	PL Partridge, Linda Donald	Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing	Developmental Biology	Rank 134
96	2,244	HA Hirsch, Andreas	Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergDr.-Mack Strasse 81	Organic Chemistry	Rank 59
97	2,288	HC Haass, Christian	Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy)	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 212
98	2,298	AR Amann, Rudolf I.	Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology	Microbiology	Rank 38
99	2,317	BN Birbaumer, Niels P.	Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 216
100	2,333	WF Weigend, Florian	Philipps-Universität Marburg	Chemical Physics	Rank 66
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Countries with a similar count

Career-long list2025

United States87,861 scientists

United Kingdom20,571 scientists

China12,375 scientists

Canada9,589 scientists

Japan8,730 scientists

Australia8,025 scientists

Explore other countries

Career-long list2025

France7,284 scientists

Netherlands4,755 scientists

Switzerland3,659 scientists

Belgium2,188 scientists

Austria1,472 scientists

Luxembourg65 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 career-long list, Technische Universität München has the most listed scientists from Germany, with 325. It is followed by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München with 249.

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 12,166 in 2025, a change of +38.4%.

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.