Saudi Arabia's Top 2% Scientists 2021

Saudi Arabia has 870 scientists on the 2021 single-year Top 2% list, up 56.2% from 557 in 2020. That places Saudi Arabia 31st in the world by number of listed scientists, up 3 places. King Saud University has the most listed scientists (137), followed by King Abdulaziz University (136).

Single Year

870

+313 (+56.2%) vs 2020

Career Data

443

+122 (+38.0%) vs 2020

World rank by count

#31

up 3 places vs 2020

Institutes

+14 (+25.0%) vs 2020

Scientists in Saudi Arabia on the list, by year

The single-year count has grown 56% since 2020.

Single-year list, change on the previous year

2021+56.2%

2022+17.4%

2023+29.4%

2024+27.5%

2025+25.3%

Show the numbers

Year	Single Year	Change	Career Data	Change
2020	557		321
2021	870	+56.2%	443	+38.0%
2022	1,021	+17.4%	466	+5.2%
2023	1,321	+29.4%	576	+23.6%
2024	1,684	+27.5%	676	+17.4%
2025	2,110	+25.3%	850	+25.7%

Top 10 institutes in Saudi Arabia

By number of listed scientists

Single-year list2021

Show the list

All 870 scientists

Single-year list2021

The first 100 are free to browse.

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Rank in Saudi Arabia	World rank	Scientist	Institute	Sub-field	Rank in sub-field
1	72	DA Demirbas, Ayhan	King Abdulaziz University	Energy	Rank 1
2	145	GV Gupta, Vinod Kumar	King Abdulaziz University	Chemical Physics	Rank 4
3	155	ST Saleh, Tawfik A.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Chemical Engineering	Rank 3
4	205	DC Duarte, Carlos M.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Marine Biology & Hydrobiology	Rank 1
5	809	HT Hayat, Tasawar	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 13
6	844	MW Mahmoud, Waleed E.	King Abdulaziz University	Applied Physics	Rank 29
7	911	NM Naushad, Mu	King Saud University College of Science	Chemical Engineering	Rank 7
8	1,004	BA Biswas, Anjan	King Abdulaziz University	Optics	Rank 8
9	1,045	TJ Tuomilehto, Jaakko	King Abdulaziz University	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 20
10	1,299	HB Henrissat, Bernard	King Abdulaziz University	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 31
11	1,343	MZ Memish, Ziad	Alfaisal University	Microbiology	Rank 23
12	1,354	AT Abdeljawad, Thabet	Prince Sultan University	Applied Mathematics	Rank 8
13	1,360	AZ ALOthman, Zeid A.	King Saud University	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 6
14	1,423	KH Koenig, Harold G.	King Abdulaziz University	Psychiatry	Rank 35
15	1,564	Asiri, Abdullah M.	King Abdulaziz University	Organic Chemistry	Rank 26
16	1,581	ZA Zenkour, Ashraf M.	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 21
17	1,734	AH Ali, Hafiz Muhammad	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 37
18	1,967	Rashad, Alaa M.	Shaqra University	Building & Construction	Rank 11
19	3,345	SA Seadawy, Aly	Taibah University	General Physics	Rank 21
20	3,406	BM Barakat, M. A.	King Abdulaziz University	Environmental Sciences	Rank 34
21	3,503	AJ Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.	Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare	Microbiology	Rank 66
22	3,654	SA Subasi, Abdulhamit	Effat University, Saudi Arabia	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 112
23	3,655	TM Tuzen, Mustafa	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 14
24	3,699	AO Arqub, Omar Abu	King Abdulaziz University	Numerical & Computational Mathematics	Rank 5
25	3,756	AM Abido, Mohammad A.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 77
26	3,871	AM Alouini, Mohamed Slim	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Networking & Telecommunications	Rank 27
27	4,074	HM Hossain, M. Shamim	King Saud University	Networking & Telecommunications	Rank 30
28	4,854	CT Chan, Tony F.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 143
29	4,980	MP Magistretti, P.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 321
30	5,273	AA Alsaedi, Ahmad	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 56
31	5,323	US Umoren, Saviour A.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Polymers	Rank 33
32	5,858	Ahmad, Bashir	King Abdulaziz University	Applied Mathematics	Rank 25
33	6,401	SM Sayyed, M. I.	Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal university	Applied Physics	Rank 130
34	7,314	EM Ezzat, M. A.	Al Qassim University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 73
35	7,327	MJ Merigó, José M.	University of Technology Sydney	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 206
36	7,469	OI Obot, Ime Bassey	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 149
37	7,542	Omri, Anis	Al Qassim University	Energy	Rank 152
38	7,554	QM Quraishi, M. A.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 153
39	7,664	AF Al-Sulaiman, Fahad A.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 156
40	7,698	EM Eddaoudi, Mohamed	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	General Chemistry	Rank 46
41	7,991	GJ Gascon, Jorge	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Organic Chemistry	Rank 119
42	8,056	AE Aifantis, Elias C.	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 81
43	8,380	TM Tester, Mark	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 108
44	8,690	SJ Santamarina, J. Carlos	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Geological & Geomatics Engineering	Rank 70
45	8,725	KA Katritzky, Alan R.	King Abdulaziz University	Organic Chemistry	Rank 126
46	9,637	RM Rahman, Mohammed M.	King Abdulaziz University	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 38
47	9,729	MG Muhammad, Ghulam	King Saud University	Networking & Telecommunications	Rank 60
48	10,367	SM Sajid, Muhammad	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Analytical Chemistry	Rank 40
49	10,385	MO Mohammed, Omar F.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 262
50	10,599	MI McCulloch, Iain	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 266
51	10,840	AN Abu-Hamdeh, Nidal H.	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 109
52	11,075	Rue, Håvard	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Statistics & Probability	Rank 84
53	11,344	RM Rueping, Magnus	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Organic Chemistry	Rank 166
54	11,363	MS Mahmoud, S. R.	King Abdulaziz University	Civil Engineering	Rank 46
55	11,391	YB Yilbas, Bekir Sami	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 111
56	12,097	ZQ Zhou, Qin	King Abdulaziz University	Optics	Rank 58
57	12,197	UA Umar, Ahmad	Najran University	Applied Physics	Rank 249
58	12,959	CA Crozier, Alan	King Saud University	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 168
59	13,023	AM Ahamed, Maqusood	King Saud University	Toxicology	Rank 56
60	14,464	Hamdaoui, Oualid	King Saud University	Chemical Engineering	Rank 83
61	14,936	RS Rehman, Shafiqur	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 295
62	15,419	AH Alshareef, Husam N.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 391
63	15,782	EA Emwas, Abdul Hamid	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Organic Chemistry	Rank 220
64	15,960	SB Samet, Bessem	King Saud University	General Mathematics	Rank 59
65	15,973	AA Al-Ghamdi, Ahmed A.	King Abdulaziz University	Applied Physics	Rank 323
66	16,246	BA Boretti, Alberto	Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University	Energy	Rank 327
67	16,518	Kamal, Muhammad Shahzad	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Energy	Rank 335
68	16,646	Shaheen, Sabry M.	King Abdulaziz University	Environmental Sciences	Rank 193
69	17,371	CL Cavallo, Luigi	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Organic Chemistry	Rank 239
70	18,011	SE Sherif, E. S.M.	King Saud University	Energy	Rank 363
71	18,200	GN Ghaffour, Noreddine	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Chemical Engineering	Rank 102
72	18,270	GM Genton, Marc G.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Statistics & Probability	Rank 125
73	18,472	KM Khan, Muhammad Khurram	King Saud University	Networking & Telecommunications	Rank 144
74	18,492	NS Nunes, Suzana P.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Chemical Engineering	Rank 105
75	18,573	BO Bakr, Osman M.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 457
76	19,410	LZ Lai, Zhiping	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Chemical Engineering	Rank 111
77	19,740	MR Mohamed, R. M.	King Abdulaziz University	Materials	Rank 353
78	19,845	Rahman, Saifur	Najran University	Energy	Rank 395
79	20,074	AN Al-Dhabi, Naif Abdullah	King Saud University College of Science	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 254
80	20,086	AT Anthopoulos, Thomas D.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 489
81	20,798	AF Alkuraya, Fowzan S.	King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre	Genetics & Heredity	Rank 50
82	20,920	LL Li, Lain Jong	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 509
83	21,393	KS Khan, Sher Bahadar	King Abdulaziz University	Polymers	Rank 180
84	21,408	SO Shekhah, Osama	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 528
85	21,424	BA Baykal, A.	Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal university	Materials	Rank 379
86	21,447	AY Arabi, Yaseen	King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences	Emergency & Critical Care Medicine	Rank 68
87	21,470	AT Alkhalifah, Tariq	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 389
88	21,619	SM Sun, Minglei	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Applied Physics	Rank 457
89	21,993	Ihsanullah, Ihsanullah	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Chemical Engineering	Rank 128
90	22,329	DR Demirboga, Ramazan	Alfaisal University	Building & Construction	Rank 116
91	22,745	MM Mahmoud, Magdi S.	King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals	Industrial Engineering & Automation	Rank 221
92	23,214	AM Ali, Mohamed	King Saud University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 233
93	23,361	MS Meo, Sultan Ayoub	King Saud University Medical College	General & Internal Medicine	Rank 289
94	24,121	TS Thoroddsen, Sigurdur T.	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 178
95	24,166	CR Carle, Reinhold	King Abdulaziz University	Food Science	Rank 142
96	24,743	ZH Zhang, Huabin	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 610
97	24,869	SM Safaei, Mohammad Reza	King Abdulaziz University	Mechanical Engineering & Transports	Rank 249
98	25,089	AM Abdallah, M.	Umm Al-Qura University	Energy	Rank 524
99	25,867	HH Hirt, Heribert	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 335
100	26,186	SS Sarathy, S. Mani	King Abdullah University of Science and Technology	Energy	Rank 544
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Countries with a similar count

Single-year list2021

Finland1,016 scientistsin 2021

Russia959 scientistsin 2021

New Zealand901 scientistsin 2021

Greece846 scientistsin 2021

South Africa752 scientistsin 2021

Ireland710 scientistsin 2021

Explore other countries

Single-year list2021

Israel1,514 scientistsin 2021

Turkey1,150 scientistsin 2021

United Arab Emirates274 scientistsin 2021

Qatar163 scientistsin 2021

Jordan96 scientistsin 2021

Cyprus85 scientistsin 2021

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Frequently asked questions

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

870 scientists affiliated with Saudi Arabia are on the 2021 single-year list, and 443 are on the career-long list.

Which institute in Saudi Arabia has the most Top 2% scientists?

On the 2021 single-year list, King Saud University has the most listed scientists from Saudi Arabia, with 137. It is followed by King Abdulaziz University with 136.

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

On the single-year list, Saudi Arabia went from 557 scientists in 2020 to 870 in 2021, a change of +56.2%.

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.