Switzerland's Top 2% Scientists 2020

Switzerland has 2,622 scientists on the 2020 single-year Top 2% list. That places Switzerland 12th in the world by number of listed scientists. ETH Zürich has the most listed scientists (430), followed by University of Zurich (271).

Single Year

2,622

First year listed

Career Data

2,546

First year listed

World rank by count

#12

First year listed

Institutes

280

First year listed

Scientists in Switzerland on the list, by year

Single-year list, change on the previous year

2021+15.0%

2022+7.2%

2023+2.4%

2024+2.8%

2025+4.3%

Show the numbers

Year	Single Year	Change	Career Data	Change
2020	2,622		2,546
2021	3,016	+15.0%	2,974	+16.8%
2022	3,233	+7.2%	3,141	+5.6%
2023	3,311	+2.4%	3,261	+3.8%
2024	3,404	+2.8%	3,431	+5.2%
2025	3,549	+4.3%	3,659	+6.6%

Top 10 institutes in Switzerland

By number of listed scientists

Single-year list2020

Show the list

1ETH Zürich430
2University of Zurich271
3Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne238
4Université de Genève149
5University of Bern146
6Université de Lausanne (UNIL)105
7Universitat Basel91
8Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois70
9UniversitatsSpital Zurich67
10Hôpitaux universitaires de Genève63

All 2,622 scientists

Single-year list2020

The first 100 are free to browse.

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Rank in Switzerland	World rank	Scientist	Institute	Sub-field	Rank in sub-field
1	3	GM Grätzel, Michael	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 2
2	32	SJ Schmidhuber, Jürgen	Istituto Dalle Molle Di Studi Sull'intelligenza Artificiale	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 6
3	133	EM Egger, Matthias	Institut fur Sozial- und Praventivmedizin	General & Internal Medicine	Rank 7
4	153	HD Hanahan, Douglas	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 6
5	426	KC Körner, Christian	Universitat Basel	Ecology	Rank 11
6	485	DB Delley, Bernard	Paul Scherrer Institut	Applied Physics	Rank 23
7	553	VG von Gunten, Urs	Eawag - Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology	Environmental Engineering	Rank 3
8	663	FE Fehr, Ernst	University of Zurich	Economics	Rank 16
9	743	NM Nazeeruddin, Mohammad Khaja	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 30
10	767	SK Scrivener, Karen	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Building & Construction	Rank 3
11	850	BJ Bünzli, Jean Claude G.	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry	Rank 5
12	868	LU Laemmli, Ulrich K.	Université de Genève	Developmental Biology	Rank 38
13	993	SM Siegrist, Michael	ETH Zürich	Strategic, Defence & Security Studies	Rank 4
14	1,076	HA Hagfeldt, Anders	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 42
15	1,359	EL Excoffier, Laurent	University of Bern	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 19
16	1,366	SC Szabo, Csaba	University of Fribourg	Pharmacology & Pharmacy	Rank 9
17	1,435	AR Aebersold, Ruedi	University of Zurich	Biochemistry & Molecular Biology	Rank 30
18	1,436	GN Gisin, Nicolas	Université de Genève	General Physics	Rank 9
19	1,454	ZM Zimmermann, Michael B.	ETH Zürich	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 6
20	1,493	UM Unser, Michael	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing	Rank 71
21	1,507	FU Fischbacher, Urs	Thurgauer Wirtschaftsinstitut	Economics	Rank 37
22	1,758	NL Novotny, Lukas	ETH Zürich	Optics	Rank 15
23	1,766	DD Damjanovic, Dragan	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Applied Physics	Rank 58
24	1,778	NP Nordmann, Patrice	University of Fribourg	Microbiology	Rank 29
25	1,793	PJ Pérez-Ramírez, Javier	ETH Zürich	Physical Chemistry	Rank 12
26	1,795	WM Weller, Michael	University of Zurich	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 61
27	1,799	KJ Kolar, Johann W.	ETH Zürich	Electrical & Electronic Engineering	Rank 7
28	1,853	CP Clavien, Pierre Alain	UniversitatsSpital Zurich	Surgery	Rank 1
29	1,895	HX Hu, Xile	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Organic Chemistry	Rank 33
30	1,901	KM Kovalenko, Maksym V.	ETH Zürich	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 70
31	1,902	FB Frey, Bruno S.	Universitat Basel	Economics	Rank 47
32	1,947	PM Parrinello, Michele	Università della Svizzera italiana	Chemical Physics	Rank 47
33	1,949	SN Spaldin, N. A.	ETH Zürich	Applied Physics	Rank 63
34	2,063	SJ Six, Johan	ETH Zürich	Agronomy & Agriculture	Rank 11
35	2,064	DO de Onis, Mercedes	Organisation Mondiale de la Santé	Nutrition & Dietetics	Rank 9
36	2,228	SA Steinfeld, A.	ETH Zürich	Energy	Rank 48
37	2,244	NB Nowack, Bernd	Empa - Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology	Environmental Sciences	Rank 18
38	2,245	AJ Auwerx, Johan	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Developmental Biology	Rank 94
39	2,285	MC Mathers, Colin D.	Organisation Mondiale de la Santé	General & Internal Medicine	Rank 37
40	2,368	TJ Tschopp, Jürg	Université de Lausanne (UNIL)	Immunology	Rank 52
41	2,440	PP Petersen, Poul Erik	Organisation Mondiale de la Santé	Dentistry	Rank 2
42	2,476	SA Sayed, Ali H.	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Networking & Telecommunications	Rank 27
43	2,564	SA Studart, André R.	ETH Zürich	Materials	Rank 50
44	2,613	SF Sallusto, Federica	Istituto di Ricerca in Biomedicina, Bellinzona	Immunology	Rank 57
45	2,667	ZC Zipfel, Cyril	University of Zurich	Plant Biology & Botany	Rank 18
46	2,734	WS Windecker, Stephan	UniversitätsSpital Bern	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 81
47	2,807	RD Rubatto, Daniela	University of Bern	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 44
48	2,869	VD van der Heijden, Marcel G.A.	University of Zurich	Ecology	Rank 102
49	2,905	VP Vuilleumier, Patrik	Université de Genève	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 197
50	3,000	HE Hargittai, Eszter	University of Zurich	Communication & Media Studies	Rank 4
51	3,058	LB Lothenbach, Barbara	Empa - Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology	Building & Construction	Rank 17
52	3,088	SS Seneviratne, Sonia I.	ETH Zürich	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 42
53	3,147	BJ Bascompte, Jordi	University of Zurich	Ecology	Rank 106
54	3,151	KR Kalman, Rudolf	ETH Zürich	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 31
55	3,185	SB Sudret, Bruno	ETH Zürich	Civil Engineering	Rank 5
56	3,231	GJ Goudet, Jérôme	Université de Lausanne (UNIL)	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 39
57	3,277	LT Lüscher, Thomas F.	University of Zurich	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 94
58	3,354	KJ Kirchner, James W.	Eidgenössische Forschungsanstalt fur Wald, Schnee Und Landschaft Eth-Bereichs	Environmental Engineering	Rank 13
59	3,367	MH Markram, Henry	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Neurology & Neurosurgery	Rank 229
60	3,430	LJ Levine, Jonathan M.	ETH Zürich	Ecology	Rank 115
61	3,438	TW Tress, Wolfgang	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 111
62	3,485	MF Martinon, Fabio	Université de Lausanne (UNIL)	Immunology	Rank 78
63	3,514	CS Claessens, Stijn	Bank for International Settlements	Economics	Rank 70
64	3,820	KR Knutti, Reto	ETH Zürich	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 57
65	3,849	GC Gabay, Cem	Hôpitaux universitaires de Genève	Arthritis & Rheumatology	Rank 21
66	3,904	SK Scherer, Klaus R.	Université de Genève	Experimental Psychology	Rank 72
67	3,958	BM Beniston, M.	Université de Genève	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 62
68	4,005	SD Scaramuzza, Davide	University of Zurich	Industrial Engineering & Automation	Rank 53
69	4,034	LA Lanzavecchia, Antonio	Istituto di Ricerca in Biomedicina, Bellinzona	Immunology	Rank 93
70	4,094	VO Voinnet, Olivier	ETH Zürich	Developmental Biology	Rank 172
71	4,164	GT Gerya, Taras	ETH Zürich	Geochemistry & Geophysics	Rank 69
72	4,202	MN Marzari, Nicola	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Applied Physics	Rank 97
73	4,205	SK Sivula, Kevin	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Nanoscience & Nanotechnology	Rank 126
74	4,247	NE Nigg, Erich A.	Biozentrum, Universität Basel	Developmental Biology	Rank 178
75	4,369	DM Donath, Marc Y.	Universitätsspital Basel	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 79
76	4,374	ST Stocker, Thomas F.	University of Bern	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 74
77	4,385	KU Keller, U.	ETH Zürich	Optics	Rank 30
78	4,391	PD Pittet, Didier	Hôpitaux universitaires de Genève	Microbiology	Rank 71
79	4,401	PT Perneger, Thomas	Hôpitaux universitaires de Genève	General & Internal Medicine	Rank 62
80	4,450	SB Smit, Berend	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Chemical Physics	Rank 100
81	4,467	CW Curtin, W. A.	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Materials	Rank 78
82	4,539	GN Gruber, Nicolas	ETH Zürich	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	Rank 78
83	4,542	AC Akdis, Cezmi	University of Zurich	Allergy	Rank 8
84	4,547	BP Bühlmann, Peter	ETH Zürich	Statistics & Probability	Rank 38
85	4,576	BM Büttiker, Markus	Université de Genève	Applied Physics	Rank 109
86	4,628	KH Kokko, Hanna	University of Zurich	Evolutionary Biology	Rank 58
87	4,660	DF Diederich, François	ETH Zürich	Organic Chemistry	Rank 83
88	4,737	JJ Joyce, Johanna A.	Université de Lausanne (UNIL)	Oncology & Carcinogenesis	Rank 156
89	4,749	RR Rizzoli, R.	Hôpitaux universitaires de Genève	Endocrinology & Metabolism	Rank 91
90	4,751	OK Oberauer, Klaus	University of Zurich	Experimental Psychology	Rank 89
91	4,759	BA Bairoch, Amos	Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics	Developmental Biology	Rank 195
92	4,828	LM Lüscher, Martin	European Organization for Nuclear Research	Nuclear & Particle Physics	Rank 34
93	4,986	YO Yazyev, Oleg V.	Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne	Applied Physics	Rank 116
94	5,032	WC Weber, Christian	UniversitätsSpital Bern	Cardiovascular System & Hematology	Rank 149
95	5,102	LN Lang, Niklaus P.	University of Bern	Dentistry	Rank 7
96	5,196	GA Guisan, Antoine	Université de Lausanne (UNIL)	Ecology	Rank 154
97	5,201	FM Fiebig, Manfred	ETH Zürich	Applied Physics	Rank 120
98	5,226	DP Dyson, Paul J.	Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne	Organic Chemistry	Rank 91
99	5,271	MM Morari, M.	ETH Zürich	Industrial Engineering & Automation	Rank 65
100	5,324	SD Sornette, Didier	ETH Zürich	Fluids & Plasmas	Rank 47
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Countries with a similar count

Single-year list2020

Japan4,484 scientistsin 2020

Netherlands3,480 scientistsin 2020

Spain2,767 scientistsin 2020

India2,313 scientistsin 2020

South Korea2,139 scientistsin 2020

Sweden2,132 scientistsin 2020

Explore other countries

Single-year list2020

Germany8,177 scientistsin 2020

France4,502 scientistsin 2020

Belgium1,503 scientistsin 2020

Austria984 scientistsin 2020

Luxembourg48 scientistsin 2020

United Kingdom13,805 scientistsin 2020

All countries on the world map

Frequently asked questions

How many scientists from Switzerland are in the 2020 Stanford Top 2% list?

2,622 scientists affiliated with Switzerland are on the 2020 single-year list, and 2,546 are on the career-long list.

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

On the 2020 single-year list, ETH Zürich has the most listed scientists from Switzerland, with 430. It is followed by University of Zurich with 271.

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.