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Belgium vs Spain

On research quality in 2022-now, Spain ranks #10 in the world and Belgium #19, of 189 countries. Belgium stands higher in 1 of the 26 fields both publish in, Spain in 25.

Research profiles alike: 0.71very similar shapes of research, whatever their size. How it is measured

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Belgium

World rank, 2022-now
#19
#19 all time
Works, 2022-now
106k
fractional
Top-10% rate
11.6%
share of its work among the world's most cited
Open access
43%
of its works free to read

Strongest relative focus: Medical Terminology, Equine, Insect Science.

Spain

World rank, 2022-now
#10
#10 all time
Works, 2022-now
435k
fractional
Top-10% rate
11.0%
share of its work among the world's most cited
Open access
52%
of its works free to read

Strongest relative focus: Life-span and Life-course Studies, General Social Sciences, General Arts and Humanities.

Who leads, measure by measure?

Belgium leads on 5 of 9 measures: citation excellence for its fields, top-10% rate, citations per work, institutions in the world top 100 and international co-authorship. Spain leads on 4 of 9 measures: research quality, output, open access and growth.

Belgium 54 Spain
  1. #19Research qualityworld rank of 189 countries, 2022-now#10
  2. 1.17×Citation excellence for its fieldsits top-10% rate against what its topics predict; 1.00× is as expected1.08×
  3. 106kOutputfractional works, 2022-now435k
  4. 11.6%Top-10% rateshare of its works among the world's most cited11.0%
  5. 22.6Citations per workall time, per fractional work19.1
  6. 1World top 100institutions it holds among the world's best 1000
  7. 43%Open accessof its works free to read, all time52%
  8. 27%Internationalof its works written with co-authors abroad, all time23%
  9. -13%Growthworks in 2022-25 against 2018-21; half a bar is no change+1%

A rank is drawn as its standing: the longer the bar, the nearer the top. Anything else is drawn against the larger of the two, and two values a hair apart are called level. Quality, citation excellence and the top-10% rate are explained in the methodology.

Who leads in each field?

Belgium stands higher in 1 of 26 fields, Spain in 25. Spain leads most in Nursing (#5 against #20); Belgium leads most in Immunology and Microbiology (#10 against #12). Each bar is that side's standing among all countries ranked in the field: the full bar is first place.

Belgium 125 Spain
  1. #14Agricultural and Biological Sciences#7
  2. #15Arts and Humanities#5
  3. #19Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology#10
  4. #21Business, Management and Accounting#7
  5. #15Chemical Engineering#12
  6. #20Chemistry#7
  7. #24Computer Science#12
  8. #18Decision Sciences#11
  9. #19Dentistry#6
  10. #20Earth and Planetary Sciences#13
  11. #18Economics, Econometrics and Finance#10
  12. #24Energy#9
  13. #18Engineering#13
  14. #17Environmental Science#8
  15. #19Health Professions#9
  16. #10Immunology and Microbiology#12
  17. #25Materials Science#10
  18. #19Mathematics#9
  19. #16Medicine#12
  20. #19Neuroscience#12
  21. #20Nursing#5
  22. #17Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics#10
  23. #20Physics and Astronomy#9
  24. #20Psychology#10
  25. #20Social Sciences#6
  26. #14Veterinary#11

Standing is the percentile of world rank within each field, 2022-now; the printed number is the rank itself. A dash means the field is too small there to rank. How sides are compared.

The numbers behind each field

Click a heading to sort. The side that does better in a pair of columns is shaded: a lower rank, a higher rate, more works.

Field Belgium rankSpain rank Belgium top 10%Spain top 10% Belgium worksSpain works
Agricultural and Biological Sciences #14 #7 11.2% 13.0% 5.1k 17k
Arts and Humanities #15 #5 12.0% 11.6% 4.7k 35k
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology #19 #10 11.5% 10.3% 6.1k 22k
Business, Management and Accounting #21 #7 13.1% 14.0% 2.4k 10k
Chemical Engineering #15 #12 9.2% 8.9% 395 1.4k
Chemistry #20 #7 10.6% 9.7% 1.5k 6.2k
Computer Science #24 #12 9.5% 11.8% 5.9k 25k
Decision Sciences #18 #11 12.2% 13.2% 1k 3k
Dentistry #19 #6 16.8% 17.3% 419 1.7k
Earth and Planetary Sciences #20 #13 10.3% 9.6% 1.6k 7.1k
Economics, Econometrics and Finance #18 #10 12.0% 12.2% 2.4k 8.2k
Energy #24 #9 9.3% 8.6% 645 3.2k
Engineering #18 #13 9.8% 9.5% 14k 39k
Environmental Science #17 #8 10.8% 10.3% 5.1k 21k
Health Professions #19 #9 12.1% 12.2% 2.9k 11k
Immunology and Microbiology #10 #12 14.1% 10.1% 1.3k 4.8k
Materials Science #25 #10 9.3% 8.9% 2.8k 9.5k
Mathematics #19 #9 11.1% 10.9% 1.4k 4.6k
Medicine #16 #12 13.1% 10.1% 23k 100k
Neuroscience #19 #12 10.9% 9.6% 2.4k 7.3k
Nursing #20 #5 13.7% 12.7% 456 1.9k
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics #17 #10 10.1% 11.2% 264 1k
Physics and Astronomy #20 #9 11.0% 11.0% 2.8k 10k
Psychology #20 #10 11.2% 11.6% 3.9k 17k
Social Sciences #20 #6 12.3% 12.3% 13k 66k
Veterinary #14 #11 13.9% 12.2% 298 690

What is each known for?

The keywords that describe each side's research, by fractional works in 2022-now and weighted toward what it does more of than the world.

Belgium

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's
All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Epidemiology5,676▲ 1.18×140 topics
  2. Climate Change3,571◆ 1.09×131 topics
  3. Globalization2,872▲ 1.21×182 topics
  4. Machine Learning2,752▼ 0.68×95 topics
  5. Sustainability2,563◆ 0.87×139 topics
  6. Deep Learning2,543▼ 0.61×84 topics
  7. Inflammation2,452◆ 0.95×83 topics
  8. Quality of Life2,117▲ 1.21×61 topics
  9. Public Health1,899◆ 1.08×76 topics
  10. Environmental Impact1,870◆ 0.91×73 topics
  11. Mental Health1,824◆ 1.06×48 topics
  12. Treatment1,666◆ 1.13×52 topics
  13. Oxidative Stress1,578▼ 0.79×63 topics
  14. Biodiversity1,547▲ 1.68×38 topics
  15. Human Rights1,377◆ 1.11×90 topics
  16. Cardiovascular Disease1,345◆ 0.98×39 topics
  17. Renewable Energy1,332▼ 0.76×61 topics
  18. Diagnosis1,313▲ 1.17×41 topics
  19. Invasive Species1,118▲ 2.2×21 topics
  20. Identity1,090▲ 1.25×79 topics
  21. Genetics1,056▲ 1.24×27 topics
  22. Gender1,049▲ 1.62×58 topics
  23. Management1,048◆ 1.09×40 topics
  24. Clinical Trials974▲ 1.21×19 topics
  25. Social Justice970▲ 1.35×55 topics
  26. Religion929▲ 1.66×43 topics
  27. Colonialism917▲ 1.60×51 topics
  28. Evolution878▲ 2.7×19 topics
  29. Ethics878▲ 1.44×62 topics
  30. Conservation875▲ 1.69×24 topics
  31. Democracy797▲ 1.89×30 topics
  32. Phylogeny787▲ 3.9×17 topics
  33. Community Engagement766▲ 1.95×21 topics
  34. European Union738▲ 2.7×29 topics
  35. Taxonomy679▲ 3.9×15 topics
  36. Biogeography664▲ 1.97×20 topics
  37. DNA Barcoding651▲ 3.1×9 topics
  38. Territorial Governance539▲ 3.9×4 topics
  39. Local Development510▲ 4.1×2 topics
  40. Institutionalization460▲ 4.1×5 topics

Spain

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's
All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Epidemiology25k▲ 1.30×140 topics
  2. Climate Change16k▲ 1.20×131 topics
  3. Education15k▲ 1.76×160 topics
  4. Globalization14k▲ 1.47×185 topics
  5. Sustainability12k◆ 1.03×139 topics
  6. Inflammation11k◆ 1.07×83 topics
  7. Quality of Life9,809▲ 1.38×61 topics
  8. History9,611▲ 2.8×66 topics
  9. Mental Health8,938▲ 1.27×48 topics
  10. Public Health8,852▲ 1.23×77 topics
  11. COVID-198,630▲ 1.35×34 topics
  12. Treatment8,507▲ 1.42×52 topics
  13. Gender8,303▲ 3.1×58 topics
  14. Cultural Heritage7,636▲ 2.9×40 topics
  15. Innovation7,337▲ 1.44×90 topics
  16. Literature7,334▲ 2.7×64 topics
  17. Educational Technology7,276▲ 1.25×47 topics
  18. Identity7,246▲ 2.0×80 topics
  19. Human Rights7,119▲ 1.41×91 topics
  20. Risk Factors7,034▲ 1.30×37 topics
  21. Cardiovascular Disease6,815▲ 1.21×39 topics
  22. Diagnosis6,484▲ 1.41×41 topics
  23. Latin America5,627▲ 6.0×23 topics
  24. Communication5,371▲ 3.5×25 topics
  25. Ethics5,319▲ 2.1×62 topics
  26. Culture5,048▲ 1.96×40 topics
  27. Technology4,954▲ 1.92×44 topics
  28. Social Movements4,727▲ 3.2×33 topics
  29. Welfare State4,694▲ 12×4 topics
  30. Urban Development4,392▲ 2.5×23 topics
  31. Society4,274▲ 4.5×26 topics
  32. Historiography4,146▲ 6.9×15 topics
  33. Spain3,916▲ 22×5 topics
  34. Informal Learning3,128▲ 4.9×6 topics
  35. Iberian Peninsula2,928▲ 21×3 topics
  36. Participation2,747▲ 5.8×5 topics
  37. Political Power2,708▲ 12×5 topics
  38. Family Support2,484▲ 7.8×2 topics
  39. Social Work2,467▲ 7.6×4 topics
  40. Migrant Integration2,432▲ 15×2 topics

Size is fractional works in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of the side's work against its share of the world's. Each word links to the topic it comes from most.

How has their output grown?

Spain has out-published Belgium every year since 1985, when it overtook it.

still counting50k100k150kSpain111k in 2025Belgium27k in 20251990200020102020

Fractional works per year.

Their share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share, because all of science grows. Each line is a side as a percentage of every work published that year.

still counting1.0%2.0%3.0%Spain1.9% in 2025Belgium0.46% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

The share of each side's works, year by year, that reached the world's 10% most cited for their field and year. The average of all institutions is 10.0% (why not 10%).

still counting5%10%15%Belgium11.0% in 2025Spain10.8% in 2025200020102020

A year with under 1% of the side's peak output is left out: a rate over a handful of papers says nothing. The latest years are still being cited.

Who holds more of the world's best institutions?

A country's average quality and the number of institutions it holds at the very top can disagree, and both are worth knowing. The counts are nested: an institution in the top 50 is also in the top 100.

Belgium 11 level3 Spain
  1. 0In the world top 500
  2. 1In the top 1000
  3. 6In the top 50015
  4. 9In the top 1,00037
  5. #17Elite capacityrank among 204 countries#7

Institutions ranked on research quality, 2022-now. Elite capacity counts a country's institutions by their worldwide rank, weighted so a place at #1 counts for more than one at #480.

Which publishes more research, Belgium or Spain?

Spain publishes 4.1× as much research as Belgium in 2022-now (435k against 106k fractional works).

Whose research has more impact, Belgium or Spain?

11.6% of Belgium's research reaches the world's top 10% most cited, against 11.0% for Spain.

Is Belgium or Spain growing faster?

Output in 2022-25 was +1% against 2018-21 for Spain, and -13% for Belgium.

Which has more open access research, Belgium or Spain?

52% of Spain's research is free to read, against 43% of Belgium's.

Which has more world-class institutions, Belgium or Spain?

Belgium holds 1 of the world's top 100 research institutions and Spain 0; in the top 1,000 it is 9 against 37.

Which institutions lead in each country?

The highest-ranked institutions on each side on research quality, 2022-now. The percentage is each institution's own top-10% rate: the share of its works that are among the world's 10% most cited for their field and year. Every figure stands alone, so they do not add up to 100%.

Belgium

  1. 1KU Leuven13.1% top 10% · 20k works
  2. 2Ghent University13.8% top 10% · 16k works
  3. 3University of Antwerp13.0% top 10% · 7.1k works
  4. 4UCLouvain10.1% top 10% · 7.4k works
  5. 5Vrije Universiteit Brussel13.0% top 10% · 6k works
  6. 6Université Libre de Bruxelles11.1% top 10% · 6.5k works

Spain

  1. 1Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas11.1% top 10% · 26k works
  2. 2Universitat de Barcelona11.6% top 10% · 16k works
  3. 3Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona12.5% top 10% · 13k works
  4. 4Universitat Pompeu Fabra15.6% top 10% · 4.1k works
  5. 5University of the Basque Country11.3% top 10% · 10k works
  6. 6Universidad Autónoma de Madrid11.2% top 10% · 12k works

The number is the rank inside the country. The track on each row is the top-10% rate; the tick is the average of all institutions, 10.0% (how it is set): teal above it, red below. The ranking is the quality score, which compares the rate with what each institution's own topics predict and adds a small reward for size, so the rates do not fall in order.

Who are the top researchers on each side?

The most cited researchers on each side, among those ranked.

Belgium

  1. 1 Jeroen Raes #1,855 worldwide 126k citations · 470 works
  2. 2 Sarah‐Maria Fendt #3,456 worldwide 20k citations · 242 works
  3. 3 M. Maes #3,749 worldwide 54k citations · 515 works
  4. 4 Mohamed Lamkanfi #4,281 worldwide 30k citations · 149 works
  5. 5 Diego G. Miralles #6,426 worldwide 38k citations · 485 works

Spain

  1. 1 Manuel Delgado‐Baquerizo #190 worldwide 47k citations · 611 works
  2. 2 Cecilio García-Quirós #204 worldwide 57k citations · 198 works
  3. 3 J. Calderón Bustillo #251 worldwide 86k citations · 281 works
  4. 4 D. Keitel #327 worldwide 89k citations · 319 works
  5. 5 T. Dent #357 worldwide 96k citations · 327 works

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