Domain · Social Sciences · Germany
Social Sciences research in Germany
University of Tübingen ranks first in Germany for Social Sciences research in 2022–2025 (#63 worldwide), followed by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and Universität Hamburg.
- Germany's world rank
- #4 of 164 countries, 2022–2025
- Works, 2022–2025
- 193k
- Top-10% rate
- 18.8%
- Ranked institutions
- 60
Research strength only: this says nothing about teaching, admissions or cost.
What is the best university for Social Sciences in Germany?
| # | Institution | World rank | Score | Top-10% rate | Works |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of TübingenTübingen | #63 | 55.3 | 23.7% | 2,602 |
| 2 | Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenMunich | #72 | 53.8 | 21.2% | 3,912 |
| 3 | Universität HamburgHamburg | #91 | 51.3 | 22.0% | 3,857 |
| 4 | University of CologneCologne | #109 | 49.3 | 20.0% | 2,899 |
| 5 | Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinBerlin | #147 | 46.1 | 23.8% | 2,964 |
| 6 | Freie Universität BerlinBerlin | #184 | 43.7 | 19.6% | 3,568 |
| 7 | Goethe University FrankfurtFrankfurt am Main | #203 | 42.6 | 20.3% | 3,271 |
| 8 | University of MünsterMünster | #216 | 42.0 | 20.5% | 2,995 |
| 9 | Heidelberg UniversityHeidelberg | #245 | 40.6 | 20.3% | 2,492 |
| 10 | Technical University of MunichMunich | #262 | 39.9 | 28.7% | 2,077 |
| 11 | Leipzig UniversityLeipzig | #280 | 39.2 | 22.7% | 2,154 |
| 12 | Johannes Gutenberg University MainzMainz | #296 | 38.6 | 22.9% | 1,940 |
| 13 | Ruhr University BochumBochum | #299 | 38.5 | 21.4% | 2,372 |
| 14 | University of PotsdamPotsdam | #327 | 37.5 | 23.6% | 1,863 |
| 15 | University of GöttingenGöttingen | #338 | 37.1 | 22.2% | 1,684 |
| 16 | Friedrich Schiller University JenaJena | #342 | 37.0 | 23.7% | 1,275 |
| 17 | University of BremenBremen | #344 | 36.9 | 23.6% | 1,966 |
| 18 | Max Planck Institute for Human DevelopmentBerlin | #345 | 36.9 | 32.7% | 238 |
| 19 | University of BonnBonn | #355 | 36.6 | 18.6% | 2,091 |
| 20 | University of FreiburgFreiburg im Breisgau | #382 | 35.8 | 19.7% | 1,922 |
| 21 | University of MannheimMannheim | #393 | 35.5 | 28.2% | 1,255 |
| 22 | Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergErlangen | #397 | 35.4 | 21.3% | 2,039 |
| 23 | Bielefeld UniversityBielefeld | #420 | 34.8 | 20.2% | 2,401 |
| 24 | Leibniz University HannoverHanover | #438 | 34.3 | 21.6% | 1,358 |
| 25 | TU Dortmund UniversityDortmund | #444 | 34.2 | 22.9% | 1,910 |
| 26 | University of WürzburgWürzburg | #451 | 34.0 | 21.5% | 1,236 |
| 27 | University of KonstanzKonstanz | #464 | 33.7 | 27.7% | 1,173 |
| 28 | University of Duisburg-EssenEssen | #498 | 32.9 | 24.2% | 2,105 |
| 29 | Philipps University of MarburgMarburg | #516 | 32.6 | 17.3% | 1,737 |
| 30 | Technische Universität BerlinBerlin | #543 | 32.0 | 27.7% | 1,393 |
| 31 | Leuphana University of LüneburgLüneburg | #547 | 31.9 | 29.4% | 951 |
| 32 | Technische Universität DresdenDresden | #567 | 31.5 | 20.4% | 1,795 |
| 33 | University of BambergBamberg | #590 | 31.1 | 21.1% | 1,430 |
| 34 | Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu KielKiel | #592 | 31.1 | 18.6% | 1,307 |
| 35 | Saarland UniversitySaarbrücken | #616 | 30.6 | 22.7% | 949 |
| 36 | University of KasselKassel | #632 | 30.4 | 19.2% | 1,556 |
| 37 | Osnabrück UniversityOsnabrück | #635 | 30.3 | 25.0% | 1,032 |
| 38 | Martin Luther University Halle-WittenbergHalle | #641 | 30.2 | 17.3% | 1,228 |
| 39 | RWTH Aachen UniversityAachen | #643 | 30.2 | 19.3% | 1,876 |
| 40 | University of BayreuthBayreuth | #659 | 29.9 | 22.8% | 1,149 |
| 41 | Paderborn UniversityPaderborn | #690 | 29.4 | 17.5% | 1,105 |
| 42 | Heinrich Heine University DüsseldorfDüsseldorf | #725 | 28.9 | 17.6% | 1,614 |
| 43 | Technische Universität DarmstadtDarmstadt | #797 | 27.9 | 23.6% | 1,215 |
| 44 | Berlin School of Economics and LawBerlin | #799 | 27.8 | 24.1% | 571 |
| 45 | Universität TrierTrier | #800 | 27.8 | 20.4% | 1,014 |
| 46 | DIPF | Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in EducationFrankfurt am Main | #801 | 27.8 | 57.0% | 657 |
| 47 | University of WuppertalWuppertal | #831 | 27.4 | 16.4% | 1,299 |
| 48 | Karlsruhe Institute of TechnologyKarlsruhe | #851 | 27.1 | 24.3% | 1,103 |
| 49 | University of AugsburgAugsburg | #921 | 26.3 | 19.0% | 1,153 |
| 50 | Catholic University of Eichstätt-IngolstadtEichstätt | #942 | 26.1 | 19.0% | 717 |
| 51 | University of RegensburgRegensburg | #951 | 26.0 | 18.1% | 1,050 |
| 52 | Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLeipzig | #1,028 | 25.1 | 47.2% | 224 |
| 53 | WZB Berlin Social Science CenterBerlin | #1,058 | 24.8 | 37.7% | 405 |
| 54 | University of ErfurtErfurt | #1,064 | 24.7 | 18.6% | 936 |
| 55 | University Medical Center Hamburg-EppendorfHamburg | #1,079 | 24.6 | 29.5% | 385 |
| 56 | Justus-Liebig-Universität GießenGiessen | #1,087 | 24.5 | 19.5% | 1,219 |
| 57 | Carl von Ossietzky Universität OldenburgOldenburg | #1,096 | 24.4 | 19.6% | 1,021 |
| 58 | Charité - Universitätsmedizin BerlinBerlin | #1,178 | 23.6 | 16.0% | 837 |
| 59 | Chemnitz University of TechnologyChemnitz | #1,194 | 23.5 | 20.9% | 745 |
| 60 | University of StuttgartStuttgart | #1,195 | 23.5 | 19.1% | 996 |
Institutions in Germany above the floor of 40 fractional works in Social Sciences, ordered by their worldwide rank on research quality, 2022–2025.
Who are the top Social Sciences researchers in Germany?
Niklas Luhmann, Fritz W. Scharpf and Uwe Schimank rank highest among researchers based in Germany.
- 1Niklas Luhmann#53 worldwide overall2.3k citations · 255 works
- 2Fritz W. Scharpf#718 worldwide overall1.3k citations · 136 works
- 3Uwe Schimank#2,694 worldwide overall604 citations · 123 works
- 4Wolfgang Streeck#3,133 worldwide overall838 citations · 185 works
- 5Frank Fischer#4,027 worldwide overall1.7k citations · 130 works
- 6Luc Laeven#4,213 worldwide overall1.5k citations · 109 works
- 7Jürgen Baumert#4,606 worldwide overall1k citations · 187 works
- 8Jürgen Osterhammel#5,719 worldwide overall286 citations · 120 works
- 9Marcel Fratzscher#7,077 worldwide overall859 citations · 110 works
- 10Ludger Woessmann#11,249 worldwide overall1.1k citations · 109 works
- 11Gerd Gigerenzer#11,966 worldwide overall1.5k citations · 132 works
- 12Reinhard Pekrun#13,249 worldwide overall1.3k citations · 116 works
- 13Michael Tomasello#14,436 worldwide overall1.6k citations · 134 works
- 14Reinhard Zimmermann#15,316 worldwide overall246 citations · 180 works
- 15Wolfgang Merkel#15,909 worldwide overall377 citations · 115 works
How Germany compares with other countries in Social Sciences