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The Nature Index tracks primary research articles from 178 applied, health, natural and social sciences journals, across many different publishers, chosen by an independent group of researchers. The Nature Index provides absolute Count of primary research articles and fractional Share counts of author contribution to articles. The positions in the table below reflect China's position overall, regionally, and in subject areas based on their Share. Each position links to the corresponding table where China is listed.
Position by research output Share
Position by research output Share in subject areas
Research
China has the following research output in the current window (1 May 2025 - 30 April 2026) of the Nature Index. Click on Count to view a list of articles representing the corresponding Share value.
Overall research output
| Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 59157 | 52563.06 |
Overall Count and Share for 'China' based on the 12-month time frame mentioned above.
Research outputs by subject area
Note: Hover over the donut graph to view the Share for each subject.
Leading research topics
In the Current Index (12-month rolling window), China published the most articles in these research topics. Learn more about Nature Research Intelligence Topics.
| Topics | Count | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical Engineering | 5440 | 5083.02 |
| Physical Chemistry | 5499 | 5036.44 |
| Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry | 3737 | 3422.78 |
| Organic Chemistry | 3172 | 2986.70 |
| Electrical Engineering | 2558 | 2375.58 |
| Oncology and Carcinogenesis | 1807 | 1561.36 |
| Clinical Sciences | 1642 | 1387.46 |
| Analytical Chemistry | 1290 | 1213.81 |
| Nanotechnology | 1315 | 1201.13 |
Share output for the past 5 years
| Subject area or journal group | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 16,811 | 20,222 | 23,579 | 43,117 | 52,735 |
| Applied sciences | 3,735 | 4,582 | 5,802 | 15,138 | 18,824 |
| Health sciences | 2,269 | 3,264 | 3,955 | 6,000 | 7,322 |
| Natural sciences | 10,762 | 12,319 | 13,741 | 20,585 | 25,358 |
| Biological sciences | 1,713 | 2,068 | 2,369 | 3,921 | 4,683 |
| Chemistry | 6,154 | 6,924 | 7,756 | 10,788 | 13,567 |
| Earth & environmental sciences | 1,068 | 1,349 | 1,440 | 2,905 | 3,455 |
| Physical sciences | 1,827 | 1,978 | 2,177 | 2,972 | 3,653 |
| Social sciences | 44 | 55 | 82 | 1,393 | 1,232 |
| Nature & Science | 148 | 187 | 204 | 274 | 295 |
Country/territory benchmarking
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Collaboration
In many cases, the highest quality science comes from collaborating. Nature Index collaborations highlight fruitful collaborations that lead to high quality research around the world. The table and charts below highlight the leading collaborators with China.
Collaboration by percentage of Share
Note: Hover over the graph to view collaboration by percentage of Share.
Top 10 collaborators with China by Share
Note: Hover over the bars to view details about each institution's Share.
| Collaborating country/territory | Collaborators' Share | Collaboration Score |
|---|---|---|
| United States of America (USA) | 3338.69 / 1809.21 | 5147.90 |
| United Kingdom (UK) | 1465.37 / 572.67 | 2038.04 |
| Germany | 1146.83 / 564.78 | 1711.61 |
| Australia | 1083.55 / 424.85 | 1508.39 |
| Singapore | 939.61 / 437.81 | 1377.42 |
| Japan | 788.17 / 363.25 | 1151.42 |
| Canada | 555.66 / 236.87 | 792.53 |
| South Korea | 493.09 / 230.41 | 723.50 |
| France | 450.07 / 212.43 | 662.50 |
| Sweden | 353.40 / 128.26 | 481.66 |
View historical country/territory collaboration
Top 10 institutions from China by Share
| Institution | Count | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) | 12537 | 3620.25 |
| 2. Zhejiang University (ZJU) | 3289 | 1233.59 |
| 3. Tsinghua University | 4034 | 1164.91 |
| 4. Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) | 3300 | 1156.37 |
| 5. University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) | 3626 | 1123.57 |
| 6. Peking University (PKU) | 4392 | 1091.79 |
| 7. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) | 5151 | 1063.02 |
| 8. Nanjing University (NJU) | 2718 | 989.80 |
| 9. Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) | 2231 | 865.49 |
| 10. Fudan University | 2704 | 852.10 |
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Latest supplements
Nature Index 2026 Nanoscience and nanotechnology
From programmable RNA architectures to next-generation materials for energy and healthcare, researchers are harnessing the unusual properties of the nanoscale to tackle some of society's biggest challenges. This supplement explores the discoveries that are driving the field, the hurdles that remain and the institutions that are leading in nanoscience and nanotechnology research.
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Chemistry research is undergoing a period of transformation, driven by new technologies and mounting environmental pressures. In this supplement, we explore the trends behind China’s extraordinary rise in chemistry output, and why efforts to curb the use of PFASs are accelerating worldwide. We also look at the innovations that could redefine how chemicals are designed, produced and recycled.
Numerical information only (in the tables above) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International.