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Organic chemistry is one of the fastest growing research topics in the Nature Index. In the past five years, organic chemistry-related output in the Nature Index journals has jumped by 31%.
The field, which focuses on carbon-based molecules that are commonly used in drug development, energy production and other processes, is dominated by China. In the current index window (1 May 2024 to 30 April 2025, at the time of writing), China’s article Count is more than three times that of the United States, in second place.
India, meanwhile, has emerged as a key player, with a slight edge over its closest competitor, Japan.
The rankings below, which refer to countries’ and institutions’ output in organic chemistry and chemical sciences by article Share (a fractional metric) and article Count, relate to the current Index time period, unless stated otherwise.
Leading institutions in organic chemistry in the Nature Index
Institutions are ranked by article Share for the period 1 May 2024 to 30 April 2025. Each institution's article count (Count) is also listed.
| Rank | Country | Count | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 1,615 | 1,515.31 |
| 2 | United States | 522 | 399.6 |
| 3 | India | 216 | 198.55 |
| 4 | Japan | 218 | 186.44 |
| 5 | Germany | 237 | 178.95 |
| 6 | United Kingdom | 170 | 119.81 |
| 7 | South Korea | 86 | 64.7 |
| 8 | France | 99 | 59.53 |
| 9 | Spain | 90 | 58.42 |
| 10 | Canada | 68 | 44.39 |
1. China
Share: 1515.31
China is home to 9 out of the 10 leading institutions in organic-chemistry output in the Nature Index, with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in Beijing, the world’s largest research institution, in the lead. CAS and the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), also in Beijing, form the leading global collaboration in the topic by bilateral collaboration score.
China is also a powerhouse in the broader subject area of the chemical sciences, of which its Share (17,283.15, in the current index window) is more than three times that of the United States, at 5,161.48.
2. United States
Share: 399.6
Corporate institutions in the United States are particularly strong in chemical science-related output in the Nature Index. Among the top 10 corporate institutions for chemical sciences output in the Nature Index 2025 Research Leaders (which measured output for the 2024 calendar year), five were based in the United States.
Princeton University-based chemist David MacMillan, is among the most notable US-based chemistry researchers. He was awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his part in developing organocatalysis — a method that uses small, simple molecules to speed up chemical reactions in a more efficient and environmentally friendly way than using conventional catalysts such as metals or enzymes.
3. India
Share: 198.55
Bolstered by well-established domestic collaborations, India ranks third in the world for organic chemistry-related output in the Nature Index.
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in New Delhi and the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research in Uttar Pradesh form the second strongest collaboration globally in the topic area, behind China’s CAS and UCAS.
Notable Indian discoveries in organic chemistry include the development of chemical reactions such as the Baker-Venkataraman rearrangement, which is used in pharmaceuticals manufacturing, and the Bardhan-Sengupta synthesis method, used to produce flavones — compounds found in fruit and vegetables — that are used in medicinal chemistry.
India is also strong in chemical sciences more broadly, holding sixth position in the current index window.
4. Japan
Share: 186.44
Japan's population is roughly one-twelfth that of India, but its organic chemistry-related output nearly matches that of the Asian giant, with just under 13 Share points separating the two. The country is home to a number of Nobel Prize-winning chemists, including Akira Suzuki and Ei-ichi Negishi, who shared the 2010 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for their part in developing the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction, a method used to join two carbon-containing molecules together, often to build complex organic compounds used in pharmaceuticals or materials manufacturing.
In the Nature Index 2024 Science Cities supplement, which analysed data for the 2023 calendar year, Tokyo was one of only two non-Chinese cities among the top 10 for chemical-sciences research, the other one being New York.
5. Germany
Share: 178.95
Germany is the top ranked European country in the Nature Index in both organic chemistry and chemical sciences more broadly. The country’s leading research institute, the Max Planck Society, is the only non-Chinese institution to rank among the top 10 in organic chemistry research.
German non-profit research institutions are particularly strong in the chemical sciences. The Max Planck Society, the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres and the Leibniz Association claimed three of the top five places in the Nature Index 2025 Research Leaders ranking of NPO/NGOs in the subject, alongside a Russian and a Spanish organization.
6. United Kingdom
Share: 119.81
A gap of around 59 Share points separates Germany, in fifth, from the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is similarly 55 Share points above South Korea. These gaps are substantial, given that only 20 Share points separate 7th place-holder South Korea from 10th placed Canada.
In a ranking of Europe’s top 10 institutions in the chemical sciences in the Nature Index 2025 Research Leaders, the United Kingdom claimed four, including the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge. And among the leading corporate institutions for chemical sciences in the current index window, the UK-based AstraZeneca ranks third.
7. South Korea
Share: 64.7
The chemical sciences is South Korea’s second strongest natural-sciences subject in the Nature Index by output, after physical sciences.
In an analysis of the fastest rising South Korean institutions in each of the subject areas tracked by the Nature Index, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon was the fastest rising institute in the chemical sciences for the period 2019 to 2023.
Among KAIST’s recent advances in organic chemistry is the discovery of two new securinega alkaloids — naturally occurring chemical compounds found in plants of the Securinega genus — described in a 2024 paper. Securinega compounds have been found to affect the nervous system, and researchers are exploring their potential use in medicine.
8. France
Share: 59.53
A lot of France’s strength in organic chemistry comes from the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), in Paris, which was ranked second in Europe for chemical sciences output in the Nature Index 2025 Research Leaders. The centre’s prolific research output in the subject was integral to Paris being ranked the leading European city for chemical sciences research in the Nature Index 2024 Science Cities data.
In 2016, Strasbourg-based chemist, Jean-Pierre Sauvage, was among an international team awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, for their work developing miniature molecular machines. The project involved the use of catenanes, molecules made of two or more interlocked carbon rings, which Sauvage had been the first to synthesize.
9. Spain
Share: 58.42
With just over one Share point separating France and Spain, the two countries are close rivals in organic chemistry-related output in the Nature Index. The topic ranks seventh among Spain’s strongest topics in the index, below physical chemistry, particle and high energy physics and oncology and carcinogenesis, to name a few.
Spain counts several pioneering researchers in organic chemistry, including José Elguero Bertolini, whose work advanced the field of heterocyclic compounds — ring structures that contain both carbon and another element.
10. Canada
Share: 44.39
Canada’s strength in organic chemistry is closely tied to its major industries, which include pharmaceutical manufacturing and petrochemical refinement. In 2016, for example, Canadian scientists designed a radiolabelled marker for use in biorthogonal reactions — a chemical process that lets scientists create drug molecules directly inside living cells or tissues.
In the Nature Index 2025 Research Leaders ranking of North American academic institutions in the chemical sciences, Canada had five within the top 50.
