This article lists sovereign countries, territories, and supranational unions by Nobel laureates per capita. The figures include all Nobel Prizes awarded to individuals up to and including 14 October 2019. Population figures are the current values, and the number of laureates is given per 10 million. Only sovereign countries are ranked; unranked entities are marked in italics.
All five prizes (Chemistry, Literature, Peace, Physics, and Physiology or Medicine) and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences are considered.
Rank | Entity | Nobel laureates[1] |
Population (2018)[2] |
Laureates/ 10 million |
Laureates in last 10 years (2014-2023) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
— | Faroe Islands | 1 | 49,489 | 202.065 | 0 |
1 | Saint Lucia | 2 | 179,667 | 111.317 | 0 |
2 | Luxembourg | 2 | 590,321 | 33.880 | 0 |
3 | Sweden | 33 | 9,982,709 | 33.057 | 3 |
4 | Switzerland | 27 | 8,544,034 | 31.601 | 0 |
5 | Iceland | 1 | 337,780 | 29.605 | 0 |
6 | Austria | 23 | 8,751,820 | 26.280 | 3 |
7 | Norway | 13 | 5,353,363 | 24.284 | 2 |
8 | Ireland | 11 | 4,803,748 | 22.898 | 0 |
9 | Denmark | 13 | 5,754,356 | 22.592 | 1 |
10 | United Kingdom | 138 | 66,573,504 | 19.429 | 9 |
11 | Hungary | 15 (22-27)[3] | 9,688,847 | 15.4173 (23.7-27.8) | 0 |
12 | Israel | 13 | 8,452,841 | 15.379 | 0 |
13 | East Timor | 2 | 1,324,094 | 15.105 | 0 |
14 | Germany | 114 | 82,293,457 | 13.245 | 7 |
15 | United States | 409 | 326,766,748 | 11.721 | 48 |
16 | Netherlands | 21 | 17,084,459 | 11.707 | 2 |
17 | France | 75 | 65,233,271 | 10.664 | 7 |
18 | Finland | 5 | 5,542,517 | 9.021 | 1 |
19 | Belgium | 10 | 11,498,519 | 8.697 | 0 |
20 | Cyprus | 1 | 1,189,085 | 8.410 | 0 |
— | European Union[4] | 378 | 444,697,104 | 8.005 | |
21 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1 | 1,372,598 | 7.285 | 0 |
22 | Canada | 25 | 36,953,765 | 6.765 | 4 |
23 | Australia | 15 | 24,772,247 | 6.055 | 1 |
24 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2 | 3,503,554 | 5.708 | 0 |
25 | New Zealand | 3 | 5,275,380 | 5.686 | 0 |
26 | Czech Republic | 6 | 10,625,250 | 5.647 | 0 |
27 | Latvia | 1 | 1,929,938 | 5.182 | 0 |
28 | Croatia | 2 | 3,888,529 | 5.143 | 0 |
29 | Poland | 19 | 38,104,832 | 4.986 | 1 |
30 | North Macedonia | 1 | 2,085,051 | 4.796 | 0 |
31 | Slovenia | 1 | 2,108,708 | 4.742 | 0 |
32 | Liberia | 2 | 4,853,516 | 4.121 | 0 |
33 | Lithuania | 1 | 2,876,475 | 3.476 | 0 |
34 | Italy | 20 | 59,290,969 | 3.373 | 1 |
— | Tibet[5] | 1 | 3,310,836 | 3.020 | 0 |
35 | Japan | 28 | 127,185,332 | 2.202 | 9 |
36 | Belarus | 2 | 9,452,113 | 2.116 | 2 |
37 | Romania | 4 | 19,580,634 | 2.043 | 1 |
38 | Costa Rica | 1 | 4,953,199 | 2.019 | 0 |
39 | PLO | 1 | 5,052,776 | 1.979 | 0 |
40 | Portugal | 2 | 10,291,196 | 1.943 | 0 |
41 | Greece | 2 | 11,142,161 | 1.795 | 0 |
42 | South Africa | 10 | 57,398,421 | 1.742 | 0 |
43 | Spain | 8 | 46,397,452 | 1.724 | 0 |
44 | Russia | 32 | 143,964,709 | 1.598 | 2 |
45 | Bulgaria | 1 | 7,036,848 | 1.421 | 0 |
— | Hong Kong | 1 | 7,428,887 | 1.346 | 0 |
— | World[6] | 919 | 7,632,819,325 | 1.204 | 0 |
46 | Guatemala | 2 | 17,245,346 | 1.160 | 0 |
47 | Argentina | 5 | 44,688,864 | 1.119 | 0 |
48 | Chile | 2 | 18,197,209 | 1.099 | 0 |
49 | Azerbaijan | 1 | 9,923,914 | 1.008 | 0 |
50 | Algeria | 2 | 42,008,054 | 0.476 | 0 |
51 | Ukraine | 2 | 44,009,214 | 0.454 | 1 |
52 | Taiwan | 1 | 23,694,089 | 0.422 | 0 |
53 | Colombia | 2 | 49,464,683 | 0.404 | 1 |
54 | Egypt | 4 | 99,375,741 | 0.403 | 0 |
55 | South Korea | 1 | 51,164,435 | 0.195 | 0 |
56 | Yemen | 1 | 28,915,284 | 0.346 | 0 |
57 | Ghana | 1 | 29,463,643 | 0.339 | 0 |
58 | Venezuela | 1 | 32,381,221 | 0.309 | 0 |
59 | Peru | 1 | 32,551,815 | 0.307 | 0 |
60 | Morocco | 1 | 36,191,805 | 0.276 | 0 |
61 | Iraq | 1 | 39,339,753 | 0.254 | 2 |
62 | Turkey | 2 | 81,916,871 | 0.244 | 1 |
63 | Iran | 2 | 82,011,735 | 0.244 | 0 |
64 | Mexico | 3 | 130,759,074 | 0.229 | 0 |
65 | Kenya | 1 | 50,950,879 | 0.196 | 0 |
66 | Myanmar | 1 | 53,855,735 | 0.186 | 0 |
67 | DR Congo | 1 | 84,004,989 | 0.119 | 1 |
68 | Vietnam | 1 | 96,491,146 | 0.104 | 0 |
69 | Pakistan | 4 | 200,813,818 | 0.300 | 1 |
70 | Ethiopia | 1 | 109,224,410[7] | 0.092 | 0 |
71 | India | 11 | 1,354,051,854 | 0.081 | 2 |
72 | China | 9 | 1,415,045,928 | 0.064 | 1 |
73 | Bangladesh | 1 | 166,368,149 | 0.060 | 0 |
74 | Nigeria | 1 | 195,875,237 | 0.051 | 0 |
Region | Countries | Nobel laureates[1] |
Population (2019)[7] |
Laureates/ 10 million |
---|---|---|---|---|
Europe | 48 | 561 | 747,182,815 | 7.508 |
Northern Europe | 13 | 209 | 105,768,532 | 19.760 |
Western Europe | 9 | 256 | 195,522,412 | 13.093 |
Southern Europe | 16 | 37 | 152,446,950 | 2.427 |
Eastern Europe | 10 | 59 | 293,444,921 | 2.011 |
Americas | 55 | 429 | 1,014,721,900 | 4.228 |
Northern America | 5 | 408 | 366,600,944 | 11.129 |
Latin America and the Caribbean | 50 | 21 | 648,120,956 | 0.324 |
Caribbean | 28 | 3 | 43,335,006 | 0.692 |
Central America | 8 | 6 | 177,586,525 | 0.338 |
South America | 14 | 12 | 427,199,425 | 0.281 |
Oceania | 23 | 17 | 42,128,048 | 4.035 |
Australia/New Zealand | 2 | 17 | 29,986,262 | 5.669 |
Oceania (ex. Aus. and NZ) | 21 | 0 | 12,141,786 | 0.000 |
Melanesia | 5 | 0 | 10,918,534 | 0.000 |
Micronesia | 7 | 0 | 543,483 | 0.000 |
Polynesia | 9 | 0 | 679,769 | 0.000 |
World[6] | 236 | 919 | 7,713,468,205 | 1.191 |
Africa | 58 | 24 | 1,308,064,176 | 0.183 |
Northern Africa | 7 | 7 | 241,780,765 | 0.290 |
Sub-Saharan Africa | 51 | 17 | 1,066,283,411 | 0.159 |
Southern Africa | 5 | 10 | 66,629,894 | 1.501 |
Western Africa | 17 | 4 | 391,440,147 | 0.102 |
Middle Africa | 9 | 1 | 174,308,427 | 0.057 |
Eastern Africa | 20 | 2 | 433,904,943 | 0.046 |
Asia | 52 | 81 | 4,601,371,266 | 0.176 |
Western Asia | 18 | 19 | 275,324,793 | 0.690 |
Eastern Asia | 9 | 42 | 1,672,611,120 | 0.251 |
Southern Asia | 9 | 16 | 1,918,211,396 | 0.083 |
South-Eastern Asia | 11 | 4 | 662,011,846 | 0.060 |
Central Asia | 5 | 0 | 73,212,111 | 0.000 |
Only the awards for Chemistry, Physics, Physiology or Medicine, and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences are considered.
Rank | Entity | Nobel laureates[1] |
Population [2] |
Laureates/ 10 million |
---|---|---|---|---|
— | Faroe Islands | 1 | 49,489 | 202.065 |
1 | Saint Lucia | 1 | 179,667 | 55.659 |
2 | Luxembourg | 2 | 590,321 | 33.880 |
3 | Switzerland | 22 (18 Swiss-born) | 8,811,524 | 24.967 |
4 | Austria | 19 | 8,751,820 | 20.567 |
5 | Denmark | 10 | 5,754,356 | 17.378 |
6 | Sweden | 17 | 9,982,709 | 17.029 |
7 | United Kingdom | 109 | 66,573,504 | 16.373 |
8 | Hungary | 15 (20-23)[8] | 9,688,847 | 15.385 (-23.7)[9] |
9 | Norway | 8 | 5,353,363 | 14.944 |
10 | Germany | 92 | 82,293,457 | 11.180 |
11 | Netherlands | 19 | 17,084,459 | 11.121 |
12 | United States | 350 | 326,766,748 | 10.711 |
13 | Israel | 9 | 8,452,841 | 10.647 |
14 | Cyprus | 1 | 1,189,085 | 8.410 |
15 | New Zealand | 3 | 4,749,598 | 6.316 |
16 | France | 39 | 65,233,271 | 5.979 |
17 | Canada | 22 | 36,953,765 | 5.953 |
— | European Union[10] | 247 | 443,123,600 | 5.574 |
18 | Finland | 3 | 5,542,517 | 5.413 |
19 | Australia | 13 | 24,772,247 | 5.249 |
20 | Belgium | 6 | 11,498,519 | 5.218 |
21 | Latvia | 1 | 1,929,938 | 5.182 |
22 | Croatia | 2 | 3,888,529 | 5.143 |
23 | Slovenia | 1 | 2,108,708 | 4.742 |
24 | Ireland | 2 | 4,803,748 | 4.163 |
25 | Lithuania | 1 | 2,876,475 | 3.476 |
26 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 | 3,503,554 | 2.854 |
27 | Czech Republic | 3 | 10,625,250 | 2.823 |
28 | Italy | 13 | 59,290,969 | 2.193 |
29 | Japan | 24 | 126,226,568 | 1.901 |
— | Hong Kong | 1 | 7,428,887 | 1.346 |
30 | Poland | 5 | 38,104,832 | 1.312 |
31 | Russia | 16 | 143,964,709 | 1.111 |
32 | Belarus | 1 | 9,452,113 | 1.058 |
33 | Romania | 2 | 19,580,634 | 1.021 |
34 | Azerbaijan | 1 | 9,923,914 | 1.008 |
35 | Portugal | 1 | 10,291,196 | 0.972 |
— | World[6] | 697 | 7,632,819,325 | 0.913 |
36 | South Africa | 4 | 57,398,421 | 0.697 |
37 | Argentina | 3 | 44,688,864 | 0.671 |
38 | Spain | 2 | 46,397,452 | 0.431 |
39 | Taiwan | 1 | 23,694,089 | 0.422 |
40 | Venezuela | 1 | 32,381,221 | 0.309 |
41 | Morocco | 1 | 36,191,805 | 0.276 |
42 | Algeria | 1 | 42,008,054 | 0.238 |
43 | Ukraine | 1 | 44,009,214 | 0.227 |
45 | Turkey | 1 | 81,916,871 | 0.122 |
46 | Egypt | 1 | 99,375,741 | 0.101 |
47 | Mexico | 1 | 130,759,074 | 0.076 |
48 | India | 7 | 1,354,051,854 | 0.052 |
49 | Pakistan | 3 | 200,813,818 | 0.150 |
50 | Brazil | 1 | 210,867,954 | 0.047 |
51 | China | 5 | 1,415,045,928 | 0.035 |
This is a list of corrections made to the original figures provided by BBC News: