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University Directory · East Asia & Pacific

Top 25 universities in Japan

The 25 leading universities and higher education institutions in Japan, ordered by the citations their research has received. Part of the WAC University Directory.

25 institutions listed · data October 2026

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  1. 1
    Full profile

    The University of Tokyo (UT)

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 601,075 research works
    • 51.1 million citations
    • h-index 1,457
    In WAC News: University of Tokyo publishes first application guidelines for College of DesignView full profile
  2. 2

    Kyoto University

    Kyoto, Japan

    • 402,209 research works
    • 31.2 million citations
    • h-index 1,151
  3. 3

    The University of Osaka

    Osaka, Japan

    • 329,074 research works
    • 27.5 million citations
    • h-index 1,135
  4. 4

    Tohoku University

    Sendai, Miyagi, Japan

    • 305,197 research works
    • 19.5 million citations
    • h-index 876
  5. 5

    Nagoya University

    Nagoya, Aichi, Japan

    • 318,316 research works
    • 15.7 million citations
    • h-index 755
  6. 6

    Kyushu University

    Fukuoka, Japan

    • 255,503 research works
    • 14.9 million citations
    • h-index 718
  7. 7

    Hokkaido University

    Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan

    • 275,523 research works
    • 12.3 million citations
    • h-index 656
  8. 8

    Tokyo Institute of Technology (東工大)

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 180,340 research works
    • 10 million citations
    • h-index 677
    In WAC News: Institute of Science Tokyo launches after merger of Tokyo Tech and TMDU
  9. 9

    University of Tsukuba

    Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

    • 150,035 research works
    • 9.6 million citations
    • h-index 684
  10. 10

    Keio University

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 137,864 research works
    • 8.6 million citations
    • h-index 734
  11. 11

    Hiroshima University

    Hiroshima, Japan

    • 128,478 research works
    • 7.4 million citations
    • h-index 593
  12. 12

    Kobe University

    Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan

    • 104,209 research works
    • 7.2 million citations
    • h-index 618
  13. 13

    Chiba University

    Chiba, Japan

    • 99,325 research works
    • 6.3 million citations
    • h-index 542
  14. 14

    Okayama University

    Okayama, Japan

    • 103,104 research works
    • 6 million citations
    • h-index 512
  15. 15

    Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU)

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 61,990 research works
    • 5 million citations
    • h-index 568
    In WAC News: Institute of Science Tokyo launches after merger of Tokyo Tech and TMDU
  16. 16

    Kanazawa University

    Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan

    • 76,415 research works
    • 4.8 million citations
    • h-index 509
  17. 17

    Kumamoto University

    Kumamoto, Japan

    • 64,340 research works
    • 4.8 million citations
    • h-index 537
  18. 18

    Niigata University

    Niigata, Japan

    • 65,769 research works
    • 3.9 million citations
    • h-index 473
  19. 19

    Osaka City University (OCU)

    Osaka, Japan

    • 60,520 research works
    • 3.6 million citations
    • h-index 452
  20. 20

    Waseda University

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 100,249 research works
    • 3.5 million citations
    • h-index 429
  21. 21

    Juntendo University

    Tokyo, Japan

    • 50,627 research works
    • 3.5 million citations
    • h-index 530
  22. 22

    Nagasaki University

    Nagasaki, Japan

    • 58,427 research works
    • 3.4 million citations
    • h-index 424
  23. 23

    Tokushima University

    Tokushima, Japan

    • 53,055 research works
    • 3.3 million citations
    • h-index 406
  24. 24

    Shinshu University

    Matsumoto, Nagano, Japan

    • 58,119 research works
    • 3.2 million citations
    • h-index 440
  25. 25

    Gunma University

    Maebashi, Japan

    • 52,478 research works
    • 2.8 million citations
    • h-index 389

Ordered by total research citations recorded in OpenAlex (October 2026). Works, citations and h-index are OpenAlex figures for the institution. How the list is made.

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About the directory

How institutions are chosen and ordered

The directory lists 1436 universities, colleges and higher education institutions in 199 countries and territories. In countries with 200 or more higher education institutions recorded in OpenAlex it lists the top 25; everywhere else, the top 5.

Institutions are ordered by the total number of citations their research has received, as recorded in OpenAlex, the open catalogue of the world’s research, with data taken in October 2026. This is a transparent, research-based order: it favours large research institutions and does not measure teaching quality, student experience or graduate outcomes. University systems are left out in favour of their campuses, and faculties or institutes are left out when their parent university is already listed. Names, cities and websites come from OpenAlex and the Research Organization Registry (ROR).

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