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🎓 Top Research Universities in Afghanistan

Universities and colleges in Afghanistan ranked by the total citations their research has received (OpenAlex).

📅 2026📏 citations50 entries🇦🇫 See all of this country’s rankings →
Every dot is one entry, placed by its value (citations, logarithmic scale); the vertical bar marks each row’s median.
1
Kabul University3,343 papers
29,379
2
Kabul University of Medical Sciences Abu Ali Ibn Sina1,296 papers
13,390
3
Kandahar University746 papers
9,714
4
Nangarhar University1,176 papers
6,994
5
Polytechnical University of Kabul505 papers
6,051
6
Kardan University709 papers
4,606
7
American University of Afghanistan217 papers
3,741
8
Herat University767 papers
3,700
9
Khost University339 papers
2,176
10
Laghman University228 papers
2,176
11
Bakhtar University234 papers
2,012
12
Takhar University256 papers
1,845
13
Afghanistan National Agricultural Sciences and Technology University190 papers
1,781
14
Alberoni University211 papers
1,701
15
Balkh University461 papers
1,697
16
Kunduz University271 papers
1,508
17
Ghazni University588 papers
1,323
18
Ghalib University327 papers
1,207
19
Bamyan University285 papers
1,120
20
Khatam Al-Nabieen University287 papers
1,011
21
Parwan University177 papers
961
22
Kabul Education University450 papers
835
23
Khurasan University121 papers
824
24
Paktia University306 papers
816
25
Badakhshan University323 papers
810
26
Jawzjan University267 papers
745
27
Sayed Jamaluddin Afghani University161 papers
644
28
Muslim University34 papers
518
29
Faryab University223 papers
464
30
Jami University277 papers
407
31
Bost University42 papers
378
32
Wadie Helmand University43 papers
346
33
Baghlan University186 papers
299
34
Afghan International Islamic University142 papers
253
35
Mirwais Khan Nika Zabul University42 papers
178
36
Rokhan University90 papers
174
37
Logar University40 papers
167
38
Farah University106 papers
102
39
Spinghar Institute of Higher Education, Nangarhar49 papers
83
40
Spinghar Institute of Higher Education, Kabul86 papers
60
41
Salam University221 papers
56
42
Pamir University12 papers
36
43
Cheragh Medical University28 papers
35
44
Bayazid Rokhan Institute of Higher Education15 papers
33
45
Tabesh University23 papers
33
46
Mirwais Neeka University12 papers
23
47
Rozgan University10 papers
16
48
Mili University20 papers
15
49
Noman Sadat Institute of Higher Education6 papers
5
50
Shifa University10 papers
5

Highlights

Within Afghanistan, Kabul University ranks first in 2026 with 29,379, followed by Kabul University of Medical Sciences Abu Ali Ibn Sina (13,390) and Kandahar University (9,714).

Kabul University is 2.2 times higher than Kabul University of Medical Sciences Abu Ali Ibn Sina, the runner-up.

Across 50 entries, values run from 29,379 (Kabul University) to 5 (Shifa University), with a median of 778.

Source: OpenAlex, citations received by each institution's papers, 2026. Unit: citations.

Source: OpenAlex, citations received by each institution's papers · CC0 1.0 (OpenAlex) · fetched Oct 13, 2026 — Counts every citation to papers by authors affiliated with the institution, so large and old universities score high. It measures research impact, not teaching quality.