Home / Education

🎓 Top Research Universities in Saudi Arabia

Universities and colleges in Saudi Arabia 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
King Saud University148,454 papers
6,692,381
2
King Abdulaziz University100,543 papers
5,383,814
3
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology48,199 papers
5,087,002
4
King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals47,957 papers
2,236,925
5
King Khalid University50,558 papers
1,234,572
6
Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University23,773 papers
874,502
7
Taif University31,788 papers
809,010
8
King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences17,591 papers
748,406
9
Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University31,875 papers
727,520
10
King Faisal University28,134 papers
721,105
11
Umm al-Qura University32,808 papers
706,054
12
Qassim University31,082 papers
624,446
13
Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University34,611 papers
603,800
14
Jazan University22,036 papers
592,188
15
Taibah University22,385 papers
559,061
16
Jouf University16,034 papers
448,525
17
University of Ha'il17,009 papers
444,648
18
University of Tabuk17,633 papers
404,528
19
Alfaisal University9,973 papers
370,234
20
Imam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University24,007 papers
357,546
21
Najran University10,217 papers
328,657
22
Prince Sultan University11,173 papers
324,772
23
University of Jeddah15,458 papers
294,556
24
Majmaah University10,794 papers
255,351
25
Northern Border University11,833 papers
159,699
26
Shaqra University8,506 papers
148,453
27
Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University6,653 papers
137,679
28
Al Baha University8,081 papers
100,428
29
University of Bisha6,562 papers
97,049
30
Islamic University of Madinah7,021 papers
91,105
31
Saudi Electronic University4,365 papers
84,412
32
University of Hafr Al-Batin4,055 papers
76,117
33
Effat University2,474 papers
52,833
34
Riyadh Elm University2,026 papers
42,193
35
University of Business and Technology4,446 papers
34,461
36
Al-Farabi College592 papers
27,115
37
Ibn Sina National College for Medical Studies1,923 papers
26,276
38
Jubail Industrial College1,339 papers
24,558
39
Dar Al Uloom University1,578 papers
21,024
40
Yanbu Industrial College1,110 papers
20,451
41
Sulaiman Al Rajhi Colleges801 papers
19,819
42
Buraydah Colleges911 papers
17,620
43
Al Yamamah University969 papers
14,820
44
Fakeeh College for Medical Sciences943 papers
13,955
45
Arab Open University1,484 papers
13,651
46
Fahd bin Sultan University590 papers
10,252
47
Naif Arab University for Security Sciences943 papers
9,848
48
Yanbu University College479 papers
8,322
49
Jubail University College411 papers
8,128
50
Dar Al-Hekma University545 papers
7,776

Highlights

Within Saudi Arabia, King Saud University ranks first in 2026 with 6,692,381, followed by King Abdulaziz University (5,383,814) and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (5,087,002).

Across 50 entries, values run from 6,692,381 (King Saud University) to 7,776 (Dar Al-Hekma University), with a median of 154,076.

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.