Yes — real researchers in R&D per million people figures from the World Bank's own open data API.

No. The World Bank indicators API is fully key-less.

How often does it update?

The pipeline re-reads the World Bank's own dataset periodically, on whatever schedule the underlying indicator is republished.

Yes — free, no download, in your browser.

Why does the ranking favour small wealthy countries?

The measure is researchers per million residents, so it rewards countries that employ a large share of their population in research regardless of absolute size.

Why is a country I expected missing?

Only countries with data for the indicator in the World Bank dataset appear. Gaps usually mean no recent submission, not zero researchers.

Researcher Density Board Screensaver

The Researcher Density Board screensaver ranks real researchers in R&D per million people by country. It is free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.

How the Researcher Density Board screensaver works

The saver reads real researchers in R&D per million people data from the World Bank's own open data API.

Countries are ranked by their real latest reported researcher density.

The pipeline refreshes as the World Bank republishes the underlying dataset.

No key is required for this key-less public endpoint.

Counting researchers per million people

The figures come from the World Bank's open data, which carries the indicator Researchers in R&D (per million people) as part of the World Development Indicators. The underlying series is sourced from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. The World Bank describes R&D as covering basic research, applied research and experimental development, and researchers as professionals who conduct or develop research concepts, models, techniques or methods.

Dividing by population is what makes small and large countries comparable, which is why small, research-intensive economies can outrank countries that employ far more researchers in absolute terms. Read each bar as intensity, not size.

There are real caveats. Countries report for different years, so the board shows each country's most recent available value rather than one shared date. Definitions of research roles and the coverage of business-sector research can differ between statistical systems, and some countries publish data only irregularly or not at all, which means they are simply absent from the ranking.

A worked example

A real country's most recent reported researcher density is ranked against the real others, with bars easing into place as the board loads.

Settings & tips

Density is researchers engaged in R&D per million population.
Accent recolours the bars and header text.
Figures come straight from the World Bank's own open data API.

Frequently asked questions

Is this real data?: Yes — real researchers in R&D per million people figures from the World Bank's own open data API.
Is a key needed?: No. The World Bank indicators API is fully key-less.
How often does it update?: The pipeline re-reads the World Bank's own dataset periodically, on whatever schedule the underlying indicator is republished.
Is it free?: Yes — free, no download, in your browser.
Why does the ranking favour small wealthy countries?: The measure is researchers per million residents, so it rewards countries that employ a large share of their population in research regardless of absolute size.
Why is a country I expected missing?: Only countries with data for the indicator in the World Bank dataset appear. Gaps usually mean no recent submission, not zero researchers.

← All Science & Research screensavers