List of herbaria
This is a list of active herbaria, organized first by continent where the herbarium is located, then within each continent by size of the collection. The list is based on the Index Herbariorum, a global directory of herbaria and their associated staff.
A herbarium is a collection of preserved plant specimens. These specimens may be whole plants or plant parts: these will usually be in a dried form, mounted on a sheet, but depending upon the material may also be kept in alcohol or other preservative. The same term is often used in mycology to describe an equivalent collection of preserved fungi and in phycology to describe a collection of algae. To preserve their form and color, plants collected in the field are spread flat on sheets of newsprint and dried, usually in a plant press, between blotters or absorbent paper. The specimens, which are then mounted on sheets of stiff white paper, are labeled with all essential data, such as collector, date and place found, description of the plant, elevation, and special habitat conditions. The sheet is then placed in a protective case. As a precaution against insect damage, the pressed plant is frozen or poisoned and the case disinfected. Most herbaria use a standard system of organizing their specimens into herbarium cases. Specimen sheets are stacked in groups by the species to which they belong and placed into a large lightweight folder that is labelled on the bottom edge. Groups of species folders are then placed together into larger, heavier folders by genus. The genus folders are then sorted by taxonomic family according to the standard system selected for use by the herbarium and placed into pigeonholes in herbarium cabinets.
Herbaria are essential for the study of plant taxonomy, the study of geographic distributions, and the stabilizing of nomenclature. Herbaria also preserve an historical record of change in vegetation over time. In some cases, plants become extinct in one area, or may become extinct altogether. In such cases, specimens preserved in an herbarium can represent the only record of the plant's original distribution. Environmental scientists make use of such data to track changes in climate and human impact.
Africa
Asia
Australasia and Oceania
Europe
| Name | No. Specimens | Code | Location | Link |
| Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle | 9,500,000 | P, PC | France; Paris | |
| Komarov Botanical Institute | 7,160,000 | LE | Russia; St. Petersburg | |
| Royal Botanic Gardens Kew | 7,000,000 | K | UK; Kew, England | |
| Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève | 6,000,000 | G | Switzerland; Geneva | |
| Naturalis Biodiversity Center | 5,700,000 | AMD, L, U, WAG | Netherlands; Leiden | |
| British Museum of Natural History | 5,200,000 | BM | UK; London, England | |
| Naturhistorisches Museum Wien | 5,000,000 | W | Austria; Vienna | |
| Swedish Museum of Natural History | 4,400,000 | S | Sweden; Stockholm | |
| Meise Botanic Garden | 4,000,000 | BR | Belgium, Meise | |
| Université Montpellier | 4,000,000 | MPU | France; Montpellier | |
| Université Claude Bernard | 4,000,000 | LY | France; Lyon | |
| Herbarium Haussknecht Friedrich Schiller University Jena | 3,500,000 | JE | Germany, Jena | |
| Joint Herbarium of the University of Zurich and the ETH Zurich | 3,500,000 | Z+ZT | Switzerland, Zurich | |
| Botanischer Garten und Botanisches Museum Berlin-Dahlem, Zentraleinrichtung der Freien Universität Berlin | 3,000,000 | B | Germany, Berlin | |
| Finnish Museum of Natural History | 3,000,000 | H | Finland, Helsinki | |
| Botanische Staatssammlung München | 3,000,000 | M | Germany, Munich | |
| University of Copenhagen | 2,510,000 | C | Denmark, Copenhagen | |
| Hungarian Natural History Museum - Department of Botany | 2,000,000 | BP | Budapest, Hungary | |
| Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh | 2,000,000 | E | UK; Edinburgh, Scotland | |
| Herbarium Hamburgense | 1,800,000 | HBG | Germany, Hamburg | |
| Senckenberg Research Institute, Frankfurt | 1,200,000 | FR | Germany, Frankfurt | |
| Moscow State University | 1,011,253 | MW | Russia; Moscow | , |
| University of Cambridge | 1,000,000 | CGE | UK; Cambridge, England | |
| University of Manchester | 1,000,000 | MANCH | UK; Manchester, England | |
| Real Jardín Botánico | 850,000 | MA | Spain; Madrid | |
| Universität Göttingen | 800,000 | GOET | Germany; Göttingen | |
| Władysław Szafer Institute of Botany, Polish Academy of Sciences | 800,000 | IB PAN | Poland; Kraków | |
| University of Coimbra | 800,000 | COI | Portugal; Coimbra | |
| Institut Botànic de Barcelona | 700,000 | BC | Spain; Barcelona | |
| Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle de Grenoble | 700,000 | GRM | France; Grenoble | |
| Saint Petersburg University | 700,000 | LECB | Russia; Saint Petersburg | |
| National Botanic Gardens, Ireland | 600,000 | DBN | Ireland; Dublin | |
| Main Botanical Garden, Russia | 570,000 | MHA | Russia; Moscow | |
| Institut des Herbiers Universitaires de Clermont-Ferrand | 550,000 | CLF | France; Clermont-Ferrand | |
| National Museum Wales | 550,000 | NMW | UK; Cardiff, Wales | |
| N. I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry | 524,000 | WIR | Russia; Saint Petersburg | |
| Fielding-Druce Herbarium, University of Oxford | 500,000 | OXF | UK; Oxford, England | |
| General Herbarium of the Balkan Peninsula, Natural History Museum of Serbia | 490,000 | BEO | Serbia; Belgrade | |
| Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle d'Aix-en-Provence | 420,000 | AIX | France; Aix-en-Provence | |
| Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle | 400,000 | AUT | France; Autun | |
| Muséum Requien | 400,000 | AV | France; Avignon | |
| Université de Liège | 400,000 | LG | Belgium; Liège | |
| CABI Bioscience UK Centre | 385,000 | IMI | UK; Surrey, England | |
| Jardin Botanique de la Ville de Bordeaux | 350,000 | BORD | France; Bordeaux | |
| World Museum Liverpool | 350,000 | LIV | UK; Liverpool, England | |
| South Federal University | 328,000 | RV, RWBG | Russia; Rostov-on-Don | |
| Arboretum Gaston Allard | 300,000 | ANG | France; Angers | |
| Jevremovac Botanic Garden | 300,000 | BEOU | Serbia; Belgrade | |
| Daubeny Herbarium, University of Oxford | 300,000 | FHO | UK; Oxford, England | |
| Institut de Botanique | 300,000 | STR | France; Strasbourg | |
| Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical | 300,000 | LISC | Portugal; Lisboa | |
| Université Paul Sabatier | 300,000 | TL | France; Toulouse | |
| Universitat de Barcelona | 300,000 | BCN | Spain; Barcelona | |
| Universitat de Sevilla | 300,000 | SEV | Spain; Seville | |
| University of Reading | 300,000 | RNG | UK; Reading, England | |
| Budakeszi Herbarium - International Dendrological Foundation | 250,000 | BK | Hungary; Budakeszi | |
| Université Libre de Bruxelles | 215,000 | BRLU | Belgium; Brussels | |
| Agricultural University - Plovdiv | 150,000 | SOA | Bulgaria; Plovdiv | |
| Royal Horticultural Society | 140,000 | WSY | UK; Wisley, England |
North America
Includes herbaria in Central America and the West Indies.| Name | No. Specimens | Code | Location | Link |
| New York Botanical Garden | 7,800,000 | NY | United States; The Bronx, New York City, New York | |
| Missouri Botanical Garden | 6,600,000 | MO | United States; St. Louis, Missouri | |
| Harvard University Herbaria | 5,005,000 | A, AMES, ECON, FH, GH, NEBC | United States; Cambridge, Massachusetts | |
| United States National Herbarium, Smithsonian Institution | 5,000,000 | US | United States; Washington, D.C. | |
| Field Museum | 2,700,000 | F | United States; Chicago, Illinois | |
| University and Jepson Herbaria, University of California, Berkeley | 2,200,000 | UC/JEPS | United States; Berkeley, California | |
| California Academy of Sciences Herbarium | 2,000,000 | CAS/DS | United States; San Francisco, California | |
| University of Michigan Herbarium | 1,750,000 | MICH | United States; Ann Arbor, Michigan | |
| Academy of Natural Sciences | 1,430,000 | PH | United States; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
| Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Vascular Plant Herbarium | 1,335,000 | DAO, DAOM | Canada; Ottawa, Ontario | |
| Wisconsin State Herbarium, University of Wisconsin–Madison | 1,200,750 | WIS | United States; Madison, Wisconsin | |
| Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México | 1,120,000 | MEXU | Mexico; Mexico City | |
| Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden | 1,100,000 | RSA/POM | United States; Claremont, California | |
| University of Texas at Austin | 1,006,000 | TEX | United States; Austin, Texas | |
| Botanical Research Institute of Texas | 1,001,000 | BRIT-SMU-VDB | United States; Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Mexico | 950,000 | ENCB | Mexico; Mexico City | |
| L.H. Bailey Hortorium Herbarium, Cornell University | 860,000 | BH | United States; Ithaca, New York | |
| Royal Ontario Museum | 860,000 | TRT, TRTC | Canada; Toronto, Ontario | |
| Herbier Marie-Victorin, Université de Montréal | 850,000 | MT | Canada; Montreal, Quebec | |
| National Herbarium of Canada, Canadian Museum of Nature | 838,000 | CAN, CANM | Canada; Ottawa, Ontario | |
| Rocky Mountain Herbarium, University of Wyoming | 806,800 | RM | United States; Laramie, Wyoming | |
| United States National Arboretum Herbarium | 800,000 | NA | United States; Washington, D.C. | |
| Herbier Louis-Marie, Université Laval | 770,000 | ULF | Canada; Quebec City, Quebec | |
| University of North Carolina Herbarium | 665,000 | NCU | United States; Chapel Hill, North Carolina | |
| Stanley L. Welsh Herbarium, Brigham Young University | 661,100 | BRY | United States; Provo, Utah | |
| University of Washington Herbarium | 650,000 | WTU | United States; Seattle, Washington | |
| University of Tennessee Herbarium, University of Tennessee, Knoxville | 650,000 | TENN | United States; Knoxville, Tennessee | |
| University of British Columbia Herbarium | 560,000 | UBC | Canada; Vancouver, British Columbia | |
| The Ohio State University Herbarium | 500,000 | OS | United States; Columbus, Ohio | |
| University of Florida Herbarium, Florida Museum of Natural History | 470,000 | FLAS | United States; Gainesville, Florida | |
| Instituto de Ecología y Sistemática Herbarium | 400,000 | HAC | Cuba; Havana | |
| Marion Ownbey Herbarium, Washington State University | 380,000 | WS | United States; Pullman, Washington | |
| Yale University Herbarium, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History | 365,000 | YU | United States; New Haven, Connecticut | |
| University of Alberta Herbarium | 320,000 | ALTA | Canada; Edmonton, Alberta | |
| Pringle Herbarium, University of Vermont | 310,400 | UVM | United States; Burlington, Vermont | |
| Instituto de Ecología, A.C. Herbarium | 310,000 | XAL | Mexico; Xalapa, Veracruz | |
| UC Davis Center for Plant Diversity Herbarium | 300,000 | DAV; DAVH; AHUC | United States; Davis, California | |
| University of Alaska Museum of the North Herbarium, University of Alaska, Fairbanks | 270,000 | ALA | United States; Fairbanks, Alaska | |
| Milwaukee Public Museum Herbarium | 250,000 | MIL | United States; Milwaukee, Wisconsin | |
| Paul C. Standley Herbarium, Escuela Agrícola Panamericana | 240,000 | EAP | Honduras; Tegucigalpa | |
| University of South Florida Herbarium | 235,000 | USF | United States; Florida | |
| Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium, Florida State University | 220,000 | FSU | United States; Tallahassee, Florida | |
| Herbario Nacional de Costa Rica, Museo Nacional de Costa Rica | 215,000 | CR | Costa Rica; San José | |
| E.C. Smith Herbarium, Acadia University | 200,000 | ACAD | Canada; Wolfville, Nova Scotia | |
| Intermountain Herbarium, Utah State University | 260,000 | UTC | Utah; Logan, Utah | |
| Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point | 200,000 | UWSP | Stevens Point | |
| Stillinger Herbarium, University of Idaho | 200,000 | ID | Moscow |
South America
| Name | No. Specimens | Code | Location | Link |
| Fundación Miguel Lillo | 700,000 | LIL | Argentina; Tucumán | |
| Universidad de Buenos Aires | 700,000 | BAA, BAF | Argentina; Buenos Aires | |
| Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro | 650,000 | RB | Brazil; Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro | |
| Instituto de Botánica Darwinion | 650,000 | SI | Argentina; Buenos Aires | |
| Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro | 520,000 | R | Brazil; Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro | |
| Museo de La Plata | 500,000 | LP | Argentina; Buenos Aires | |
| Herbario Nacional Colombiano, Universidad Nacional de Colombia | 500,000 | COL | Colombia; Bogotá | ; |
| Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos | 500,000 | USM | Peru; Lima | |
| Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria | 480,000 | BAB | Argentina; Buenos Aires | |
| Museu Botânico Municipal | 450,000 | MBM | Brazil; Curitiba, Paraná | |
| Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela | 400,000 | VEN | Venezuela; Caracas | |
| Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste | 400,000 | CTES | Argentina; Corrientes | |
| 400,000 | SP | Brazil; São Paulo, São Paulo | ||
| Universidad Nacional de Córdoba | 320,000 | CORD | Argentina; Córdoba | |
| Universidade de Brasília | 230,000 | UB | Brazil; Brasília, Distrito Federal | |
| Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia | 205,000 | INPA | Brazil; Manaus, Amazonas | |
| Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador | 200,000 | QCA | Ecuador; Quito | |
| Universidad de Concepción | 170,000 | CONC | Chile; Concepción | |
| Embrapa Amazônia Oriental | 165,000 | IAN | Brazil; Belém, Pará | |
| Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi | 161,000 | MG | Brazil; Belém, Pará | |
| Herbier de Guyane, Institut de recherche pour le développement | 160,000 | CAY | French Guiana; Cayenne | |
| Universidad de Antioquia | 160,000 | HUA | Colombia; Medellín, Antioquia | |
| Museo Nacional de Historia Natural | 145,000 | SGO | Chile; Santiago | |
| Universidade Estadual de Campinas | 143,000 | UEC | Brazil; Campinas, São Paulo | |
| Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul | 140,000 | ICN | Brazil; Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul | |
| Museo Ecuatoriano de Ciencias Naturales | 130,000 | QCNE | Ecuador; Quito | |
| Universidade de São Paulo | 126,000 | SPF | Brazil; São Paulo, São Paulo | |
| Instituto Anchietano de Pesquisas/UNISINOS | 120,000 | PACA | Brazil; São Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul | |
| Fundação Zoobotânica do Rio Grande do Sul | 108,000 | HAS | Brazil; Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul | |
| Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana | 108,000 | HUEFS | Brazil; Feira de Santana, Bahia | |
| Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais | 107,000 | BHCB | Brazil; Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais | |
| Herbario del Oriente Boliviano, Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado - Universidad Autónoma Gabriel René Moreno | 100,000 | USZ | Bolivia; Santa Cruz de la Sierra | |
| Herbario Nacional de Bolivia | 100,000 | LPB | Bolivia; La Paz | |
| Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Universidad de la República | 90,000 | MVM, MVFA | Uruguay; Montevideo | |
| Departamento de Botânica, Federal University of Paraná | 80,000 | UPCB | Brazil, Paraná, Curitiba | |
| Departamento de Botánica, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Asunción | 80,000 | FCQ | Paraguay; San Lorenzo | |
| Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruana | 50,000 | AMAZ | Peru; Iquitos | |
| Departamento de Botánica, Museo Nacional de Historia Natural del Paraguay | 23,000 | PY | Paraguay; San Lorenzo | |
| Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná | 25,000 | HUCP | Brazil, Paraná, Curitiba | |
| Herbario Universidad de Caldas, Universidad de Caldas | 22,000 | COL | Colombia; Manizales |