As of 2026-10-12, Smithsonian Institution tops the list with 30,000,000 visitors/year.
- #1 Smithsonian Institution — 30,000,000 visitors/year
group of museums and research centers administered by the United States government
The Smithsonian Institution is a group of museums, education and research centers, created by the United States federal government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded on August 10, 1846, it operates as a trust instrumentality and is not formally a part of any of the three branches of the federal government. The institution is named after its founding donor, British scientist James Smithson. It was originally organized as the United States National Museum, but that name ceased... Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #2 Forbidden City — 19,300,000 visitors/year
Chinese imperial palace in Beijing
The Forbidden City is the imperial palace complex in the center of the Imperial City in Beijing, China. It was the residence of twenty-four Ming and Qing dynasty Emperors and was the center of political power in China from 1420 to 1924. The palace is now administered by the Palace Museum and has been an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. The Forbidden City is one of the most famous palaces in all of Chinese history and is the largest preserved royal palace complex still standing in the... Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #3 Musée de l'Histoire de France — 8,177,695 visitors/year
museum in the Palace of Versailles
The Musée de l'Histoire de France is a museum which was created by King Louis Philippe I in the Palace of Versailles and opened in 1837. At the time, it represented an ambitious project of national reconciliation between the hitherto competing narratives of the French monarchy and the French Revolution, to which Louis-Philippe devoted significant personal attention. Whereas it gradually faded in importance as a museum in the later 19th century, its lavish historicist decoration remains a major... Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #4 British Museum — 5,821,000 visitors/year
national museum in London, United Kingdom
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million artefacts is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present. Established in 1753, the British Museum was the world's first public national museum. In 2025, the museum received 6,440,120 visitors and was the second most visited attraction in the United Kingdom. Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #5 Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center — 5,000,000 visitors/year
urban planning
The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center is located on People's Square, Shanghai, adjacent to the municipal government building. It was China's first city planning exhibition hall and similar halls later became common in major cities and new towns in China. Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #6 Roman Forum and the Palatine — 4,911,702 visitors/year source Wikidata
- #7 archaeological excavations of Pompeii — 4,069,377 visitors/year
archeological site in Italy
source Wikidata - #8 Antiquarium in Pompeii — 3,815,839 visitors/year
museum in Italy
source Wikidata - #9 Independence National Historical Park — 3,751,007 visitors/year
national historic site in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Independence National Historical Park is a federally protected historic district in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that preserves several sites associated with the American Revolution and the nation's founding history. Administered by the National Park Service, the 55-acre (22 ha) park comprises many of Philadelphia's most-visited historic sites within the Old City and Society Hill neighborhoods. The park has been nicknamed "America's most historic square mile" because of its abundance of... Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata - #10 National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, South Korea — 3,536,677 visitors/year
national museum
The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea is a contemporary art museum with four branches in Gwacheon, Deoksugung, Seoul and Cheongju. The museum was established in 1969 as the country's only national art museum dedicated to Korean modern and contemporary art, while also presenting international art. Read more on Wikipedia.
Wikidata