They’re number one — at thinking they’re number one!

Germany is the most “narcissistic” country on the planet followed by China and Iran, according to a sprawling global study.

In an unexpected twist, America ranked much lower on the list of self-obsessed nations — placing 16 out of 53 countries, according to research from Michigan State University.

Researchers surveyed roughly 45,800 people across the world to determine how nationality, gender and perceived social status fuel “narcissistic traits,” according to the study.

Young people were found to be more self-obsessed than older folks. Vladimir Bikhovskiy – stock.adobe.com

“The US often comes up in public discourse as the example of narcissism, so people might expect it to be far and away the highest. In reality, the US was toward the higher end, but it certainly wasn’t at the extreme,” one of the researchers, William Chopik, told BBC Science Focus.

The least self-absorbed countries, meanwhile, were Serbia, Ireland, the UK, the Netherlands and Denmark, according to the report.

During the study, researchers asked respondents how much statements such as “[I’m] the center of attention with my outstanding contributions” and “I want my rivals to fail” apply to them.

Researchers then ranked them for signs of “narcissistic admiration,” including attention-seeking, desire to impress others and need to self-enhance.

Overall, younger adults were found to have the grating personality disorder more than older folks because the selfie-snapping generation is “trying to establish an identity,” Chopik said.

Men, meanwhile, were largely found to be more self-obsessed than women, according to the study.

Map of world’s most narcissistic countries. Michigan State University

People in collectivistic cultures, surpassingly, reported an inflated sense of self-importance than “individualistic” societies such as the US, according to the report.

Research had previously shown that roughly 1 in 20 people in the US meet the criteria for narcissistic personality disorder.

“The truth is, there was a wide range of narcissism in every country,” said Chopik, associate professor of personality psychology. “Each one had their own mix of people who were narcissistic and people who were self-effacing.”