This article has the general aim of assessing the worldwide research productivity of Elaeis guineensis Jacq. and Elaeis oleifera or more commonly known as oil palm, as reflected by the literature indexed in the Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus databases. Specifically, the research aims to identify the most productive countries, institutions and authors in this area of research. It also investigates the subject characteristics of the publication and collaborative patterns among researchers and institutions. Overall, based on the number of publications indexed by both WoS and Scopus, the Asian region, represented by seven countries, are the dominant producers of publications in this field, of which Malaysia is in the number one position. Whereas, USA and some European countries, such as United Kingdom and France, are also leading in terms of publications and citations. Research in the areas of food science and technology (WoS) as well as agricultural and biological sciences (Scopus) account for the highest number of publications. High levels of collaboration among authors are evident among the top 10 most productive countries. This is a good indication of collaboration impact with increased research output.