Abstract Network analysis is an important tool to analyze the structure of complex systems such as tropical forests. Here, we infer spatial proximity networks in tropical forests by using network science. First, we focus on tree neighborhoods to derive spatial tree networks from forest inventory data. In a second step, we construct species networks to describe the potential for interactions between species. We find remarkably similar tree and species networks among tropical forests in Panama, Sri Lanka and Taiwan. Across these sites only 32 to 51% of all possible connections between species pairs were realized in the species networks. The species networks show the common small-world property and constant node degree distributions not yet described and explained by network science. Our application of network analysis to forest ecology provides a new approach in biodiversity research to quantify spatial neighborhood structures for better understanding interactions between tree species. Our analyses show that details of tree positions and sizes have no important influence on the detected network structures. This suggests existence of simple principles underlying the complex interactions in tropical forests.