Abu Ja'far al-Tahawi: There is no one left on the face of the earth like Yahya ibn Abi Kathir.
Abu Ja'far al-'Uqayli: He is known to conceal the narrator's name.
Abu Hatim al-Razi: An Imam who only narrates from trustworthy sources.
Abu Hatim ibn Habban al-Busti: He used to conceal the narrator's name.
Abu 'Abd Allah al-Hakim al-Naysaburi: Trustworthy
Ahmad ibn Hanbal: One of the most reliable people.
Ahmad ibn Salih al-Jili: Trustworthy, considered one of the companions of Hadith.
Ayyub ibn Abi Tamima al-Sakhtiyani: I do not know anyone after al-Zuhri more knowledgeable about the Hadith of the people of Medina than him.
Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani: Trustworthy and reliable, but he conceals the narrator's name and narrates interrupted chains, and the Imams tolerated his concealment of the narrator's name because of his Imamate. He once said: "One of the leading Imams, trustworthy and reliable, narrated many interrupted chains and concealed the narrator's name, and narrated from books. He did not hear from any of the Companions and saw Anas but did not hear from him, and the Imams relied on him."
Al-Dhahabi: The Imam, one of the flags, was one of the worshipping and trustworthy scholars.
Shu'ba ibn al-Hajjaj: He had better Hadith than al-Zuhri.
Ali ibn al-Madini: No one narrated more from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir than Hisham, al-Awza'i, and Hajjaj al-Sawwaf.
Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Qattan: He had better Hadith than al-Zuhri, and once: His interrupted chains are like the wind.
Yahya ibn Ma'in: He was asked: Is the disagreement of Yahya ibn Abi Kathir from him? He said: From his companions.