diff --git a/libcxx/include/__config b/libcxx/include/__config
index 032f39fb663873..d9132d138a5fcd 100644
--- a/libcxx/include/__config
+++ b/libcxx/include/__config
@@ -897,6 +897,10 @@ typedef unsigned int   char32_t;
 #define _LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE2(...) extern template __VA_ARGS__;
 #endif
 
+#ifndef _LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_DEFINE
+#define _LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_DEFINE(...) template __VA_ARGS__;
+#endif
+
 #if defined(__APPLE__) || defined(__FreeBSD__) || defined(_LIBCPP_MSVCRT_LIKE) || \
     defined(__sun__) || defined(__NetBSD__) || defined(__CloudABI__)
 #define _LIBCPP_LOCALE__L_EXTENSIONS 1
diff --git a/libcxx/include/__string b/libcxx/include/__string
index 056b9b80ea509f..04ebfc550d325b 100644
--- a/libcxx/include/__string
+++ b/libcxx/include/__string
@@ -70,6 +70,59 @@ _LIBCPP_PUSH_MACROS
 
 _LIBCPP_BEGIN_NAMESPACE_STD
 
+// The the extern template ABI lists are kept outside of <string> to improve the
+// readability of that header.
+#define _LIBCPP_STRING_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_LIST(_Func, _CharType) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::replace(size_type, size_type, value_type const*, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::rfind(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::__init(value_type const*, size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::basic_string(basic_string const&)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::replace(size_type, size_type, value_type const*)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::basic_string(basic_string const&, std::allocator<_CharType> const&)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find_last_not_of(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::~basic_string()) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find_first_not_of(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::insert(size_type, size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::operator=(value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::__init(value_type const*, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS const _CharType& basic_string<_CharType>::at(size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::insert(size_type, value_type const*, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find_first_of(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::replace(size_type, size_type, size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::assign(value_type const*, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::reserve(size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::append(value_type const*, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::assign(basic_string const&, size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::copy(value_type*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::basic_string(basic_string const&, size_type, size_type, std::allocator<_CharType> const&)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find(value_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::__init(size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::insert(size_type, value_type const*)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find_last_of(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::__grow_by(size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::__grow_by_and_replace(size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type, size_type, value_type const*)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::push_back(value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::append(size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::rfind(value_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS const basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::npos) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::assign(size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::erase(size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::append(basic_string const&, size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS int basic_string<_CharType>::compare(value_type const*) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS int basic_string<_CharType>::compare(size_type, size_type, value_type const*) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS _CharType& basic_string<_CharType>::at(size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::assign(value_type const*)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::size_type basic_string<_CharType>::find(value_type const*, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS int basic_string<_CharType>::compare(size_type, size_type, basic_string const&, size_type, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS int basic_string<_CharType>::compare(size_type, size_type, value_type const*, size_type) const) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::operator=(basic_string const&)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::append(value_type const*)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::replace(size_type, size_type, basic_string const&, size_type, size_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>::iterator basic_string<_CharType>::insert(basic_string::const_iterator, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS void basic_string<_CharType>::resize(size_type, value_type)) \
+  _Func(_LIBCPP_FUNC_VIS basic_string<_CharType>& basic_string<_CharType>::insert(size_type, basic_string const&, size_type, size_type))
+
+
 // char_traits
 
 template <class _CharT>
diff --git a/libcxx/include/string b/libcxx/include/string
index 0f84d87735b958..6a636bcb756098 100644
--- a/libcxx/include/string
+++ b/libcxx/include/string
@@ -4333,8 +4333,8 @@ basic_string<_CharT, _Traits, _Allocator>::__subscriptable(const const_iterator*
 
 #endif  // _LIBCPP_DEBUG_LEVEL >= 2
 
-_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE(class _LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_TYPE_VIS basic_string<char>)
-_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE(class _LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_TYPE_VIS basic_string<wchar_t>)
+_LIBCPP_STRING_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_LIST(_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE, char)
+_LIBCPP_STRING_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_LIST(_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE, wchar_t)
 
 #if _LIBCPP_STD_VER > 11
 // Literal suffixes for basic_string [basic.string.literals]
diff --git a/libcxx/src/string.cpp b/libcxx/src/string.cpp
index 4802d63c811ba3..1e98c686cbcfb0 100644
--- a/libcxx/src/string.cpp
+++ b/libcxx/src/string.cpp
@@ -20,8 +20,8 @@ _LIBCPP_BEGIN_NAMESPACE_STD
 
 template class _LIBCPP_CLASS_TEMPLATE_INSTANTIATION_VIS __basic_string_common<true>;
 
-template class _LIBCPP_CLASS_TEMPLATE_INSTANTIATION_VIS basic_string<char>;
-template class _LIBCPP_CLASS_TEMPLATE_INSTANTIATION_VIS basic_string<wchar_t>;
+_LIBCPP_STRING_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_LIST(_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_DEFINE, char)
+_LIBCPP_STRING_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_LIST(_LIBCPP_EXTERN_TEMPLATE_DEFINE, wchar_t)
 
 template
     string