Journal profile · Neurosciences
Cerebral Cortex
ISSN 1047-3211 · eISSN 1460-2199 · Oxford University Press · UNITED STATES · Monthly · Founded 1991
Cerebral Cortex: CAS Zone 3 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.93; hybrid open access; APC about USD 5,038; median 124 days to acceptance (105 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly hard; 363 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Cerebral Cortex is published by Oxford University Press and is in Zone 3 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Neural dynamics and brain function, Functional Brain Connectivity Studies and Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research, together about 37.6% of its articles. Its main subfields are Cognitive Neuroscience. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Cerebral Cortex publishes papers on the development, organization, plasticity, and function of the cerebral cortex, including the hippocampus. Studies with clear relevance to the cerebral cortex, such as the thalamocortical relationship or cortico-subcortical interactions, are also included. The journal is multidisciplinary and covers the large variety of modern neurobiological and neuropsychological techniques, including anatomy, biochemistry, molecular neurobiology, electrophysiology, behavior, artificial intelligence, and theoretical modeling. In addition to research articles, special features such as brief reviews, book reviews, and commentaries are included.
Source: LetPub
Research area (LetPub): Neurosciences
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Neural dynamics and brain functionNeuroscience16.6%
- Functional Brain Connectivity StudiesNeuroscience11.8%
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeuroscience9.2%
- Neural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesNeuroscience8.9%
- Memory and Neural MechanismsNeuroscience6.3%
- Visual perception and processing mechanismsNeuroscience6.2%
- Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and ApplicationsMedicine4.4%
- EEG and Brain-Computer InterfacesNeuroscience4.2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 2.93LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.4LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.28LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.05LetPub ·
- h-index
- 223LetPub ·
- h-index
- 351OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 7,202OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.24OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 3.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 25.84%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 325LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 9,480 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 148 | 94 | 62 |
| 2025 | 363 | 195 | 842 |
| 2024 | 533 | 402 | 3,522 |
| 2023 | 542 | 399 | 5,799 |
| 2022 | 528 | 329 | 9,405 |
| 2021 | 526 | 348 | 12,187 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
124 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 98 days – 162 days
- Acceptance to online
- —
- Submission to online
- —
- Sample
- 105 articles with submission and acceptance dates (581 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- 3–6 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly hardLetPub ·
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 5,038 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Monthly
- Founded
- 1991
- ISSN
- 1047-3211
- Electronic ISSN
- 1460-2199
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Cerebral Cortex
What CAS zone is Cerebral Cortex in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Cerebral Cortex is in Zone 3 of Medicine, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Neurosciences. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Cerebral Cortex?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.93; CiteScore 6.4, h-index 351.
How long does peer review take at Cerebral Cortex?
Based on the dates recorded on 105 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 124 days (interquartile range 98–162 days); authors report an average review time of 3–6 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly hard”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Which databases index Cerebral Cortex?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Cerebral Cortex is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Cerebral Cortex open access, and what is the APC?
Cerebral Cortex is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 5,038.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .