Journal profile · Environmental Science-Environmental Chemistry
Chem
ISSN 2451-9294 · Elsevier Inc. · UNITED STATES
Chem: CAS Zone 1 · Chemistry (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 18.61; hybrid open access; APC about USD 9,350; review about 111 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 294 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Chem is published by Elsevier Inc. and is in Zone 1 of Chemistry in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Catalytic C–H Functionalization Methods, Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and Applications and Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion, together about 19.3% of its articles. Its main subfields are Organic Chemistry. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Chem, a sister journal to Cell, provides a home for seminal and insightful research and showcases how fundamental studies in chemistry and its sub-disciplines may help in finding potential solutions to the global challenges of tomorrow.Chem publishes work from across the chemical sciences and at the interfaces between chemistry and other disciplines. On submission, authors are asked to categorize their article into at least one of the following ten Sustainable Development Goals identified by the United Nations:Good health and well-beingAffordable and clean energyClean water and sanitationClimate actionZero hungerSustainable cities and communitiesResponsible consumption and productionIndustry, innovation, and infrastructureLife on landLife below waterFor an overview of how chemistry can help to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, read the following Catalysis article:The Molecular Basis of Sustainability Paul T. Anastas and Julie B. Zimmermann
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Environmental Science-Environmental Chemistry
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Catalytic C–H Functionalization MethodsChemistry7.2%
- Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and ApplicationsChemistry6.4%
- Electrocatalysts for Energy ConversionEnergy5.7%
- Supramolecular Chemistry and ComplexesChemistry5.2%
- Radical Photochemical ReactionsChemistry4.9%
- CO2 Reduction Techniques and CatalystsEnergy4.5%
- Catalytic Processes in Materials ScienceMaterials Science4.5%
- Supramolecular Self-Assembly in MaterialsMaterials Science4.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Chemistry Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Chemistry | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Chemistry, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Chemistry Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Chemistry | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Chemistry, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Chemistry Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Chemistry | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Chemistry, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview 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
- 18.61LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 19.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 30.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 30.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 6.51LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.84LetPub ·
- h-index
- 34LetPub ·
- h-index
- 214OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,792OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 12.27OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 18.17%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 206LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,933 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 256 | 67 | 409 |
| 2025 | 294 | 126 | 3,186 |
| 2024 | 328 | 323 | 7,181 |
| 2023 | 298 | 297 | 13,769 |
| 2022 | 289 | 289 | 16,495 |
| 2021 | 268 | 268 | 16,829 |
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
Too few articlesOnly 3 articles from the last 24 months carry both submission and acceptance dates, too few for a median
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".
Figures by source
- Submission to acceptance
- 111 daysPublisher website ·
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 9,350 / EUR 8,660 / GBP 7,490 / JPY 1,159,680 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 9,350 | — | — |
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.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access Open Access
Article Publishing Charge (APC): USD 9,350 (excluding taxes). The amount you pay may be reduced during submission if applicable.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier Inc.
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2451-9294
- Print ISSN
- 2451-9308
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Chem
What CAS zone is Chem in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Chem is in Zone 1 of Chemistry, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Chemistry, Multidisciplinary; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Chemistry. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Chem?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 18.61; CiteScore 30.4, h-index 214.
How long does peer review take at Chem?
The publisher reports about 111 days (submission to acceptance). 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 Chem?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Chem is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Chem open access, and what is the APC?
Chem is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 9,350.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .