Journal profile · CHEMISTRY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Chemical Science
ISSN 2041-6520 · eISSN 2041-6539 · Royal Society of Chemistry · ENGLAND · Founded 2010
Chemical Science: CAS Zone 1 · Chemistry (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 8.15; fully open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 63 days to acceptance (198 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly hard; 2,415 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Chemical Science is published by Royal Society of Chemistry 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, Luminescence and Fluorescent Materials and Chemical Synthesis and Analysis, together about 20.5% of its articles. Its main subfields are Organic Chemistry. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Our journal has a wide-ranging scope which covers the full breadth of the chemical sciences. The research we publish contains the sorts of novel ideas, challenging questions and progressive thinking that bring undiscovered breakthroughs within reach. Your paper could focus on a single area, or cross many. It could be beyond the accepted bounds of the chemical sciences. It might address an immediate challenge, contribute to a future breakthrough or be wholly conceptual. We're a team from every field of the chemical sciences, and know from experience that breakthroughs that drive the solutions to global challenges can come from anywhere, at any time. You could even start an entirely new area of research. Chemical Science has a broad remit. We want bold papers that really challenge the status quo. So if you think something’s particularly controversial, new or exciting – well, that’s exactly the kind of paper we want.Prof Andrew Cooper, Editor-in-chief
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): CHEMISTRY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Editor-in-chief Andrew CooperPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Catalytic C–H Functionalization MethodsChemistry8.4%
- Luminescence and Fluorescent MaterialsMaterials Science6.9%
- Chemical Synthesis and AnalysisBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.1%
- Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and ApplicationsChemistry5.1%
- Advanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniquesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5%
- Radical Photochemical ReactionsChemistry4.5%
- Molecular Sensors and Ion DetectionChemistry4.3%
- Catalytic Cross-Coupling ReactionsChemistry4.2%
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 2 |
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 2 |
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
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePubMedPublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
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
- 8.15LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 8.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 12LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 2.01LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.42LetPub ·
- h-index
- 135LetPub ·
- h-index
- 280OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 14,095OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 9.14OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 4.9%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 2,126LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 21,456 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1,643 | 1,643 | 2,015 |
| 2025 | 2,415 | 2,415 | 18,937 |
| 2024 | 2,153 | 2,153 | 35,808 |
| 2023 | 1,670 | 1,670 | 36,087 |
| 2022 | 1,646 | 1,646 | 48,565 |
| 2021 | 1,784 | 1,784 | 64,831 |
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
63 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 44 days – 102 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 3 days (198 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 70 days
- Sample
- 198 articles with submission and acceptance dates (4,308 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)
- about 1.3 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly hardLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 5 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Anonymous peer reviewLetPub
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
Fully open accessOpenAlex
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LetPub | No APC | No | — | |
| Publisher website | GBP 2,850 | — | — |
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, Peer review
- Open access Publish open access
Choosing to publish open access is easy and straightforward – and it is possible in every Royal Society of Chemistry journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
RSC publishing processes and policies include review, transfers, appeals, prior publication, data, correction and retraction. Model summary
Processes and policies Including review, transfers, appeals, prior publication, data and correction and retraction.
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
- Royal Society of Chemistry
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Founded
- 2010
- ISSN
- 2041-6520
- Electronic ISSN
- 2041-6539
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Chemical Science
What CAS zone is Chemical Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Chemical Science is in Zone 1 of Chemistry, and in Zone 2 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 Chemical Science?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 8.15; CiteScore 12, h-index 280.
How long does peer review take at Chemical Science?
Based on the dates recorded on 198 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 63 days (interquartile range 44–102 days); authors report an average review time of about 1.3 months; 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 Chemical Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Chemical Science is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science and PubMed; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Chemical Science open access, and what is the APC?
Chemical Science is a fully open-access journal. APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; 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: .