Journal profile · ART
Design Journal
ISSN 1460-6925 · eISSN 1756-3062 · Taylor & Francis
Design Journal: CAS Zone 4 · Arts (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.7 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; median 280 days to acceptance (94 articles, last 24 months); acceptance rate 13% (journal website); 78 articles in 2025; indexed in AHCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Design Journal is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 4 of Arts in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Design Education and Practice, Innovative Human-Technology Interaction and Innovative Approaches in Technology and Social Development, together about 42.3% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Design Journal is Taylor & Francis' flagship design journal. It is globally established and the leading international peer-reviewed journal. The Design Journal publishes thought-provoking work directly impacting design knowledge, leadership, and creative practice(s). It also aims to create an inclusive environment for design worldwide and for people at every stage of their careers. Today’s design and design research takes place globally, and The Design Journal is dedicated to equity and providing an international dialogue that qualitatively reflects the diversity of its community.It is dynamic and directed at academics, professionals, and researchers concerned with all aspects of Design, its visual and interdisciplinary practices and new knowledge. It challenges assumptions and methods while being open-minded about design's future. Its subject range covers Design as a collaborator, a policy, a product, a process, a service and a system. Individually, these may cover a wide range of topics drawn from the discipline, including (but not limited to) the established subject areas of Industrial Design, Architecture, Design Management, Design Education and Pedagogy, Textile and Fashion Design, and Communication Design to the newer areas of Design-Driven Entrepreneurship, Design with Business, Design with Health and Wellbeing, Design Policy, Design Thinking, Interaction Design, Service Design, Social Innovation, Transition Design and other emerging design disciplines. The Design Journal is the official journal of the European Academy of Design. It is published six times a year and provides a lively forum for a broad audience of designers, design scholars, researchers, educators, and managers worldwide. It offers authors a range of submission formats. To be considered for publication, articles must clearly articulate their relevance to either design practice, design research, design theory, design management or design pedagogy and education. We welcome high-quality, original articles in the form of: Design Research Article Article reporting on primary research with specific methods, findings, and results. It will normally contain an abstract and references. It may also contain figures, tables, and footnotes. Design Discussion Invited and/or a submitted discussion about a specific article or design/design research issue. It may be a critical design, speculative design, or propositional design – non-commercial, practice-based explorations that address significant
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): ART
Editor-in-chief Louise ValentinePublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 11%); most named United Kingdom 4, Mainland China 1, United States 1, Germany 1, Brazil 1 (9 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Design Education and PracticeEngineering20.2%
- Innovative Human-Technology InteractionComputer Science13.1%
- Innovative Approaches in Technology and Social DevelopmentBusiness, Management and Accounting9%
- Creativity in Education and NeurosciencePsychology7.5%
- Crafts, Textile, and DesignArts and Humanities7.5%
- Cultural Industries and Urban DevelopmentSocial Sciences6%
- Service and Product InnovationBusiness, Management and Accounting4.4%
- Persona Design and ApplicationsComputer Science3.5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Arts Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Arts | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Art | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Arts Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Arts | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Art | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Arts Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Arts | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Art | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- CiteScore Q1 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
AHCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EBSCO, EBSCO Art & Architecture Complete, EBSCO Art & Architecture Source, EBSCO TOC Premier, EBSCO World TextilesPublisher 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 (publisher) 2025
- 1.7Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.8LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.8Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.32LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.32Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.77LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.77Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 50OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 483OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.96OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 17.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 20.83%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 63LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 293,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,808 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 112 | 38 | 73 |
| 2025 | 78 | 28 | 151 |
| 2024 | 77 | 36 | 298 |
| 2023 | 57 | 25 | 169 |
| 2022 | 82 | 36 | 501 |
| 2021 | 50 | 25 | 396 |
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 Crossref · to
280 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 201 days – 371 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 31 days (94 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 315 days
- Sample
- 94 articles with submission and acceptance dates (214 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
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 13%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 60 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 130 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 38 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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)
Article types accepted3
- book/ exhibition reviewBook/ Exhibition Review Review or analysis of one or more printed or online books. Review or analysis of one or more design or design-related exhibitions.Length not stated
- design research articleDesign Research Article Article reporting on primary research with specific methods, findings, and results. It will normally contain an abstract and references.…Length not stated
- phd study articlePhD Study Article Article reporting on doctoral studies with specific methods, findings, and results. It will normally contain an abstract and references. It ma…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Open access, Peer review
- Authorship
Only publishes manuscripts in English. Model summary
Please note that this journal only publishes manuscripts in English.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
The Design Journal is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and read…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Research articles undergo peer review. Model summary
Research articles published in The Design Journal have undergone peer review.
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
- Taylor & Francis
- ISSN
- 1460-6925
- Electronic ISSN
- 1756-3062
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 29, Issue 4 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Design Journal
What CAS zone is Design Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Design Journal is in Zone 4 of Arts, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Art. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Arts. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Design Journal?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.7 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 2.8, h-index 50.
How long does peer review take at Design Journal?
Based on the dates recorded on 94 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 280 days (interquartile range 201–371 days); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 13%. 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Design Journal based?
Of the 9 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 11%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United Kingdom (4), Mainland China (1) and United States (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Design Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Design Journal is indexed in AHCI and Scopus.
Is Design Journal open access, and what is the APC?
Design Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .