Journal profile · Engineering, Manufacturing
Design Studies
ISSN 0142-694X · eISSN 1872-6909 · Elsevier Ltd · ENGLAND · Bimonthly
Design Studies: CAS Zone 1 · Engineering (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 4.58; hybrid open access; APC about USD 4,570; review about 264 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 43 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Design Studies is published by Elsevier Ltd and is in Zone 1 of Engineering in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Design Education and Practice, Creativity in Education and Neuroscience and Innovative Human-Technology Interaction, together about 47% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Design Studies The Interdisciplinary Journal of Design ResearchMission Our mission at Design Studies is to foster contemporary discourse and discoveries in the field of design. We commit to transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries and champion inclusivity in academic contributions. We welcome submissions from a diverse spectrum of individuals and perspectives globally. We invite an engaged community of authors to advance design through research, scholarship and creative practice.Aims Design Studies is a leading international academic journal dedicated to the comprehensive examination and discourse of design.The editorial aim is to publish work that is relevant to a broad audience of researchers, educators, and practitioners. We welcome original scholarly research papers concerned with the process, perspectives and outcomes of designing in all its application areas. Insights into the process of design from experimental or empirical research, the design of objects, environments, and systems and their impacts on society and the environment, and critical theory and analysis should galvanize thought leadership and community.Design Studies fills a unique niche among design publications of its type by publishing articles that strike a balance between theoretical and practical modes of inquiry, to produce critical understandings of design practice and its effects in society through the following distinctive aims.Foster Interdisciplinary Design Discussions: Create a space for interdisciplinary discussions on fundamental design elements, including process, cognition, and philosophy, while emphasising research, theory, and innovative outcomes.Explore Design's Theoretical Evolution: Assess the history and future of design by examining its development and contributing to future practices, focusing on rigorous research approachesCritically Analyse Design Practices: Encourage critical evaluations of design methodologies and outcomes, including ethical, social, and environmental considerations.Embrace Diverse Design Contexts: Examine design within various cultural, socio-economic, organisational and political settings, highlighting its impact on social change, sustainability, and community empowerment.Expand the Design Conversation: Welcome a wide range of contributions, including practical case studies, theoretical explorations, and methodological critiques, to engage in a comprehensive design discourse.Scope Design Studies seeks to expand the boundaries of design knowledge and practice. We invite authors to submit papers that not only challenge traditional norms and methodologies but also promote a forward-thinking and inclusive dialogue within the design community. Our scope encompasses a wide range of design domains, including but not limited to engineering design, industrial design, product design, systems design, innovation, and current design thinking paradigms within the overarching research context.Design Studies welcomes articles on a wide range of topic areas across design's core facets centred on the main aims of the journal.Design Theory • Design Process • Philosophy of Design • Design Conceptualisations and Perspectives • Design ThinkingDesign Research and Methodology • Design Research Methods • Interdisciplinary Design Research • Co-DesignDesign Practice • Practice-led Design Research • Design Innovation • Design JusticeDesign Education • Design Pedagogy • Design Teaching and Learning • Design DialogueDesign Impact • Human Factors in Design • Design Manufacturing and Materials • Product Engineering • Design Sustainability
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Engineering, Manufacturing
Editor-in-chief C. J. WrigleyPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 6 in mainland China (about 27%); most named Australia 7, Mainland China 6, United States 5, United Kingdom 2, Hong Kong, China 1 (22 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Design Education and PracticeEngineering31.4%
- Creativity in Education and NeurosciencePsychology9.3%
- Innovative Human-Technology InteractionComputer Science6.2%
- Architecture and Computational DesignEngineering5.5%
- Product Development and CustomizationBusiness, Management and Accounting5.4%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.2%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering4.9%
- Manufacturing Process and OptimizationEngineering3.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Engineering Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Manufacturing | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Engineering Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Manufacturing | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Engineering Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Manufacturing | Zone 2 |
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
- 4.58LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 4.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 11.8LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 11.8Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.2LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.98LetPub ·
- h-index
- 83LetPub ·
- h-index
- 149OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,150OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.34OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 13%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 51.85%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 33LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,303 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 27 | 14 | 14 |
| 2025 | 43 | 20 | 281 |
| 2024 | 23 | 12 | 109 |
| 2023 | 39 | 22 | 641 |
| 2022 | 33 | 17 | 572 |
| 2021 | 50 | 29 | 1,450 |
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
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
264 dayssubmission to acceptance · community reports over 12 weeks
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- over 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 7 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 100 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 264 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 21 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 4,570 / EUR 4,280 / GBP 3,660 / JPY 566,820 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 5,020 | — | — |
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)
What to prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- APA
- Highlights
- Required
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Article types accepted8, with length limits
- case studiesCase Studies (5000-8000 words)Length not stated
- case studyfrontiers of practical considerations. Case Studies (5000-8000 words) Case Study papers should follow the guidelines above on Remain text ≤ 8,000 words
- design perspective paperDesign Perspective Paper (3000-4000 words)Length not stated
- perspectivetheoretical and empirical work. Design Perspective Paper (3000-4000 words) Design Perspectives features are a captivating world of inmain text ≤ 4,000 words
- research paperh the aims and scope of Design Studies. Research Papers (5000-8000 words) We invite original scholarly research papers that presentmain text ≤ 8,000 words
- research papersResearch Papers (5000-8000 words)Length not stated
- reviewat previously published in the journal. Review Papers (7000 - 10000 words) Literature review papers should be based on a comprehensivmain text ≤ 10,000 words
- review papersReview Papers (7000 - 10000 words)Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
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 Ltd
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- ISSN
- 0142-694X
- Electronic ISSN
- 1872-6909
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Design Studies
What CAS zone is Design Studies in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Design Studies is in Zone 1 of Engineering, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Engineering, Multidisciplinary / Engineering, Manufacturing; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Engineering. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Design Studies?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 4.58; CiteScore 11.8, h-index 149.
How long does peer review take at Design Studies?
The publisher reports about 264 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”. 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.
What are the manuscript requirements of Design Studies?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: APA; Highlights: Required; Graphical abstract: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Design Studies based?
Of the 22 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 6 (about 27%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Australia (7), Mainland China (6) and United States (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Design Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Design Studies is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Design Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Design Studies is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 4,570.
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: .