Journal profile · Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Hydrogeology Journal
ISSN 1431-2174 · eISSN 1435-0157 · Springer Berlin Heidelberg · GERMANY · Bimonthly · Founded 1992
Hydrogeology Journal: CAS Zone 3 · Earth Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.78; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,390; median 292 days to acceptance (109 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 130 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Hydrogeology Journal is published by Springer Berlin Heidelberg and is in Zone 3 of Earth Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Groundwater flow and contamination studies, Groundwater and Isotope Geochemistry and Hydrology and Watershed Management Studies, together about 49.4% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Hydrogeology Journal has acquired a large worldwide readership since its inception in 1992. The Journal's emphasis is to: Foster understanding of hydrogeology, a practical discipline aimed at bettering the human situation on earth, Describe worldwide progress in hydrogeology and groundwater hydrology, And to provide an inexpensive and widely accessible forum for scientists, researchers, engineers, and practitioners in developing and industrialized countries alike. A mainstream paper in Hydrogeology Journal integrates subsurface hydrology and geology with the other supporting disciplines (such as geochemistry, geophysics, geomorphology, geobiology, geostatistics, fluid mechanics, surface-water hydrology, tectonics, numerical modeling, water engineering, economics, and social sciences) to explain phenomena observed in the field. Hydrogeology Journal publishes peer-reviewed papers in both theoretical and applied aspects of hydrogeologic and groundwater sciences, including: Theoretical and field studies ranging in scale from local areas and short time periods to regional or global problems and geologic time, Techniques and innovative instrumentation and models in the field, the laboratory, and the office (including, for example: hydrologic, geochemical, geophysical, mathematical, statistical, and machine learning methods), Water-resource and related energy- and mineral-resource evaluations, Reports of observed hydrogeologic phenomena, Overviews of hydrogeologic systems of interest in various regions, State-of-the-art-reviews, Philosophy of scientific methods in hydrogeology, Interactions between social and hydrogeologic systems, Economics of hydrogeologic systems, Ramifications of hydrogeology on both environmental protection and optimal employment of natural resources, And the history of hydrogeology and biographies of eminent hydrogeologists.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Editorial board by country: 13 in mainland China (about 19%); most named Mainland China 13, United Kingdom 9, Germany 9, France 6, Italy 5 (68 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Groundwater flow and contamination studiesEnvironmental Science23%
- Groundwater and Isotope GeochemistryEarth and Planetary Sciences18.8%
- Hydrology and Watershed Management StudiesEnvironmental Science7.6%
- Groundwater and Watershed AnalysisEnvironmental Science7.5%
- Karst Systems and HydrogeologyEarth and Planetary Sciences5.8%
- Geophysical and Geoelectrical MethodsEarth and Planetary Sciences5%
- Hydraulic Fracturing and Reservoir AnalysisEngineering4.9%
- Soil and Unsaturated FlowEngineering3.2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Earth Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Earth Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Earth Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
INSPECCASCAB AbstractsGeoRefCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, AGRICOLA, Astrophysics Data System, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS, Semantic Scholar
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
- 2.78LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.8Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.1LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.77LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.05LetPub ·
- h-index
- 86LetPub ·
- h-index
- 150OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 2,523OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.09OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 3.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 42.3%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 123LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,024Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 853,500Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 3,926 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 177 | 90 | 58 |
| 2025 | 130 | 62 | 243 |
| 2024 | 104 | 50 | 558 |
| 2023 | 179 | 98 | 1,391 |
| 2022 | 152 | 76 | 2,001 |
| 2021 | 154 | 68 | 2,446 |
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
292 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 242 days – 358 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 29 days (109 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 318 days
- Sample
- 109 articles with submission and acceptance dates (333 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 6 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 18 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 2,390 / EUR 3,490 | — | — |
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)
Open calls for papers1, by deadline
Publisher websitePolicy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Hydrogeology Journal, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page.
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
- Springer Berlin Heidelberg
- Country or region
- GERMANY
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1992
- ISSN
- 1431-2174
- Electronic ISSN
- 1435-0157
- Society / sponsor
- International Association of Hydrogeologists
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 34, Issue 6 (September 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Hydrogeology Journal
What CAS zone is Hydrogeology Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Hydrogeology Journal is in Zone 3 of Earth Sciences, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Water Resources / Geosciences, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Earth Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Hydrogeology Journal?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.78; CiteScore 5.1, h-index 150.
How long does peer review take at Hydrogeology Journal?
Based on the dates recorded on 109 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 292 days (interquartile range 242–358 days); authors report an average review time of about 6 months; 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Hydrogeology Journal based?
Of the 68 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 13 (about 19%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (13), United Kingdom (9) and Germany (9). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Hydrogeology Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Hydrogeology Journal is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists INSPEC, CAS, CAB Abstracts, GeoRef and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Hydrogeology Journal open access, and what is the APC?
Hydrogeology Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,390.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .