Journal profile · Computer Science-Computer Science Applications
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
ISSN 2377-3766 · IEEE · UNITED STATES · Quarterly · Founded 2016
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters: CAS Zone 2 · Computer Science (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 5.31; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,645; review about 150 days (submission to final decision, publisher); 1,791 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters is published by IEEE and is in Zone 2 of Computer Science in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Robotics and Sensor-Based Localization, Robot Manipulation and Learning and Robotic Path Planning Algorithms, together about 33.3% of its articles. Its main subfields are Biomedical Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L) publishes peer-reviewed articles that provide a timely and concise account of innovative research ideas and application results, reporting significant theoretical findings and application case studies in areas of robotics and automation.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Computer Science-Computer Science Applications
Editor-in-chief Tamim AsfourPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Robotics and Sensor-Based LocalizationEngineering12.1%
- Robot Manipulation and LearningEngineering11.8%
- Robotic Path Planning AlgorithmsComputer Science9.4%
- Soft Robotics and ApplicationsEngineering9.4%
- Modular Robots and Swarm IntelligenceEngineering5.7%
- Prosthetics and Rehabilitation RoboticsEngineering4.4%
- Robotic Locomotion and ControlEngineering4.4%
- Advanced Vision and ImagingComputer Science4.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 2 |
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
- 5.31LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 5.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 10.5LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 10.5Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.59LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.89LetPub ·
- h-index
- 169OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 5,838OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.67OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 13.2%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 6.02%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 1,681LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 11,565 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1,465 | 414 | 506 |
| 2025 | 1,791 | 457 | 6,167 |
| 2024 | 1,554 | 466 | 15,800 |
| 2023 | 1,243 | 441 | 22,222 |
| 2022 | 1,556 | 585 | 40,025 |
| 2021 | 1,255 | 553 | 42,836 |
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
150 dayssubmission to final decision
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
- Submission to final decision
- 150 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 2,645 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,645 / USD 2,800 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Page charges
- USD 175
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 prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Keywords
- 2–5
- Reference style
- IEEE
- Templates
- LaTeX and Word
Article types accepted4
- editorialBest Paper Awards▼Every year, the Editorial Board selects papers appeared in the previous year for an IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters Best Paper Awards.Length not stated
- letterBest Paper Awards▼Every year, the Editorial Board selects papers appeared in the previous year for an IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters Best Paper Awards.Length not stated
- lettersLetters will be six pages long, with at most two extra pages allowed at a charge ($175 per extra page).Length not stated
- reviewAfter the first submission of their manuscript, authors will be notified of reception and of the Editor of RA-L who will supervise the review. Authors will rece…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteLicense & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism
- License & copyright Copyright and E-Copyright Form▼
It is the policy of the IEEE to own the copyright to the technical contributions it publishes on behalf of the interests of the IEEE, its authors, and their employers, and to facilitate the appropriate reuse of this material by others. To comply with U.S. copyright law, authors are required to sign an IEEE copyright transfer form with the final manuscript. For your information, this form is availa…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access▼
IEEE copyright transfer form required at final submission Model summary
RA-L policies on Open-Access publishing are the same as general IEEE policies. The majority of all IEEE transactions, journals, and letters offer a hybrid option, which permits both traditional subscription-based content as well as open access, author-pays content. For all hybrid journals, the review process for OA and traditional articles is the same. Any open access papers published within a hyb…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Model
Double-anonymous peer review with a minimum of two independent reviewers Model summary
The peer-reviewing process of the articles submitted to this journal fulfills the requirements outlined in the IEEE Publication Services and Products Board Operations Manual (https://pspb.ieee.org/images/files/files/opsmanual.pdf). Each published article was reviewed by a minimum of two independent reviewers using a double-anonymous peer review process, where the identities of the reviewers are no…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism
Plagiarism screening with iThenticate CrossCheck Model summary
all submissions will be screened for plagiarism using iThenticate CrossCheck software
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
- IEEE
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Founded
- 2016
- ISSN
- 2377-3766
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
What CAS zone is IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters is in Zone 2 of Computer Science, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Robotics. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Computer Science. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.31; CiteScore 10.5, h-index 169.
How long does peer review take at IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters?
The publisher reports about 150 days (submission to final decision). 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 IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Keywords: 2–5; Reference style: IEEE; Templates: LaTeX and Word. 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.
Which databases index IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters open access, and what is the APC?
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,645.
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: .