Journal profile · Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering
ISSN 0098-5589 · eISSN 1939-3520 · Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. · UNITED STATES · Bimonthly
IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering: CAS Zone 1 · Computer Science (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 5.89; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,645; review about 6 months (community reports); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 245 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering is published by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. and is in Zone 1 of Computer Science in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Software Engineering Research, Software Reliability and Analysis Research and Software Testing and Debugging Techniques, together about 35.8% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
A diverse network of professionals and students sharing research, news, trends and collaborating in computer science and engineering.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Software Engineering ResearchComputer Science16.2%
- Software Reliability and Analysis ResearchComputer Science10.4%
- Software Testing and Debugging TechniquesComputer Science9.3%
- Advanced Software Engineering MethodologiesComputer Science6.5%
- Software Engineering Techniques and PracticesComputer Science6.1%
- Software System Performance and ReliabilityComputer Science5.5%
- Distributed systems and fault toleranceComputer Science4.7%
- Formal Methods in VerificationComputer Science4.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Computer Science Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Electrical & Electronic | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Electrical & Electronic | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Computer Science Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Engineering, Electrical & Electronic | Zone 1 |
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
- 5.89LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 13.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.57LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.41LetPub ·
- h-index
- 151LetPub ·
- h-index
- 295OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 3,689OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 6.52OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 11.14%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 225LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 6,228 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 181 | 61 | 82 |
| 2025 | 245 | 63 | 951 |
| 2024 | 196 | 83 | 3,024 |
| 2023 | 148 | 59 | 3,199 |
| 2022 | 153 | 68 | 4,445 |
| 2021 | 175 | 102 | 6,153 |
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
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 6 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
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 | — | — |
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.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- ISSN
- 0098-5589
- Electronic ISSN
- 1939-3520
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering
What CAS zone is IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering is in Zone 1 of Computer Science, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Computer Science, Software Engineering / Engineering, Electrical & Electronic; it is a Top journal. 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 Transactions on Software Engineering?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.89; CiteScore 13.9, h-index 295.
How long does peer review take at IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering?
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.
Which databases index IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering open access, and what is the APC?
IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering 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: .