Journal profile · Social Sciences-Law
International Security
ISSN 1531-4804 · MIT Press · UNITED STATES
International Security: CAS Zone 1 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 6.45; hybrid open access; 26 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
International Security is published by MIT Press and is in Zone 1 of Sociology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are International Relations and Foreign Policy, Global Peace and Security Dynamics and Nuclear Issues and Defense, together about 42.2% of its articles. Its main subfields are Political Science and International Relations. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
International Security, the #1 journal in International Relations based on 2026 impact factor, publishes lucid, well-documented essays on the full range of contemporary security issues. Its articles address traditional topics of war and peace, as well as more recent dimensions of security, including environmental, demographic, and humanitarian issues, transnational networks, and emerging technologies.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Social Sciences-Law
Editor-in-chief Jacqueline L. HazeltonPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- International Relations and Foreign PolicySocial Sciences22.9%
- Global Peace and Security DynamicsSocial Sciences9.8%
- Nuclear Issues and DefenseSocial Sciences9.5%
- Political Conflict and GovernanceSocial Sciences8.6%
- European and Russian Geopolitical Military StrategiesSocial Sciences5.4%
- Defense, Military, and Policy StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance4.5%
- Peacebuilding and International SecuritySocial Sciences3.9%
- Military and Defense StudiesSocial Sciences3.7%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | International Relations | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | International Relations | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | International Relations | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
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
- 6.45LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 6.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 9.8LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 4.17LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 4.76LetPub ·
- h-index
- 97LetPub ·
- h-index
- 187OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,062OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.26OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.2%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 32.65%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 18LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,837 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 24 | 8 | 9 |
| 2025 | 26 | 15 | 118 |
| 2024 | 36 | 14 | 153 |
| 2023 | 26 | 22 | 486 |
| 2022 | 25 | 13 | 737 |
| 2021 | 26 | 11 | 778 |
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.
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.
No source has fee information yet; check the journal's website.
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
- MIT Press
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- ISSN
- 1531-4804
- Print ISSN
- 0162-2889
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 51, Issue 1 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about International Security
What CAS zone is International Security in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, International Security is in Zone 1 of Sociology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category International Relations; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Sociology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of International Security?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 6.45; CiteScore 9.8, h-index 187.
Which databases index International Security?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, International Security is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is International Security open access, and what is the APC?
International Security is a hybrid journal. Fee information is not available yet; check the journal's website.
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: .