Journal profile · Computer Science, Theory & Methods
Journal of Complexity
ISSN 0885-064X · eISSN 1090-2708 · Academic Press Inc. · UNITED STATES · Quarterly · Founded 1985
Journal of Complexity: CAS Zone 2 · Mathematics (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.68; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,680; review over 12 weeks (community reports); community-reported acceptance: easy; 52 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Complexity is published by Academic Press Inc. and is in Zone 2 of Mathematics in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Mathematical Approximation and Integration, Diverse Scientific and Economic Studies and Human auditory perception and evaluation, together about 33.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Computational Theory and Mathematics. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The multidisciplinarym Journal of Complexity publishes original research papers that contain substantial mathematical results on complexity as broadly conceived. Outstanding review papers will also be published. In the area of computational complexity, the focus is on complexity over the reals, with the emphasis on lower bounds and optimal algorithms. Journal of Complexity also publishes articles that provide major new algorithms or make important progress on upper bounds. Other models of computation, such as the Turing machine model, are also of interest. Computational complexity results in a wide variety of areas are solicited.Areas Include: Approximation theoryBiomedical computingCompressed computing and sensing Computational financeComputational number theoryComputational stochasticsControl theoryCryptographyDesign of experimentsDifferential equationsDiscrete problemsDistributed and parallel computationHigh and infinite-dimensional problemsInformation-based complexityInverse and ill-posed problems Machine learningMarkov chain Monte Carlo Monte Carlo and quasi-Monte CarloMultivariate integration and approximationNoisy dataNonlinear and algebraic equationsNumerical analysisOperator equationsOptimizationQuantum computingScientific computationTractability of multivariate problemsVision and image understanding
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Computer Science, Theory & Methods
Editor-in-chief Erich NovakPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named Germany 20, United States 11, Austria 10, France 3, Poland 3 (60 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Mathematical Approximation and IntegrationMathematics15.9%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance9.2%
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering8.4%
- Mathematical functions and polynomialsMathematics5.2%
- Polynomial and algebraic computationComputer Science5.1%
- Educational Robotics and EngineeringComputer Science4.9%
- Computability, Logic, AI AlgorithmsComputer Science4.5%
- Advanced Numerical Analysis TechniquesEngineering4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Mathematics Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Mathematics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Mathematics, Applied | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Mathematics | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Mathematics Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Mathematics | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Mathematics, Applied | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Mathematics | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Mathematics Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Mathematics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Mathematics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Mathematics, Applied | 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
- 1.68LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 1.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 3.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.75LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.2LetPub ·
- h-index
- 46LetPub ·
- h-index
- 84OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 766OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.54OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 11.8%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 28.68%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 41LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,957 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 44 | 18 | 8 |
| 2025 | 52 | 25 | 49 |
| 2024 | 60 | 31 | 183 |
| 2023 | 52 | 19 | 218 |
| 2022 | 50 | 27 | 302 |
| 2021 | 49 | 46 | 355 |
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)
- over 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 7 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single 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 2,680 / EUR 2,510 / GBP 2,150 / JPY 332,400 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,090 | — | — |
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 prepare1 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
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
Open Archive: items free to read/download 48 months after publication. Model summary
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
Single anonymized peer review; minimum two reviewers. Model summary
This journal follows a single 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 sharing allowed; does not count as prior publication. Model summary
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
- Academic Press Inc.
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Founded
- 1985
- ISSN
- 0885-064X
- Electronic ISSN
- 1090-2708
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Complexity
What CAS zone is Journal of Complexity in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Complexity is in Zone 2 of Mathematics, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Mathematics, Applied / Mathematics. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Mathematics. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Complexity?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.68; CiteScore 3.4, h-index 84.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Complexity?
Authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “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 Journal of Complexity based?
Of the 60 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Germany (20), United States (11) and Austria (10). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Complexity?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Complexity is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Journal of Complexity open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Complexity is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,680.
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: .