Journal profile · BUSINESS
Journal of Consumer Policy
ISSN 0168-7034 · eISSN 1573-0700 · Springer Nature · 4 issues per year
Journal of Consumer Policy: CAS Zone 4 · Management (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.3 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,390; median 186 days to acceptance (50 articles, last 24 months); 27 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Consumer Policy is published by Springer Nature and is in Zone 4 of Management in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are European and International Contract Law, Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification and Diverse Legal and Medical Studies, together about 28.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Marketing. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Journal of Consumer Policy is a refereed, international journal which encompasses a broad range of issues concerned with consumer affairs. It looks at the consumer's dependence on existing social and economic structures, helps to define the consumer's interest, and discusses the ways in which consumer welfare can be fostered - or restrained - through actions and policies of consumers, industry, organizations, government, educational institutions, and the mass media. The Journal of Consumer Policy publishes theoretical and empirical research on consumer and producer conduct, emphasizing the implications for consumers and increasing communication between the parties in the marketplace. Articles cover consumer issues in law, economics, and behavioural sciences. Current areas of topical interest include the impact of new information technologies, the economics of information, the consequences of regulation or deregulation of markets, problems related to an increasing internationalization of trade and marketing practices, consumers in less affluent societies, the efficacy of economic cooperation, consumers and the environment, problems with products and services provided by the public sector, the setting of priorities by consumer organizations and agencies, gender issues, product safety and product liability, and the interaction between consumption and associated forms of behaviour such as work and leisure. The Journal of Consumer Policy reports regularly on developments in legal policy with a bearing on consumer issues. It covers the integration of consumer law in the European Union and other transnational communities and analyzes trends in the application and implementation of consumer legislation through administrative agencies, courts, trade associations, and consumer organizations. It also considers the impact of consumer legislation on the supply side and discusses comparative legal approaches to issues of cons umer policy in different parts of the world. The Journal of Consumer Policy informs readers about a broad array of consumer policy issues by publishing regularly both extended book reviews and brief, non-evaluative book notes on new publications in the field. For further information, please see the About Journal of Consumer Policy page, which can be found under Journal Updates. Officially cited as: J Consum Policy
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): BUSINESS
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 11, United Kingdom 9, Germany 9, Denmark 4, Norway 4 (58 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- European and International Contract LawSocial Sciences17%
- Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and IdentificationBusiness, Management and Accounting6.3%
- Diverse Legal and Medical StudiesBusiness, Management and Accounting5.5%
- Consumer Market Behavior and PricingBusiness, Management and Accounting5.5%
- Law, Economics, and Judicial SystemsEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.3%
- Environmental Sustainability in BusinessBusiness, Management and Accounting4.9%
- Dispute Resolution and Class ActionsBusiness, Management and Accounting4.9%
- Environmental Education and SustainabilityEnvironmental Science4.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Management Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Business | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Management Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Management | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Business | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
INSPECCAB AbstractsEconLitPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, AGRICOLA, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS, RePEc
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 (publisher) 2025
- 2.3Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.5LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.71LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.41LetPub ·
- h-index
- 87OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 506OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.58OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 70.97%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 23LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 337,600Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,552 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 28 | 18 | 5 |
| 2025 | 27 | 20 | 72 |
| 2024 | 23 | 18 | 124 |
| 2023 | 25 | 20 | 220 |
| 2022 | 33 | 26 | 369 |
| 2021 | 26 | 21 | 440 |
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
186 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 124 days – 271 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 21 days (52 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 204 days
- Sample
- 50 articles with submission and acceptance dates (58 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
- Submission to first decision
- 7 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 3,390 / EUR 2,690 / GBP 2,390 | — | — |
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 websiteWhat to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- APA
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- AI use Generative AI Images
LLMs do not satisfy authorship criteria; use must be documented in Methods. Model summary
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Disclosures and declarations
Authors must disclose financial or non-financial competing interests. Model summary
All authors are requested to include information regarding sources of funding, financial or non-financial interests, study-specific approval by the appropriate ethics committee for research involving humans and/or animals, informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved animals (as appropriate). The decision whether such …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
Data availability statement required for all original research, explaining how to access supporting data. Model summary
All original research must include a data availability statement. This statement should explain how to access data supporting the results and analysis in the article, including links/citations to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. Please see our full policy here. If it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when individual privacy could be com…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Compliance with Ethical Standards
To ensure objectivity and transparency in research and to ensure that accepted principles of ethical and professional conduct have been followed, authors should include information regarding sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest (financial or non-financial), informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Open Choice articles do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. In opting for open access, the author(s) agree to publish the article under a Creative Commons license. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Journal of Consumer Policy, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Authors may suggest or exclude reviewers at submission. Model summary
Authors are welcome to suggest suitable reviewers and/or request the exclusion of certain individuals when they submit their manuscripts.
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 Nature
- Frequency
- 4 issues per year
- ISSN
- 0168-7034
- Electronic ISSN
- 1573-0700
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Consumer Policy
What CAS zone is Journal of Consumer Policy in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Consumer Policy is in Zone 4 of Management, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Business. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Management. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Consumer Policy?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 2.3 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 5.5, h-index 87.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Consumer Policy?
Based on the dates recorded on 50 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 186 days (interquartile range 124–271 days). 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 Journal of Consumer Policy?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: APA; Suggested reviewers: Optional. 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Journal of Consumer Policy based?
Of the 58 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (11), United Kingdom (9) and Germany (9). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Consumer Policy?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Consumer Policy is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists INSPEC, CAB Abstracts and EconLit; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Journal of Consumer Policy open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Consumer Policy is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,390.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .