Journal profile · POLITICAL SCIENCE
Journal of democracy
ISSN 1045-5736 · eISSN 1086-3214 · Johns Hopkins University Press
Journal of democracy: CAS Zone 1 · Sociology (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 5.53; fully open access; 60 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of democracy is published by Johns Hopkins University 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 Political Conflict and Governance, Judicial and Constitutional Studies and Political Theory and Influence, together about 28% of its articles. Its main subfields are Political Science and International Relations. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The Journal of Democracy is the world’s leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy. Since its first appearance in 1990, it has engaged both…
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): POLITICAL SCIENCE
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Political Conflict and GovernanceSocial Sciences14.8%
- Judicial and Constitutional StudiesSocial Sciences6.7%
- Political Theory and InfluenceSocial Sciences6.4%
- Populism, Right-Wing MovementsSocial Sciences5.5%
- Legal case studies and regulationsSocial Sciences5%
- Politics and Society in Latin AmericaSocial Sciences4.9%
- International Development and AidSocial Sciences4.9%
- Politics and Conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle EastSocial Sciences4.4%
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 | Political Science | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Sociology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Sociology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Political Science | 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 | Political Science | Zone 2 |
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
- 5.53LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 7.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 3.14LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 3.63LetPub ·
- h-index
- 155OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,435OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.58OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 52LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,768 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 47 | 1 | 7 |
| 2025 | 60 | 25 | 157 |
| 2024 | 63 | 5 | 445 |
| 2023 | 78 | 6 | 1,311 |
| 2022 | 60 | 2 | 1,399 |
| 2021 | 63 | 14 | 1,923 |
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
Fully open accessLetPub
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
No source has fee information yet; check the journal's website.
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
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- ISSN
- 1045-5736
- Electronic ISSN
- 1086-3214
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of democracy
What CAS zone is Journal of democracy in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of democracy is in Zone 1 of Sociology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Political Science; 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 Journal of democracy?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.53; CiteScore 7.9, h-index 155.
Which databases index Journal of democracy?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of democracy is indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Is Journal of democracy open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of democracy is a fully open-access 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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .