Journal profile · Engineering-Mechanical Engineering
Materials & Design
ISSN 0264-1275 · eISSN 1873-4197 · Elsevier BV · ENGLAND · Semi-monthly · Founded 1980
Materials & Design: CAS Zone 2 · Materials Science (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 8.12; fully open access; APC about USD 3,750; review about 89 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); community-reported acceptance: 20%; 1,841 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Materials & Design is published by Elsevier BV and is in Zone 2 of Materials Science in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Additive Manufacturing Materials and Processes, Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies and Aluminum Alloys Composites Properties, together about 21.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Mechanical Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Materials and Design is a top-tier journal that welcomes high-quality submissions from diverse disciplines in the materials’ world. Our focus is on exploring the correlations among structure, property, and processing of inorganic and organic materials, through innovative and proactive design. With an interdisciplinary approach, the journal connects materials science, engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, and emerging fields like Artificial Intelligence and advanced data science. We encourage submissions that offer ground-breaking insights into the multi-scale architecture and function of materials, showcase technological advancements, and demonstrate connections between synthesis and properties, experiment and simulation across the scales. By publishing outstanding research articles, reviews, and short communications, Materials and Design aims to advance the field of materials science and engineering, fostering collaboration and shaping the future of materials design.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Engineering-Mechanical Engineering
Editor-in-chief Xu SongPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 10 in mainland China (about 15%); most named Mainland China 10, United Kingdom 9, Singapore 8, Australia 6, United States 4 (65 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Additive Manufacturing Materials and ProcessesEngineering8%
- Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing TechnologiesEngineering6.8%
- Aluminum Alloys Composites PropertiesEngineering6.3%
- High Entropy Alloys StudiesEngineering5.5%
- Legal and Regulatory AnalysisSocial Sciences5.1%
- Linguistic, Cultural, and Literary StudiesSocial Sciences5.1%
- Military Technology and StrategiesEngineering5.1%
- Microstructure and mechanical propertiesMaterials Science4.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Materials Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Materials Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Materials Science, Multidisciplinary | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Materials Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Materials Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Materials Science, Multidisciplinary | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Materials Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Materials Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Materials Science, Multidisciplinary | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
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
- 8.12LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 8.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 12.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 12.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.51LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.81LetPub ·
- h-index
- 125LetPub ·
- h-index
- 227OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 9,168OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 6.05OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 6.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.86%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 1,711LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 15,103 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1,741 | 1,741 | 1,387 |
| 2025 | 1,841 | 1,841 | 10,931 |
| 2024 | 946 | 946 | 15,084 |
| 2023 | 1,054 | 1,054 | 25,524 |
| 2022 | 1,195 | 1,195 | 40,328 |
| 2021 | 936 | 936 | 43,151 |
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 PubMed · to
Too few articlesOnly 3 articles from the last 24 months carry both submission and acceptance dates, too few for a median
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".
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 2.1 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 20%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 7 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 36 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 89 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 14 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
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
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 3,750 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 3,650 / EUR 3,410 / GBP 2,920 / JPY 452,710 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 3,750 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,750 | — | — |
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 prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 200 words
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted4
- express articlesExpress Articles Contain short communications of particularly timely, innovative and exciting developments in materials science, engineering and design, usually…Length not stated
- original articlesOriginal Articles Describe innovative research investigations, conducted in considerable depth, with critical analysis and discussion of the results, while draw…Length not stated
- review articleMust contain a critical assessment of methods, approaches, published results and their reliability, rather than simply a compendium of articles and summary of t…Length not stated
- review articlesReview articles Must contain a critical assessment of methods, approaches, published results and their reliability, rather than simply a compendium of articles …Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, 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 ·- Publication ethics
Ethics in publishing Model summary
Authors must follow ethical guidelines stated in Elsevier's Publishing Ethics Policy.
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 access 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 review process; submissions initially assessed by editors, then reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers; decisions made by editors. 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; free preprint posting service on SSRN offered. 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. In support of Open Science, this journal offers its authors a free preprint posting service on SSRN, Elsevier’s preprint and early research …
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
- Elsevier BV
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Semi-monthly
- Founded
- 1980
- ISSN
- 0264-1275
- Electronic ISSN
- 1873-4197
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Materials & Design
What CAS zone is Materials & Design in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Materials & Design is in Zone 2 of Materials Science, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Materials Science, Multidisciplinary. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Materials Science. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Materials & Design?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 8.12; CiteScore 12.6, h-index 227.
How long does peer review take at Materials & Design?
The publisher reports about 89 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of about 2.1 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “20%”. 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 Materials & Design?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 200 words; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; Cover letter: Required. 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 Materials & Design based?
Of the 65 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 10 (about 15%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (10), United Kingdom (9) and Singapore (8). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Materials & Design?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Materials & Design is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Materials & Design open access, and what is the APC?
Materials & Design is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,750.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; 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: .