Journal profile · Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Molecular Plant
ISSN 1674-2052 · eISSN 1752-9867 · Cell Press · PEOPLES R CHINA · Monthly · Founded 2008
Molecular Plant: CAS Zone 1 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 32.69; fully open access; APC about USD 5,000; median 144 days to acceptance (107 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: about 41.66%; 227 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Molecular Plant is published by Cell Press and is in Zone 1 of Biology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Plant Molecular Biology Research, Photosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms and Plant nutrient uptake and metabolism, together about 36.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Plant Science and Molecular Biology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Molecular Plant is dedicated to serving the plant science community by publishing novel and exciting findings with high significance in plant biology. The journal focuses broadly on cellular biology, physiology, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, development, plant-microbe interaction, genomics, bioinformatics, and molecular evolution.Molecular Plant publishes original research articles, reviews, correspondence, and spotlights on the most important developments in plant biology. Please see our information for authors for details. Other categories of papers, such as perspectives and meeting reports, can also be considered.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Plant Molecular Biology ResearchAgricultural and Biological Sciences18.1%
- Photosynthetic Processes and MechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology10.1%
- Plant nutrient uptake and metabolismAgricultural and Biological Sciences7.9%
- Plant Reproductive BiologyBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology7.6%
- Plant Stress Responses and ToleranceAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.9%
- Plant-Microbe Interactions and ImmunityAgricultural and Biological Sciences5.1%
- Plant Gene Expression AnalysisBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.9%
- Light effects on plantsAgricultural and Biological Sciences3.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Biology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Biology Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Plant Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview 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
- 32.69LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 32.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 39.2LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 39.2Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 7.69LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 5.94LetPub ·
- h-index
- 85LetPub ·
- h-index
- 233OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 2,386OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 11.54OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 1.8%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 23.99%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 102LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 3,156 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 152 | 46 | 189 |
| 2025 | 227 | 141 | 2,024 |
| 2024 | 170 | 169 | 4,120 |
| 2023 | 176 | 176 | 11,252 |
| 2022 | 197 | 197 | 10,678 |
| 2021 | 227 | 227 | 14,284 |
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
144 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 35 days – 200 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 2 days (107 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 149 days
- Sample
- 107 articles with submission and acceptance dates (449 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
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 1 monthLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 41.66%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 8 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 102 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 3 daysPublisher 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
Fully open accessLetPub
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 5,000 / EUR 4,630 / GBP 4,000 / JPY 620,150 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 5,000 | — | — |
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)
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access Open Access
Article Publishing Charge (APC): USD 5,000 (excluding taxes). The amount you pay may be reduced during submission if applicable.
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
- Cell Press
- Country or region
- PEOPLES R CHINA
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Monthly
- Founded
- 2008
- ISSN
- 1674-2052
- Electronic ISSN
- 1752-9867
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Molecular Plant
What CAS zone is Molecular Plant in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Molecular Plant is in Zone 1 of Biology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Biochemistry & Molecular Biology / Plant Sciences; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Molecular Plant?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 32.69; CiteScore 39.2, h-index 233.
How long does peer review take at Molecular Plant?
Based on the dates recorded on 107 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 144 days (interquartile range 35–200 days); authors report an average review time of about 1 month; the community-reported acceptance is “about 41.66%”. 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.
Which databases index Molecular Plant?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Molecular Plant is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Molecular Plant open access, and what is the APC?
Molecular Plant is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 5,000.
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: .