Journal profile · PLANT SCIENCES
Nature Plants
ISSN 2055-026X · eISSN 2055-0278 · Springer Nature · UNITED STATES · 12 issues per year · Founded 2015
Nature Plants: CAS Zone 1 · Biology (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 14.97; hybrid open access; APC about USD 12,690; median 251 days to acceptance (60 articles, last 24 months); 298 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Nature Plants is published by Springer Nature 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 Reproductive Biology, together about 36.6% of its articles. Its main subfields are Plant Science and Molecular Biology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Nature Plants is an online-only, monthly journal publishing the best research on plants — from their evolution, development, metabolism and environmental interactions to their societal significance.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): PLANT SCIENCES
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 8%); most named United States 5, United Kingdom 2, Germany 2, Mainland China 1, Italy 1 (12 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Plant Molecular Biology ResearchAgricultural and Biological Sciences17.8%
- Photosynthetic Processes and MechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology10.2%
- Plant Reproductive BiologyBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology8.6%
- Plant nutrient uptake and metabolismAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.9%
- Chromosomal and Genetic VariationsAgricultural and Biological Sciences5.3%
- Plant-Microbe Interactions and ImmunityAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.4%
- CRISPR and Genetic EngineeringBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.8%
- Plant Virus Research StudiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences3.7%
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 | 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 | 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 | Plant Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePublisher website
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
- 14.97LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 15Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 18.2Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 20.6LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 5.11LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 3.31LetPub ·
- h-index
- 42LetPub ·
- h-index
- 209OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,478OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 10.39OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 29.28%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 166LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 3,151,746Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 3,017 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 236 | 79 | 406 |
| 2025 | 298 | 101 | 2,781 |
| 2024 | 289 | 110 | 5,364 |
| 2023 | 273 | 101 | 7,282 |
| 2022 | 238 | 84 | 9,205 |
| 2021 | 252 | 114 | 18,790 |
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
251 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 172 days – 331 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 36 days (60 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 295 days
- Sample
- 60 articles with submission and acceptance dates (617 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
- 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 12,690 / EUR 10,690 / GBP 9,190 | — | — |
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
- Cover letter
- Required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websitePeer review
- Peer review 3 – Editorial Process, Peer Review, Appeals & Transfers
Once you have submitted your manuscript, it goes through our editorial process. If your manuscript is sent out for peer review, you will receive an email asking you to read and sign our Editorial Policies. To appeal against a decision, or transfer your submission to another journal – Appeals and Transfers. ____________________________________________________________________________________________…
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
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- 12 issues per year
- Founded
- 2015
- ISSN
- 2055-026X
- Electronic ISSN
- 2055-0278
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Nature Plants
What CAS zone is Nature Plants in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Nature Plants is in Zone 1 of Biology, and in Zone 1 of the minor category 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 Nature Plants?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 14.97; CiteScore 20.6, h-index 209.
How long does peer review take at Nature Plants?
Based on the dates recorded on 60 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 251 days (interquartile range 172–331 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.
Where are the editorial board members of Nature Plants based?
Of the 12 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 8%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (5), United Kingdom (2) and Germany (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Nature Plants?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Nature Plants is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Nature Plants open access, and what is the APC?
Nature Plants is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 12,690.
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 2026-08-28). Last updated: .