Journal profile · Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
NeuroImage
ISSN 1053-8119 · eISSN 1095-9572 · Academic Press Inc. · UNITED STATES · Semimonthly · Founded 1992
NeuroImage: CAS Zone 2 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 5.24; fully open access; APC about USD 3,540; median 147 days to acceptance (106 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly hard; 687 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
NeuroImage is published by Academic Press Inc. and is in Zone 2 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Functional Brain Connectivity Studies, Neural dynamics and brain function and Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications, together about 41.3% of its articles. Its main subfields are Cognitive Neuroscience. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
NeuroImage is a gold open access journal that communicates important developments in understanding brain function, structure, and organization using all neuroimaging modalities, as well as advances in related imaging and analysis methodology. The journal focuses on the macroscopic level of the human brain but seeks to incorporate theoretical and technological innovations to investigate the brain at multiple levels of analysis. Submissions involving animal models or clinical populations are also welcome, provided that they contribute to a systems-level understanding of the human brain. NeuroImage publishes original research and review articles, as well as papers that focus on methods, models/resources, or emerging/controversial issues. A full list of article types is available in our Guide for Authors. NeuroImage has two open access companion titles: NeuroImage: Clinical focuses on understanding pathology, abnormal development, and biomarker usage. NeuroImage: Reports covers the scope of both NeuroImage and NeuroImage: Clinical and considers all papers reporting scientifically accurate neuroimaging research, including replication studies, confirmatory research, and null findings. NeuroImage: Stroke dedicated exclusively to communicating significant imaging-based advances in the fields of stroke and related cerebrovascular research.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Editor-in-chief Bryony McGarryPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 13 in mainland China (about 17%); most named United States 27, Mainland China 13, Switzerland 8, United Kingdom 4, Germany 3 (78 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Functional Brain Connectivity StudiesNeuroscience18.9%
- Neural dynamics and brain functionNeuroscience11.8%
- Advanced MRI Techniques and ApplicationsMedicine10.6%
- Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and ApplicationsMedicine10.1%
- Neural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesNeuroscience7.5%
- EEG and Brain-Computer InterfacesNeuroscience7%
- Visual perception and processing mechanismsNeuroscience3.6%
- Memory and Neural MechanismsNeuroscience2.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neuroimaging | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neuroimaging | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Neuroimaging | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Neurosciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging | 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
- 5.24LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 5.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 9.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 9.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.93LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.68LetPub ·
- h-index
- 320LetPub ·
- h-index
- 536OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 18,422OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.23OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 644LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 28,574 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 572 | 572 | 286 |
| 2025 | 687 | 687 | 2,444 |
| 2024 | 469 | 469 | 4,572 |
| 2023 | 597 | 597 | 12,267 |
| 2022 | 800 | 800 | 23,262 |
| 2021 | 974 | 974 | 35,218 |
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
147 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 109 days – 206 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 1 days (106 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 150 days
- Sample
- 106 articles with submission and acceptance dates (1,404 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 2 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly hardLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 4 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 60 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 147 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 1 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 22 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 3,540 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 3,540 / EUR 3,310 / GBP 2,830 / JPY 439,070 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 3,450 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,540 | — | — |
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 papers4, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare2 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted9, with length limits
- commentaryy published papers in the journal. Such commentaries should be brief (less than 2000 words), with a succinct abstract (~100 words), a short biographymain text ≤ 2,000 words
- comments and controversiesComments and Controversies NeuroImage encourages brief commentaries that address issues of outstanding interest to the field.Length not stated
- data resource papersData Resource Papers NeuroImage publishes Data Resource Papers that report the creation of a new data resource, such as a new imaging-based cohort.Length not stated
- original research papersOriginal research papers Communicating original research papers form the core objective of NeuroImage.Length not stated
- registered reportsRegistered reports (click here for more details). These submissions undergo a two-phase review process in which study rationale and methodology are considered p…Length not stated
- review papersReview papers NeuroImage publishes review papers that address and synthesize research areas of outstanding current interest that lie within the scope of the jou…Length not stated
- technical noteTechnical notes are brief reports that focus on specific methodological developments of an experimental, computational or analytic nature. They should be concis…main text ≤ 3,000 words
- technical notesTechnical Notes Technical notes are brief reports that focus on specific methodological developments of an experimental, computational or analytic nature.Length not stated
- toolbox and software papersToolBox and Software papers NeuroImage encourages submission of Toolbox and Software papers.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
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 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 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.
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
- Academic Press Inc.
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Semimonthly
- Founded
- 1992
- ISSN
- 1053-8119
- Electronic ISSN
- 1095-9572
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- 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 NeuroImage
What CAS zone is NeuroImage in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, NeuroImage is in Zone 2 of Medicine, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Neuroimaging / Neurosciences / Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of NeuroImage?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.24; CiteScore 9.6, h-index 536.
How long does peer review take at NeuroImage?
Based on the dates recorded on 106 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 147 days (interquartile range 109–206 days); authors report an average review time of about 2 months; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly hard”. 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 NeuroImage?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; 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 NeuroImage based?
Of the 78 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 13 (about 17%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (27), Mainland China (13) and Switzerland (8). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index NeuroImage?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, NeuroImage is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is NeuroImage open access, and what is the APC?
NeuroImage is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,540.
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 2026-08-25). Last updated: .