Journal profile · Multiple
PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE
ISSN 1056-8190 · eISSN 1435-5957 · Wiley-Blackwell
PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE: CAS Zone 3 · Economics (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.87; fully open access; APC about USD 2,740; review about 181 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 51 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 3 of Economics in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Regional Economics and Spatial Analysis, Regional Development and Policy and Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth, together about 36.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Economics and Econometrics. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
PIRS has been publishing as a fully Open Access journal since January 2024 and welcomes submissions from all authors. Papers in Regional Science is the official journal of the Regional Science Association International. It encourages high quality scholarship on a broad range of topics in the field of regional science. These topics include, but are not limited to, behavioural modelling of location, transportation, and migration decisions, land use and urban development, inter-industry analysis, environmental and ecological analysis, resource management, urban and regional policy analysis, geographical information systems, and spatial statistics.The journal publishes papers that make a new contribution to the theory, methods and models related to urban and regional (or spatial) matters. The editors invite submissions of papers that emphasize the application of theoretical frameworks, methods and models, developed specifically for the study of urban and regional phenomena. They also welcome contributions to the understanding of regional phenomena that employ theoretical frameworks and methods developed in other fields.Papers in Regional Science is committed to promoting transparency and reproducibility in research. The journal calls on authors to deposit their research data in a relevant repository and to cite and link to these datasets in their articles. Where data sharing is not possible, authors are asked to provide a statement explaining the reasons for omission.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Multiple
Editor-in-chief Rosella NicoliniPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named United States 22, Japan 7, Italy 7, Netherlands 4, United Kingdom 3 (60 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Regional Economics and Spatial AnalysisEconomics, Econometrics and Finance21.1%
- Regional Development and PolicySocial Sciences9.1%
- Fiscal Policy and Economic GrowthEconomics, Econometrics and Finance6.6%
- Spatial and Panel Data AnalysisEconomics, Econometrics and Finance6.4%
- Regional Economic and Spatial AnalysisEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.9%
- Economic Growth and ProductivityEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.2%
- Urban Transport and AccessibilitySocial Sciences4.1%
- Housing Market and EconomicsEconomics, Econometrics and Finance4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Economics Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Economics | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Economics | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Environmental Studies | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Geography | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Regional & Urban Planning | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Economics Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Economics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Economics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Environmental Studies | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Geography | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Regional & Urban Planning | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Economics Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Economics | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Economics | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Environmental Studies | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geography | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Regional & Urban Planning | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusDOAJLetPub
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
- 3.87LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 4Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.8LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 5.8Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.14LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.63LetPub ·
- h-index
- 125OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,573OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.86OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 20%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 77.27%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 43LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 4,013 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 35 | 35 | 15 |
| 2025 | 51 | 51 | 219 |
| 2024 | 69 | 69 | 674 |
| 2023 | 62 | 56 | 538 |
| 2022 | 67 | 61 | 775 |
| 2021 | 65 | 59 | 758 |
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
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
181 dayssubmission to acceptance
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Submission to first decision
- 1 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 181 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 29 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double 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 2,740 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,740 / EUR 2,500 / GBP 2,190 / JPY 339,840 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,740 | — | — |
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 prepare6 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Templates
- LaTeX and Word
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, 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 ·- Data availability
Research data sharing encouraged Model summary
Papers in Regional Science is committed to promoting transparency and reproducibility in research. The journal calls on authors to deposit their research data in a relevant repository and to cite and link to these datasets in their articles.
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
Fully open access since January 2024 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
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double 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
- Wiley-Blackwell
- ISSN
- 1056-8190
- Electronic ISSN
- 1435-5957
- Society / sponsor
- Regional Science Association International
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- 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 PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE
What CAS zone is PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE is in Zone 3 of Economics, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Economics / Environmental Studies / Geography / Regional & Urban Planning. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Economics. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.87; CiteScore 5.8, h-index 125.
How long does peer review take at PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE?
The publisher reports about 181 days (submission to acceptance). 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 PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: Author–date; Templates: LaTeX and Word; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional. 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 PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE based?
Of the 60 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (22), Japan (7) and Italy (7). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE is indexed in SSCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE open access, and what is the APC?
PAPERS IN REGIONAL SCIENCE is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,740.
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: .