Journal profile · Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Physical Geography
ISSN 0272-3646 · eISSN 1930-0557 · Taylor and Francis Ltd. · UNITED STATES · Bimonthly
Physical Geography: CAS Zone 4 · Earth Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.66; subscription journal; APC charged, amount not published; median 196 days to acceptance (60 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 32 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Physical Geography is published by Taylor and Francis Ltd. and is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Climate variability and models, Geology and Paleoclimatology Research and Soil erosion and sediment transport, together about 25.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Atmospheric Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Physical Geography publishes original research on physical processes that shape the physical landscape and are critical to human-environment interactions. Papers focusing on the integration of climatology, geomorphology, hydrology, biogeography, and soils and their impact on human-environment interactions are particularly encouraged. Peer Review Statement All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editors, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees. All peer review is single anonymized and submission is online via Submission Portal.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Editor-in-chief Chris HouserPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 4%); most named United States 21, Mainland China 1, South Korea 1, Switzerland 1, Austria 1 (26 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Climate variability and modelsEnvironmental Science8.8%
- Geology and Paleoclimatology ResearchEarth and Planetary Sciences8.7%
- Soil erosion and sediment transportAgricultural and Biological Sciences8.5%
- Hydrology and Sediment Transport ProcessesEnvironmental Science7.9%
- Hydrology and Watershed Management StudiesEnvironmental Science6.5%
- Cryospheric studies and observationsEarth and Planetary Sciences5.6%
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon DynamicsEnvironmental Science5%
- Landslides and related hazardsEnvironmental Science5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geography, Physical | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geography, Physical | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Earth Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Earth Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geography, Physical | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Geosciences, Multidisciplinary | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- CiteScore Q2 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceGeoRefPublisher website
Other: ProQuest, CSA; Water Resources Abstracts (Online), Selective, EBSCOhost; Environment Index; TOC Premier
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
- 1.66LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.8Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 3.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.43LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.43Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.75LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.75Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 37LetPub ·
- h-index
- 67OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 683OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.38OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 2.86%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 32LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 3Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 27,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,463 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 29 | 5 | 9 |
| 2025 | 32 | 4 | 52 |
| 2024 | 15 | 3 | 44 |
| 2023 | 23 | 3 | 113 |
| 2022 | 19 | 2 | 107 |
| 2021 | 46 | 1 | 268 |
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
196 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 120 days – 278 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 13 days (60 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 213 days
- Sample
- 60 articles with submission and acceptance dates (60 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)
- over 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 16%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 5 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 96 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 11 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single 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
Subscription journalLetPub
A subscription journal: articles are read by subscription or purchase, and authors usually pay no publication charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Physical Geography is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and read…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Statement
All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editors, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees. All peer review is single anonymized and submission is online via Submission Portal.
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
- Taylor and Francis Ltd.
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- ISSN
- 0272-3646
- Electronic ISSN
- 1930-0557
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 47, Issue 4 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Physical Geography
What CAS zone is Physical Geography in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Physical Geography is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Environmental Sciences / Geography, Physical / Geosciences, Multidisciplinary / Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Earth Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Physical Geography?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.66; CiteScore 3.6, h-index 67.
How long does peer review take at Physical Geography?
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 196 days (interquartile range 120–278 days); authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 16%. 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 Physical Geography based?
Of the 26 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 4%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (21), Mainland China (1) and South Korea (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Physical Geography?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Physical Geography is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science and GeoRef; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Physical Geography open access, and what is the APC?
Physical Geography is a subscription journal. APC charged, amount not published.
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 2026-08-28). Last updated: .