Journal profile · ECONOMICS
RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS
ISSN 0741-6261 · eISSN 1756-2171 · Wiley-Blackwell
RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS: CAS Zone 2 · Economics (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.57; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,400; review about 121 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); acceptance rate 1% (journal website); 58 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 2 of Economics in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Merger and Competition Analysis, Auction Theory and Applications and Consumer Market Behavior and Pricing, together about 39.5% of its articles. Its main subfields are Economics and Econometrics. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The purpose of The RAND Journal of Economics, formerly The Bell Journal of Economics, is to support and encourage research in the behavior of regulated industries, the economic analysis of organizations, and more generally, applied microeconomics. Both theoretical and empirical manuscripts in economics and law are encouraged. For a complete list of the table of contents of back issues, please visit: https://editorialexpress.com/cgi-bin/rje_online.cgi?action=browse&tid=41096&sc=kkJTGtOP
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): ECONOMICS
Editor-in-chief Craig BondPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 3%); most named United States 29, Germany 2, Canada 2, Mainland China 1, United Kingdom 1 (39 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Merger and Competition AnalysisEconomics, Econometrics and Finance13.7%
- Auction Theory and ApplicationsDecision Sciences13.2%
- Consumer Market Behavior and PricingBusiness, Management and Accounting12.6%
- Digital Platforms and EconomicsBusiness, Management and Accounting8%
- Law, Economics, and Judicial SystemsEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.9%
- Experimental Behavioral Economics StudiesSocial Sciences5.8%
- Economic theories and modelsEconomics, Econometrics and Finance5.8%
- Game Theory and ApplicationsDecision Sciences5.7%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Economics Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Economics | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Economics | Zone 2 |
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 |
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 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
MEDLINEPubMedINSPECCAB AbstractsEconLitCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: ProQuest, RePEc
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
- 2.57LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.3Publisher website ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 4.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 4.62LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.14LetPub ·
- h-index
- 248OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,436OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.98OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 7.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 46.08%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 51LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 51Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 161,145Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,827 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 35 | 22 | 30 |
| 2025 | 58 | 44 | 217 |
| 2024 | 36 | 23 | 266 |
| 2023 | 31 | 23 | 471 |
| 2022 | 33 | 12 | 561 |
| 2021 | 45 | 19 | 1,172 |
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
Not usableThis publisher's "received" date is mostly when the revised manuscript arrived (67% of articles were "accepted" within 3 days), so it cannot measure review time
Figures by source
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 1%Publisher website ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 1%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 19 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 19 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 121 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 20 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double-anonymous peer reviewPublisher website · model-extracted
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 3,400 / EUR 2,870 / GBP 2,270 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Submission fee
- USD 200
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
- ≤ 100 words
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteConflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- Conflicts of interest
Authors must declare any financial support or relationships that may pose conflict of interest at the time of submission. Model summary
Authors must declare any financial support or relationships that may pose conflict of interest by disclosing at the time of submission any financial arrangements they have with a company whose product figures prominently in the submitted manuscript or with a company making a competing product.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
If your paper is accepted, the author identified as the formal corresponding author for the paper will receive an email prompting them to login into Author Services; where via the Wiley Author Licensing Service (WALS) they will be able to complete the license agreement on behalf of all authors on the paper. For authors signing the copyright transfer agreement If the Open Access option is not selec…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access
Rapid publication via Wiley's Early View service; articles published online before inclusion in an issue. Model summary
The journal offers rapid publication via Wiley’s Early View service. Early View (Online Version of Record) articles are published on Wiley Online Library before inclusion in an issue.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Model summary
The RAND Journal of Economics is a member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
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
- 0741-6261
- Electronic ISSN
- 1756-2171
- Society / sponsor
- RAND Corporation
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS
What CAS zone is RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS is in Zone 2 of Economics, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Economics. 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 RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.57; CiteScore 4.3, h-index 248.
How long does peer review take at RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS?
The publisher reports about 121 days (submission to acceptance); the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 1% (2025). 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 RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 100 words; Reference style: Author–date; Suggested reviewers: Optional; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional; 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 RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS based?
Of the 39 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 3%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (29), Germany (2) and Canada (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists MEDLINE, PubMed, INSPEC, CAB Abstracts, EconLit and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS open access, and what is the APC?
RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,400.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .