Journal profile · Multidisciplinary Sciences
Science Advances
ISSN 2375-2548 · American Association for the Advancement of Science · UNITED STATES · Weekly · Founded 2015
Science Advances: CAS Zone 1 · Multidisciplinary (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 13.52; fully open access; APC about USD 5,450; median 198 days to acceptance (188 articles, last 24 months); 3,190 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Science Advances is the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) open access multidisciplinary journal, publishing impactful research papers and reviews in any area of science, in both disciplinary-specific and broad, interdisciplinary areas. The mission of Science Advances is to provide fair, fast, and expert peer review to authors and a vetted selection of research, freely available to readers. Led by a team of distinguished scientists and allowing flexible article formats, Science Advances supports the AAAS mission by extending the capacity of Science magazine to identify and promote significant advances in science and engineering across a wide range of areas. The journal’s use of evolving digital publishing technologies plays a critical role in building and sustaining AAAS’s mission as a global participant and advocate for the communication and use of science to benefit humankind.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Multidisciplinary Sciences
Editor-in-chief Holden ThorpPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named Singapore 2, Hong Kong, China 1, Netherlands 1, Denmark 1, Qatar 1 (6 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting MaterialsEngineering7.3%
- Geology and Paleoclimatology ResearchEarth and Planetary Sciences5.6%
- RNA Research and SplicingBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.6%
- Neural dynamics and brain functionNeuroscience4.5%
- RNA modifications and cancerBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.2%
- Epigenetics and DNA MethylationBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.2%
- RNA and protein synthesis mechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.1%
- CRISPR and Genetic EngineeringBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Multidisciplinary Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Multidisciplinary Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Multidisciplinary Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Multidisciplinary Sciences | Zone 1 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Multidisciplinary Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Multidisciplinary | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Multidisciplinary Sciences | Zone 1 |
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
- 13.52LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 19LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 4.53LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.81LetPub ·
- h-index
- 72LetPub ·
- h-index
- 384OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 14,875OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 13.06OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.2%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.91%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 3,092LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 20,465 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2,722 | 2,722 | 4,025 |
| 2025 | 3,190 | 3,190 | 38,196 |
| 2024 | 2,324 | 2,324 | 65,341 |
| 2023 | 2,139 | 2,139 | 99,567 |
| 2022 | 2,215 | 2,215 | 134,013 |
| 2021 | 2,022 | 2,022 | 164,089 |
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
198 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 148 days – 252 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 37 days (188 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 235 days
- Sample
- 188 articles with submission and acceptance dates (6,494 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 29 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 33 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 5,450 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC | |
| OpenAlex | USD 4,500 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 4,950 | Yes | — | |
| 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)
What to prepare6 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 150 words
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 15,000 words
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Not considered
- Footnotes and endnotes
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- editorialScience Advances publishes a variety of article types. Focus articles and editorials are commissioned by the Editorial Board. Research Articles Research article…Length not stated
- research articleScience Advances publishes a variety of article types. Focus articles and editorials are commissioned by the Editorial Board. Research Articles Research article…main text ≤ 15,000 words
- research articlesResearch articles should present a major advance. Science Advances allows for a flexible format for research articles: articles can be short or long format, up …Length not stated
- research resourcesThese articles present a validated technique, tool, or informational database without substantial analysis that results in a new research insight.Length not stated
- reviewScience Advances publishes a variety of article types. Focus articles and editorials are commissioned by the Editorial Board. Research Articles Research article…main text ≤ 10,000 words · figures and tables ≤ 10 · references ≤ 150
- review articleScience Advances publishes a variety of article types. Focus articles and editorials are commissioned by the Editorial Board. Research Articles Research article…Length not stated
- reviewsReview articles should describe and synthesize recent significant developments in a single field, or across multidisciplinary fields, and highlight future direc…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, License & copyright, Peer review, Preprints
- Authorship Changes to Authorship
Authorship changes highlighted in text; Change of Authorship form; proof all authors approve. Model summary
Any changes to authorship should be highlighted in the main text. In addition, please use this Change of Authorship form to provide details to the Editorial Office on the changes. Corresponding authors will be required to provide proof that all authors approve of the change.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright
License to Publish Agreement required from all authors before acceptance; AAAS granted exclusive rights. Model summary
Before Science Advances fully accepts a manuscript, all listed authors must sign and submit a License to Publish Agreement granting AAAS exclusive rights to publish.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Resubmissions only when explicitly invited by Editorial Board. Model summary
Resubmissions are allowed only when explicitly invited by a member of our Editorial Board.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
A. Smette et al., http://xxx.lanl.gov/abs/astro-ph/0012193 (2001). K. Abe et al., http://arXiv.org/abs/hep-ex/0107061 (2001) [if now published, omit the URL and provide only a standard reference]
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
- American Association for the Advancement of Science
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Weekly
- Founded
- 2015
- ISSN
- 2375-2548
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Science Advances
What CAS zone is Science Advances in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Science Advances is in Zone 1 of Multidisciplinary, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Multidisciplinary Sciences; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Multidisciplinary. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Science Advances?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 13.52; CiteScore 19, h-index 384.
How long does peer review take at Science Advances?
Based on the dates recorded on 188 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 198 days (interquartile range 148–252 days); authors report an average review time of about 29 weeks. 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 Science Advances?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 150 words; Manuscript length: ≤ 15,000 words; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; 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 Science Advances based?
Of the 6 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Singapore (2), Hong Kong, China (1) and Netherlands (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Science Advances?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Science Advances is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Science Advances open access, and what is the APC?
Science Advances is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 5,450.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .