Journal profile · Multiple
Soil Ecology Letters
ISSN 2662-2289 · eISSN 2662-2297 · Higher Education Press Limited Company
Soil Ecology Letters: CAS Zone 2 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 4 (journal website); hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,790; median 102 days to acceptance (97 articles, last 24 months); 97 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Soil Ecology Letters is published by Higher Education Press Limited Company and is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics, Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology and Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions, together about 50.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Plant Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Soil Ecology Letters provides rapid publication of original research articles of scientific significance that depict and explain ecological processes occurring in soil. Manuscripts concerning the ecology of all taxa, in any biome in the soil will be considered, and preferred selection will be made in terms of originality, common interest and contribution to the development of soil ecology. We focus on the ecology and biogeochemical processes of soil organisms, their interactions with plants and their influences on soil functions, ecosystem services and environmental sustainability, as well as the applications or development of new technologies, theories and modeling of soil ecological processes; and pay more attention to urban soil ecology. In addition to full-length research articles, the journal also publishes perspectives to present novel essays for a wide audience, mini-reviews of contemporary studies that show significant and novel hypotheses, rapid reports meriting urgent coverage, as well as letters to the editor and commentaries about specific and controversial issues of soil ecology. The scope of Soil Ecology Letters is extensive and includes all aspects of recent research in soil ecology. Some of the subjects that are attracting growing attention are soil biodiversity, soil microbial interactions and food web, soil microbiome, soil-plant interactions, soil biogeochemical cycling, soil bioremediation and restoration, urban soil ecology, soil multifunctionality, response and adaptation of soil biota to environmental changes, and breakthrough technologies, novel theories and modeling of soil ecological processes.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Multiple
Editorial board by country: 16 in mainland China (about 100%); most named Mainland China 16 (16 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen DynamicsAgricultural and Biological Sciences25.9%
- Microbial Community Ecology and PhysiologyEnvironmental Science16%
- Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant InteractionsAgricultural and Biological Sciences8.2%
- Plant-Microbe Interactions and ImmunityAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.8%
- Legume Nitrogen Fixing SymbiosisAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.3%
- Nematode management and characterization studiesAgricultural and Biological Sciences3.8%
- Gut microbiota and healthBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.3%
- Peatlands and Wetlands EcologyEnvironmental Science3.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
ESCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
CASPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Astrophysics Data System, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS, Semantic Scholar
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 (publisher) 2025
- 4Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 4.4Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.5LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.07LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.8LetPub ·
- h-index
- 35OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 151OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.05OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 7.58%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 95LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,025Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 72,800Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 485 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 115 | 9 | 63 |
| 2025 | 97 | 13 | 340 |
| 2024 | 69 | 10 | 455 |
| 2023 | 44 | 5 | 554 |
| 2022 | 39 | 16 | 727 |
| 2021 | 50 | 18 | 1,134 |
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
102 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 76 days – 155 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 65 days (97 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 170 days
- Sample
- 97 articles with submission and acceptance dates (227 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".
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 3,790 / EUR 3,090 / GBP 2,690 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
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
- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Soil Ecology Letters, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page.
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
- Higher Education Press Limited Company
- ISSN
- 2662-2289
- Electronic ISSN
- 2662-2297
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Soil Ecology Letters
What CAS zone is Soil Ecology Letters in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Soil Ecology Letters is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Ecology / Soil Science. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Soil Ecology Letters?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 4 (2025); this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 6.5, h-index 35.
How long does peer review take at Soil Ecology Letters?
Based on the dates recorded on 97 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 102 days (interquartile range 76–155 days). 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 Soil Ecology Letters based?
Of the 16 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 16 (about 100%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (16). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Soil Ecology Letters?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Soil Ecology Letters is indexed in ESCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists CAS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Soil Ecology Letters open access, and what is the APC?
Soil Ecology Letters is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,790.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, 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: .