Journal profile · Soil Science
Soil Science Society of America Journal
ISSN 0361-5995 · eISSN 1435-0661 · Soil Science Society of America · UNITED STATES · Bimonthly · Founded 1976
Soil Science Society of America Journal: CAS Zone 3 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.64; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,020; median 161 days to acceptance (104 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 181 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Soil Science Society of America Journal is published by Soil Science Society of America and is in Zone 3 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, Soil and Unsaturated Flow and Soil and Water Nutrient Dynamics, together about 42.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Environmental Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
SSSA Journal publishes content on soil physics; hydrology; soil chemistry; soil biology; soil biochemistry; soil fertility; plant nutrition; pedology; soil and water conservation and management; forest, range, and wildland soils; soil and plant analysis; soil mineralogy, wetland soils. The audience is researchers, students, soil scientists, hydrologists, pedologist, geologists, agronomists, arborists, ecologists, engineers, certified practitioners, soil microbiologists, and environmentalists.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Soil Science
Editor-in-chief Markus Flury AffiliationPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 12 in mainland China (about 11%); most named United States 80, Mainland China 12, Canada 4, India 3, Brazil 2 (107 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 Sciences18%
- Soil and Unsaturated FlowEngineering16.3%
- Soil and Water Nutrient DynamicsEnvironmental Science8.4%
- Clay minerals and soil interactionsMaterials Science7.8%
- Soil Geostatistics and MappingEnvironmental Science4.6%
- Soil erosion and sediment transportAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.1%
- Rangeland and Wildlife ManagementEnvironmental Science4%
- Groundwater flow and contamination studiesEnvironmental Science3.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Soil Science | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceCASCAB AbstractsGeoRefPublisher website
Other: EBSCO, ProQuest, AGRICOLA, Astrophysics Data System
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
- 2.64LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.4LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.4Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.84LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.03LetPub ·
- h-index
- 147LetPub ·
- h-index
- 317OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 13,570OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.86OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 7.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 47.47%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 160LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 21,435 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 179 | 104 | 31 |
| 2025 | 181 | 124 | 460 |
| 2024 | 181 | 127 | 1,055 |
| 2023 | 113 | 78 | 791 |
| 2022 | 145 | 67 | 1,509 |
| 2021 | 158 | 62 | 2,610 |
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
161 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 123 days – 215 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 38 days (108 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 199 days
- Sample
- 104 articles with submission and acceptance dates (389 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 4 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 41%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 64 daysPublisher 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
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 2,020 / EUR 1,840 / GBP 1,580 | — | — |
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.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Soil Science Society of America
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1976
- ISSN
- 0361-5995
- Electronic ISSN
- 1435-0661
- Society / sponsor
- SSSA
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 90, Issue 5 (October 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Soil Science Society of America Journal
What CAS zone is Soil Science Society of America Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Soil Science Society of America Journal is in Zone 3 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Soil Science. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Soil Science Society of America Journal?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.64; CiteScore 4.4, h-index 317.
How long does peer review take at Soil Science Society of America Journal?
Based on the dates recorded on 104 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 161 days (interquartile range 123–215 days); authors report an average review time of about 4 months; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 41%. 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 Science Society of America Journal based?
Of the 107 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 12 (about 11%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (80), Mainland China (12) and Canada (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Soil Science Society of America Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Soil Science Society of America Journal is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science, CAS, CAB Abstracts and GeoRef; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Soil Science Society of America Journal open access, and what is the APC?
Soil Science Society of America Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,020.
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: .