Journal profile · COMPUTER SCIENCE, INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS-COMPUTER SCIENCE, SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
Virtual Reality
ISSN 1359-4338 · eISSN 1434-9957 · Springer London · ENGLAND · 4 issues per year · Founded 1995
Virtual Reality: CAS Zone 2 · Computer Science (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 5.44; fully open access; APC about USD 3,090; median 269 days to acceptance (99 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 224 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Virtual Reality is published by Springer London and is in Zone 2 of Computer Science in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Virtual Reality Applications and Impacts, Augmented Reality Applications and Tactile and Sensory Interactions, together about 51.7% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The journal, established in 1995, publishes original research in Virtual Reality, Augmented and Mixed Reality that shapes and informs the community. The multidisciplinary nature of the field means that submissions are welcomed on a wide range of topics including, but not limited to: Original research studies of Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality and real-time visualization, graphics, and applications Development and evaluation of systems, tools, techniques and software that advance the field, including: Display technologies, including Head Mounted Displays, simulators, and immersive displays. Haptic technologies, including novel devices, interaction and rendering Interaction management, including gesture control, eye gaze, biosensors, biofeedback, and wearables Tracking technologies, motion capture, 3D spatial sound, virtual smell, and virtual taste VR/AR/MR in medicine, including training, surgical simulation, rehabilitation, and tissue/organ modelling. Impactful and original applications and studies of VR/AR/MR’s utility in areas such as manufacturing, business, telecommunications, arts, education, design, entertainment and defence Research demonstrating new techniques and approaches to designing, building and evaluating virtual and augmented reality systems Original research studies assessing the social, ethical, data or legal aspects of VR/AR/MR To complement original research articles, the journal also welcomes papers that provide state of the art reviews of specific aspects of VR/MR/AR. Such papers must be rigorous and represent a valuable resource for researcher and practitioners. The journal’s audience includes those undertaking research in academia and industry, and developers and users of applications. Since readers may therefore be unfamiliar with all aspects of a specific topic being discussed, emphasis will be placed on clear, well-written, and accessible articles which will appeal to a multidisciplinary audience.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): COMPUTER SCIENCE, INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS-COMPUTER SCIENCE, SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
Editor-in-chief Daniel BallinPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 5 in mainland China (about 6%); most named United States 25, United Kingdom 13, Italy 13, Mainland China 5, Canada 5 (90 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Virtual Reality Applications and ImpactsComputer Science30.9%
- Augmented Reality ApplicationsComputer Science14.7%
- Tactile and Sensory InteractionsNeuroscience6.2%
- Interactive and Immersive DisplaysComputer Science4.9%
- Spatial Cognition and NavigationEngineering3.9%
- Teleoperation and Haptic SystemsEngineering3.7%
- Human-Automation Interaction and SafetyPsychology3.3%
- Stroke Rehabilitation and RecoveryMedicine3.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Imaging Science & Photographic Technology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Computer Science Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Imaging Science & Photographic Technology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Computer Science Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Software Engineering | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Imaging Science & Photographic Technology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EI CompendexINSPECDBLPCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, ACM Digital Library, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
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
- 5.44LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.4Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 6.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 11.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.04LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.92LetPub ·
- h-index
- 37LetPub ·
- h-index
- 103OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 832OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.81OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 87.87%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 194LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 1,200,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,842 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 210 | 210 | 59 |
| 2025 | 224 | 224 | 1,079 |
| 2024 | 186 | 186 | 2,466 |
| 2023 | 149 | 83 | 3,075 |
| 2022 | 139 | 73 | 3,606 |
| 2021 | 120 | 77 | 5,248 |
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
269 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 188 days – 411 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 25 days (99 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 286 days
- Sample
- 99 articles with submission and acceptance dates (432 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 ·
- Submission to first decision
- 11 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 52 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 | EUR 2,490 / USD 3,090 / GBP 2,190 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,990 / EUR 2,390 / GBP 2,090 | — | — | |
| 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 prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Article types accepted1
- editorialSingle-blind peer review This journal follows a single-blind reviewing procedure. This journal also publishes special/guest-edited issues. The peer review proce…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- AI use Generative AI Images
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Disclosures and declarations
All authors are requested to include information regarding sources of funding, financial or non-financial interests, study-specific approval by the appropriate ethics committee for research involving humans and/or animals, informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved animals (as appropriate). The decision whether such …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
Data availability statement required for all original research Model summary
All original research must include a data availability statement. This statement should explain how to access data supporting the results and analysis in the article, including links/citations to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. Please see our full policy here. If it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when individual privacy could be com…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Compliance with Ethical Standards
To ensure objectivity and transparency in research and to ensure that accepted principles of ethical and professional conduct have been followed, authors should include information regarding sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest (financial or non-financial), informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Articles in Springer Nature open access journals do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Virtual Reality, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Single-blind peer review
Single-blind peer review Model summary
This journal follows a single-blind reviewing procedure. This journal also publishes special/guest-edited issues. The peer review process for these articles is the same as the peer review process of the journal in general. Additionally, if a guest editor authors an article in their issue/collection, they will not handle the peer review process.
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
- Springer London
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- 4 issues per year
- Founded
- 1995
- ISSN
- 1359-4338
- Electronic ISSN
- 1434-9957
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Virtual Reality
What CAS zone is Virtual Reality in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Virtual Reality is in Zone 2 of Computer Science, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Computer Science, Software Engineering / Imaging Science & Photographic Technology / Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Computer Science. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Virtual Reality?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.44; CiteScore 11.9, h-index 103.
How long does peer review take at Virtual Reality?
Based on the dates recorded on 99 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 269 days (interquartile range 188–411 days); authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”. 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 Virtual Reality?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: Author–date; Suggested reviewers: 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 Virtual Reality based?
Of the 90 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 5 (about 6%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (25), United Kingdom (13) and Italy (13). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Virtual Reality?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Virtual Reality is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists EI Compendex, INSPEC, DBLP and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Virtual Reality open access, and what is the APC?
Virtual Reality is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,090.
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: .