Journal profile · WATER RESOURCES
Water
ISSN 2073-4441 · MDPI (Basel, Switzerland) · SWITZERLAND · Founded 2009
Water: CAS Zone 4 · Environmental Science & Ecology (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.47; JCR Q2 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 3,137; review 6–12 weeks (community reports); community-reported acceptance: easy; 3,629 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus; flagged on an early-warning list or for an indexing change: check before submitting.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Water is published by MDPI (Basel, Switzerland) and is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Hydrology and Watershed Management Studies, Flood Risk Assessment and Management and Water resources management and optimization, together about 30.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Global and Planetary Change. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The scope of Water encompasses the following research areas: Water resources management: water resources systems; monitoring, remediation and protection of water resources; water resources planning; adaptive management; water demand management; national and international water policy; water economics. Water governance: institutional arrangements; water law; water rights; property regimes; trans-boundary water issues; water conflict; water politics; water security; history of water resources. Hydrology & hydraulics: catchment hydrology; modelling and remote sensing; climate change & land use change impacts; surface-groundwater interactions; soil water; aquifers; river & groundwater flow; peak and low flows; drought; variability & uncertainty. Water scarcity: water allocation & use; water recycling and reuse; reservoirs; rainwater harvesting; river basin closure; groundwater depletion; drought management. Flood risk: flood modelling; flood impacts; flood risk management; flood protection; flood resilience; flood retention basins; hazard zoning; flood insurance. Water quality: physics, chemistry and biology of water; point-source and diffuse water pollution; transport processes; nutrients; pesticides; metals; pharmaceuticals; nanoparticles; micro(nano) plastics; erosion and sediment transport; hydro-geochemistry and contaminant hydrogeology. Water & wastewater treatment: water purification; treatment of domestic and industrial wastewater; water reuse; constructed wetlands; treatment wetlands. Urban water management: urban drainage; storm water management; sewerage; local water storage; permeable pavement systems. Water footprint assessment: water consumption & pollution along supply chains; virtual water trade; international water dependencies; sustainability, equitability and efficiency of water use; corporate water disclosure & stewardship; water risk. Water-food: rain-fed and irrigated agriculture; water productivity, irrigation efficiency; aquaculture; hydroponics; aquaponics. Water-energy: water use in energy production; energy use in water supply and treatment; hydropower; integrated water-carbon footprint studies. Water-human development: drinking water supply and sanitation; effects of contaminated water on health; waterborne diseases; water and poverty; water constraints to growth. Water-ecosystems: aquatic ecology; wetlands; environmental water requirements; degradation of aquatic ecosystems; preservation; restoration; environmental impacts of dams
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): WATER RESOURCES
Editorial board by country: 6 in mainland China (about 19%); most named Mainland China 6, Italy 5, United States 4, France 4, Portugal 3 (32 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Hydrology and Watershed Management StudiesEnvironmental Science14.7%
- Flood Risk Assessment and ManagementEnvironmental Science10.2%
- Water resources management and optimizationEngineering5.9%
- Hydrology and Sediment Transport ProcessesEnvironmental Science5%
- Groundwater and Isotope GeochemistryEarth and Planetary Sciences4.4%
- Urban Stormwater Management SolutionsEnvironmental Science4%
- Soil erosion and sediment transportAgricultural and Biological Sciences4%
- Hydrology and Drought AnalysisEnvironmental Science3.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Water Resources | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Environmental Science & Ecology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Environmental Science & Ecology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Water Resources | 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 | Water Resources | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Environmental Sciences | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q2 · Water Resources
- CiteScore Q1 · Aquatic Science
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
Early warning / risk: CAS Early Warning Journal List: listed in the 2020 edition (low risk); not listed in the other 5 editions.LetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EI CompendexWeb of ScienceINSPECCASGeoRefPublisher website
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
- 3.47LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 3.5Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 3.6Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 6.7Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.81LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.99LetPub ·
- h-index
- 33LetPub ·
- h-index
- 174OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 15,652OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.4OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8.6%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.97%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 3,604LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 32,885 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2,331 | 2,331 | 897 |
| 2025 | 3,629 | 3,629 | 13,318 |
| 2024 | 3,638 | 3,638 | 28,028 |
| 2023 | 4,332 | 4,332 | 53,143 |
| 2022 | 4,247 | 4,247 | 66,546 |
| 2021 | 3,661 | 3,661 | 74,909 |
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
- Average review time (community reports)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 17.7 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 2.8 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication
- 42 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Anonymous peer reviewLetPub
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 accessOpenAlex
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | CHF 2,600 | — | — | |
| LetPub | CHF 2,600 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | CHF 2,600 | — | — |
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 prepare7 items from the author guidelines
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Templates
- LaTeX and Word
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Suggested reviewers
- Required, 3
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
- Cover letter
- Required
Article types accepted20
- articleArticle: These are original research manuscripts. The work should report scientifically sound experiments and provide a substantial amount of new information.Length not stated
- book reviewAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- brief communicationAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- brief reportAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- case reportAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- commentaryAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- conference reportAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- editorialAll peer-reviewed articles published by MDPI are assessed by our independent Academic Editors, and MDPI staff are not involved in any editorial decisions regard…Length not stated
- hypothesisAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- letterAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- opinionAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- perspectiveAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- protocolAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- registered reportAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- reviewAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- scoping reviewA Scoping Review type can be submitted as a Review.Length not stated
- systematic reviewAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- technical noteAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- tutorialAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
- viewpointAll Article Types Article Review Communication Editorial Abstract Book Review Brief Communication Brief Report Case Report Clinicopathological Challenge Comment…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- Authorship Authorship
MDPI follows the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) guidelines which state that, in order to qualify for authorship of a manuscript, the following criteria should be observed: Make substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; Draft the work or review it critically for important intel…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflicts of Interest
According to The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, “Authors should avoid entering into agreements with study sponsors, both for-profit and non-profit, that interfere with authors’ access to all of the study’s data or that interfere with their ability to analyze and interpret the data and to prepare and publish manuscripts independently when and where they choose.” All authors mus…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
Data availability statements are required for all articles published with MDPI. During the peer review and editorial decision process, authors can be asked to share existing datasets or raw data that have been analyzed in the manuscript, and whether they will be made available to other researchers following publication. Authors will also be asked for the details of any existing datasets that have …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Publication Ethics Statement
Water is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). We fully adhere to its Code of Conduct and to its Best Practice Guidelines. The editors of this journal enforce a rigorous peer review process together with strict ethical policies and standards to ensure to add high quality scientific works to the field of scholarly publication. Unfortunately, cases of plagiarism, data falsification…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright / Open Access
Articles published in Water will be Open-Access articles distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The copyright is retained by the author(s). MDPI will insert the following note at the end of the published text: © 2026 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and cond…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publication fees
No maximum length restriction for manuscripts. Model summary
If you transfer your manuscript to another open access (OA) journal, you will be charged an Article Processing Charge (APC) if your article is accepted for publication. The APC for each journal can be found on the individual journal’s website. For more information about APCs, please see here.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Editorial Process and Peer Review
All submissions are thoroughly peer-reviewed by experts within the field and undergo a structured editorial workflow designed to ensure quality, transparency, and scientific integrity. The full editorial procedure is available on the Editorial Process page and is also provided below. Pre-check Pre-check consists of a technical pre-check performed by the Editorial Office and an editorial pre-check …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints and Conference Papers
Water accepts submissions that have previously been made available as preprints provided that they have not undergone peer review. A preprint is a draft version of a paper made available online before submission to a journal. MDPI operates Preprints, a preprint server to which submitted papers can be uploaded directly after completing journal submission. Note that Preprints operates independently …
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
- MDPI (Basel, Switzerland)
- Country or region
- SWITZERLAND
- Language
- English
- Founded
- 2009
- ISSN
- 2073-4441
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 18 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Water
What CAS zone is Water in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Water is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Environmental Sciences / Water Resources. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Environmental Science & Ecology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Water?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.47; CiteScore 6.7, h-index 174.
How long does peer review take at Water?
Authors report an average review time of 6–12 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 JCR quartile is Water in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q2; by category, Water Resources Q2. JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 4 of Environmental Science & Ecology.
What are the manuscript requirements of Water?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Reference style: Author–date; Templates: LaTeX and Word; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Suggested reviewers: Required, 3; 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 Water based?
Of the 32 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 6 (about 19%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (6), Italy (5) and United States (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Water?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Water is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists EI Compendex, Web of Science, INSPEC, CAS and GeoRef; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Water open access, and what is the APC?
Water is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,137.
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: .