Journal decision profile

Nature

Multidisciplinary

Nature's 2026 Journal Metrics Score is 18.0, ranking Q1 in Molecular Biology and 3 other subfields. Two-year citation average from OpenAlex data, updated August 2026.

Nature PortfolioUnited KingdompISSN 0028-0836eISSN 1476-4687
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Bookmark this page — track observed submission-to-acceptance timing, FWCI and field-normalized citation data for this journal in one view.

Journal Metrics Score
i
Journal Metrics ScoreThe raw score is citations received in the latest complete year by works from the two previous years, divided by the number of those works. It is calculated from OpenAlex open data (CC0) and is not a percentage grade.
2026
18.0

Journal Metrics Score 2026 · 2021–2024 window citedness 17.57.

Submission-to-acceptance
i
Submission-to-acceptanceCalendar days between the received and accepted dates reported in recent PubMed records. This interval includes editorial handling and author revisions, so it is not time to first decision or pure peer-review time.
PUBMED
376 daysmedian

Middle 50%: 264–466 days

100 of 100 PubMed-indexed articles · 100% coverage · 2024–2025

Indicative APC
i
Indicative APCThis journal-level estimate comes from the OpenAlex source record. It is not a verified quote and may exclude taxes, waivers, society discounts, or article-type charges. Check the journal's official website before deciding.
OPENALEX · VERIFY
$11,690

Journal-level estimate only. Verify current charges, taxes, waivers, discounts, and article-type fees with the journal.

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At a glance

Journal decision profile

Each spoke is a 0–100 percentile within a comparable journal cohort—not a percentage grade or a single black-box rating.

Relative profile

Metrics ScoreThe raw 2026 Journal Metrics Score is the recent two-year citation average shown above. The radar converts it to a 0–100 cohort percentile: farther out means a higher score than more comparable journals. It is not a percentage grade.iSource outputThe raw rank compares lifetime output inside the journal’s leading-topic source set. The radar then compares that rank position across Decision Profile journals in the same primary OpenAlex field; when that field has too few profiles, it uses the broader profile set. Farther out means relatively more output, not better research quality.iTop 10% shareThe share of recent papers in the global top 10% for citations after comparing papers of the same type, publication year, and subfield. The radar converts that share to a 0–100 cohort percentile; it does not predict how a new paper will perform.iMedian FWCICitation performance of the middle recent paper after field, year, and work type are considered. A raw FWCI of 1.0 is the expected citation level for comparable papers; the radar shows its 0–100 cohort percentile.iSubmission-to-acceptanceCalendar days from the received date to the accepted date in recent PubMed records. This includes editorial handling and author revisions, so it is not the time to first decision and not pure peer-review time. The radar uses a 0–100 cohort percentile with shorter observed timing plotted farther out; it does not measure review quality.iOutput volumeAverage works published per year in the recent analysis window, converted to a 0–100 cohort percentile. Farther out means the journal publishes more papers; it does not mean those papers are better.i
Cost is intentionally excluded. Missing APC data is never converted to a zero-dollar fee or a fabricated cost score.

Raw values behind the shape

Always visible
Metrics Score
i
Metrics ScoreThe 2026 raw Journal Metrics Score shown above. The bar is its 0–100 percentile within the radar's comparable journal cohort; it is not a percentage score.
18.02026 · OPENALEX
Source output rank
i
Source output rankThis lifetime journal-wide output rank compares works published by the OpenAlex source with sources associated with the journal’s leading topic. More output does not mean higher quality.
#2 / 1,450LIFETIME OUTPUT
Highly cited papers
i
Highly cited papersShare of recent works in the global top 10% for citations after comparing papers of the same type, publication year, and subfield.
32.9%FIELD-NORMALIZED TOP 10%
Field-normalized impact
i
Field-normalized impactCitation performance of the middle recent paper after field, year, and work type are considered. A raw FWCI of 1.0 is the expected level for comparable work.
0.57MEDIAN FWCI
Submission-to-acceptance
i
Submission-to-acceptanceReceived-to-accepted calendar days from qualified PubMed records. It includes editorial handling and author revisions; it is not time to first decision or pure peer-review time.
376 daysIQR 264–466 DAYS
Recent output
i
Recent outputAverage works published per year across the complete analysis window. This is a volume measure, not a quality score.
4142 / yr2021–2024 AVG
Field-normalized top 10% share32.9%

5452 of 16,568 works · same type, year & subfield

Field-normalized top 1% share18.6%

3084 works · same type, year & subfield

Median FWCI0.57×

Below field-year expectation

Source output rank#2

of 1,450 topic-associated OpenAlex sources by lifetime output

What does Median FWCI mean?

FWCI compares papers with the same publication year, type, and field. 1.0 is the world average; above 1.0 is above expectation. This journal's median is 0.57, so its typical recent paper runs about 43% below its field benchmark.

What does Top 10% Share mean?

32.9% of recent papers rank in the global top 10% after field normalization. This is easier to compare across specialties than raw citation totals.

Publishing pattern

Publication volume and article mix

Volume is separated from citation accumulation so newer papers are not presented as weaker simply because they are newer.

Works published by year

OpenAlex source records · 2016–2025

39942016
37942017
39912018
39992019
36542020
37562021
41052022
43212023
43862024
45482025

Recent work-type mix

16,568 OpenAlex works · 2021–2024

Article87.5%
Other7.1%
Erratum3%
Editorial1.1%
Book review0.8%
Letter0.3%
OpenAlex article is broader than “original research.” PubMed Publication Types can add case-report and clinical-study detail.
Fit signals

Topics and medical subject coverage

OpenAlex topics show research communities; MeSH keeps the medical taxonomy recognizable.

Major MeSH signals

PubMed-indexed works

Select a MeSH signal to see how much Nature publishes on it, from PubMed counts for the last five complete years.

Leading OpenAlex topics

2021–2024 works
SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research405
Science, Research, and Medicine354
Health and Medical Research Impacts342
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education169
CRISPR and Genetic Engineering161
Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life137
Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics136
Genetics, Bioinformatics, and Biomedical Research132
scientometrics and bibliometrics research113
Astro and Planetary Science110
Methodology: OpenAlex snapshot 2026-08-12. FWCI, percentile badges, topics, and type mix use 16,568 works published 2021–2024. Radar normalization is versioned in the cached profile, and no cost score is assigned without reliable APC data.

Recommended alternatives

Candidates share at least one OpenAlex subfield (or field, if too few do) with this journal's main research topics, ignoring generic catch-all topics, and are ordered by topic overlap, then current Journal Metrics Score.

OpenAlex topic-neighbor model · Preview
CellTopic-neighbor alternative39.2Metrics Score296dIQR 208–426dSubmission → acceptance$$$Cost*Nature MedicineTopic-neighbor alternative30.0Metrics Score172dIQR 102–218dSubmission → acceptance$$$Cost*ScienceTopic-neighbor alternative20.0Metrics Score—Submission → acceptance$—Cost*Cell DiscoveryTopic-neighbor alternative12.6Metrics Score—Submission → acceptance$$$Cost*Cell ResearchTopic-neighbor alternative11.3Metrics Score—Submission → acceptance$$$Cost*Molecular BiomedicineTopic-neighbor alternative10.6Metrics Score216dIQR 136–296dSubmission → acceptance$$Cost*

More alternative journals

EbiomedicineIscienceSignal Transduction and Targeted TherapyMmwr-Morbidity and Mortality Weekly ReportNature CommunicationsNature Microbiology

* Cost is indicative only. APCs, taxes, waivers, and member discounts can change—always verify on the journal's official website.

Subject Category Quartiles

Quartiles computed within each OpenAlex subfield
CategoryQuartile
Molecular BiologyQ1
Astronomy and AstrophysicsQ1
Infectious DiseasesQ1
Global and Planetary ChangeQ1
Q1
Subfield Quartile
B1
CAS Block

Ranking and source check

#31
of 6,272 Medicine field journals
#31
among Q1 Medicine journals

Confirm the exact title and ISSNs against the publisher homepage before a high-stakes submission decision.

View all Medicine journals →View Q1 Medicine journals →

Nature journals compared

2026 Journal Metrics Scores for 13 of 59 Nature journals published by Nature Portfolio, highest score first. Each journal is scored separately; there is no combined score for the Nature family.

  1. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology41.7Q1
  2. Nature Reviews Microbiology32.8Q1
  3. Nature Medicine30.0Q1
  4. Nature Nanotechnology26.0Q1
  5. Nature Reviews Cancer24.1Q1
  6. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment23.3Q1
  7. Nature Reviews Chemistry21.9Q1
  8. Nature Methods21.2Q1
  9. Nature Sustainability20.8Q1
  10. Nature Protocols19.3Q1
  11. Nature Chemistry18.2Q1
  12. Naturethis journal18.0Q1
  13. Nature Genetics17.4Q1

Journal Details

OpenAlex Works
449,450
H-Index
1,849
Fully Open Access
No
Recent OA Works
254,481
Subject Areas
Infectious DiseasesInformation Systems and ManagementEconomics and EconometricsStatistics, Probability and Uncertainty

Source: the current OpenAlex source record. OpenAlex works can include multiple work types. Fully Open Access is a source-level flag. Recent OA Works is summed from OpenAlex's counts_by_year series (up to the latest ten years); it is not a lifetime OA percentage. Any APC shown here is an indicative OpenAlex value—verify current charges on the journal's official website.

An editorial perspective on Nature

By Dr. Meng Zhao, Physician-Scientist · Founder, LabCat AI · Editorial policy

Nature has been published weekly since 1869, today by Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature). The citation average by itself tells you very little about whether your paper belongs in Nature. When I was moving between clinical work and AI research, I spent a lot of time reading Nature cover-to-cover to understand what actually makes the cut. A few honest observations that I wish I'd had earlier:

The number is driven by a small number of very heavily cited papers.

Like most highly cited venues, Nature's citation average is skewed by a handful of papers that accumulate thousands of citations. Median citations per Nature paper are far lower than the score suggests. Don't assume your paper will receive score-equivalent attention simply because it is published there.

The editorial filter is stricter than the review filter.

Most papers sent to Nature are rejected without external review. The professional editors make that call based on whether the claim is broad enough and the evidence surprising enough. If your paper is primarily a careful extension of prior work, it is unlikely to pass this gate no matter how rigorous the methodology.

Revisions are substantial, not cosmetic.

If your paper is sent out for review and survives the first round, expect to run additional experiments — often months of work — in response to reviewer requests. Budget time and resources for this before submitting.

A Nature-family specialty journal is often the right answer.

Nature Medicine, Nature Methods, Nature Biotechnology, and similar specialty titles have their own very strong citation metrics and are a better fit for most high-quality specialist work. The review process is typically more conventional, and your paper will be read by people who actually work in your subfield.

When a Nature submission makes sense

A Nature submission is worth considering when your manuscript satisfies all of the following:

  • The central finding would be interesting to a reader outside your specialty.
  • There is a specific, crisp claim — not a catalog of observations or a comprehensive survey.
  • The evidence is overdetermined. Multiple independent lines of evidence should point to the same conclusion.
  • There is a plausible "so what" that extends beyond the immediate field — therapeutic implication, new methodology applicable elsewhere, or a challenge to a prevailing model.
  • You are prepared for a long review cycle, potentially with substantial additional experiments, and for a reasonable probability of rejection at any stage.

If two or more of these are weak, a specialty Nature-family journal or a strong discipline-specific venue is usually the better bet.

Common questions about Nature

What is Nature's Journal Metrics Score in 2026?

Nature's 2026 Journal Metrics Score is 18.0, from the August 2026 data release. The score is a two-year citation average computed from OpenAlex (CC0) data: citations received in the most recent complete year to works published in the two prior years, divided by the number of those works.

What quartile is Nature in?

Nature's best quartile is Q1. By OpenAlex subfield: Q1 in Molecular Biology; Q1 in Astronomy and Astrophysics; Q1 in Infectious Diseases; Q1 in Global and Planetary Change. Quartiles rank journals by Journal Metrics Score within each subfield.

Is the Journal Metrics Score the same as other journal citation metrics?

No. Journal Metrics computes the score independently from OpenAlex open data. Other providers use different citation databases, document types, and counting rules, so their published figures for Nature will not match this score exactly. Compare journals using one source at a time.

How long does Nature take from submission to acceptance?

Across 100 recent PubMed records with both dates, Nature took a median of 376 days from submission to acceptance; the middle half took 264–466 days. This interval includes editorial handling and revisions, so it is not the time to a first decision.

How much does it cost to publish in Nature?

OpenAlex lists an indicative article processing charge of $11,690 USD for Nature. This journal-level estimate may exclude taxes, waivers, discounts, or article-type fees, so confirm the current charge on the journal's website.

Which journals are alternatives to Nature?

Comparable journals include Cell, Nature Medicine, Science, and Cell Discovery. Compare their scores, acceptance times, and costs in the recommended alternatives on this page before choosing where to submit.

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