Animal Cognition: review time and acceptance speed

ISSN 1435-9448 · ISSN 1435-9456 · Springer Science+Business Media · Multidisciplinary

Half of the articles Animal Cognition accepted in 2025 were accepted within 129 days of submission (n = 98); the middle half took 94–175 days.

Submission → acceptance (2025)
129 days median
middle half 94–175 · n = 98
Acceptance → online
20 days median
middle half 14–46 · n = 98
Change since 2023
Faster than 2023: the median fell from 149 to 129 days (90% CI -38 to -1 days).
Open access · fees
Open access (DOAJ) · $3,490

Accepted articles only · dates deposited by the publisher in PubMed · data as of Sep 15, 2026

Plan submissions to a deadline — free

How long does Animal Cognition take to accept a paper?

days0601201802402020: middle half 99–197 days1352020n=1212021: middle half 114–211 days1482021n=1212022: middle half 120–187 days1492022n=1352023: middle half 105–194 days1492023n=1062024: middle half 106–172 days1432024n=692025: middle half 94–175 days1292025n=98
Line = median; shaded box = middle half of articles (25th–75th percentile). Year of acceptance.
Days from submission to acceptance, by year of acceptance
YearArticles (n)25th pctMedian75th pct90th pctAccepted <14 daysHave a revised date
202598941291752.0%97%
2024691061431720.0%91%
20231061051491940.0%97%
20221351201491870.0%99%
20211211141482110.8%98%
2020121991351970.8%98%

Distribution in 2025

0–29 days: 3% (3 articles)030–59 days: 6% (6 articles)3060–89 days: 11% (11 articles)6090–119 days: 23% (23 articles)90120–149 days: 20% (20 articles)120150–179 days: 13% (13 articles)150180–209 days: 11% (11 articles)180210–239 days: 6% (6 articles)210240–269 days: 1% (1 articles)240270–299 days: 1% (1 articles)270300–329 days: 1% (1 articles)300330–359 days: 1% (1 articles)330360+ days: 1% (1 articles)360+days from submission to acceptance (30-day bins)
Show as a table
DaysArticlesShare
0–2933.1%
30–5966.1%
60–891111.2%
90–1192323.5%
120–1492020.4%
150–1791313.3%
180–2091111.2%
210–23966.1%
240–26911.0%
270–29911.0%
300–32911.0%
330–35911.0%
360+11.0%

From acceptance to online publication

After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 20 days (middle half 14–46 days, n = 98).

From submission to online publication, the median was 163 days (middle half 126–214 days, n = 98).

Read these numbers carefully

  • These times describe articles the journal accepted. Rejected manuscripts never appear in public data, so they cannot tell you how long a rejection takes.
  • Dates are the ones the publisher deposited with PubMed. Some publishers record the date a revised manuscript arrived as the submission date, which makes review look faster.
  • Invited articles and special issues can move faster than regular submissions.

Open access status and publishing fees

Open access (listed in DOAJ). Listed APC: $3,490 (DOAJ).

Institutions reported paying a median of about $2,683 per article (2023–2025, 6 reported payments in OpenAPC; converted from euros at yearly ECB average rates).

Many journals waive or reduce fees for authors from eligible countries or institutions with publishing agreements — check with the journal and your library.

Integrity and indexing signals

Facts from public records, shown without judgement. See the methodology for why each can be worth a closer look.

Listed in DOAJYes (DOAJ record)
Articles indexed for MEDLINE in 2025Yes
Retractions0 retracted articles among 538 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database.
Accepted within 14 days of submission2.0% of 2025 articles
Publication volume94 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (+13% vs 2024).

Topics and scope

Psychology journals

Similar journals — faster or cheaper, side by side

Journals publishing on the most similar topics (OpenAlex), ordered by similarity. Only 2025 figures are compared with the 2025 median of Animal Cognition, 129 days.

Paid APC medianDOAJMEDLINE
American Journal of Primatology206 (2025, n = 115)≈$4,330NoYes
Behavioural Processes148 (2025, n = 108)≈$3,550NoYes
Zoo Biology296 (2025, n = 70)≈$3,920NoYes
Royal Society Open Science128 (2025, n = 525)≈$1,888$1,795 (130 payments)YesNo
Biology Letters68 (2025, n = 50)No fee (DOAJ)$2,611 (10 payments)YesYes
Behavioral Ecology213 (2025, n = 86)≈$3,906NoNo
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences148 (2025, n = 178)$2,569 (22 payments)NoYes
Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences85 (2025, n = 149)$2,374 (33 payments)NoYes

Frequently asked questions

How long does Animal Cognition take to accept a paper?

Half of the articles Animal Cognition accepted in 2025 were accepted within 129 days of submission (n = 98); the middle half took 94–175 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.

How long after acceptance are Animal Cognition articles published online?

Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 20 days of acceptance (n = 98).

Does Animal Cognition charge an article processing charge (APC)?

Listed APC: $3,490 (DOAJ).

Sources and method

Journal identity: ISSN-L 1435-9448; NLM ID 9814573; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 98 articles accepted in 2025 with valid dates; excluded records for that year: none.

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Data sources. Submission, acceptance and publication dates: Courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (PubMed, entries through Sep 15, 2026). NLM does not endorse Journal Clock, and these figures may not reflect the most current PubMed data. Journal fees and open-access listing: DOAJ (CC0, retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Fees paid by institutions: OpenAPC (Open Database License, retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Retractions: Retraction Watch Database via Crossref (retrieved Sep 16, 2026). Journal identifiers and topics: OpenAlex (CC0). Currency conversion: ECB reference rates (Sep 15, 2026). How these numbers are calculated · For organisations.