BMC Surgery: review time and acceptance speed

ISSN 1471-2482 · BioMed Central · Medicine

Half of the articles BMC Surgery accepted in 2025 were accepted within 130 days of submission (n = 699); the middle half took 91–191 days.

Submission → acceptance (2025)
130 days median
middle half 91–191 · n = 699
Acceptance → online
24 days median
middle half 13–37 · n = 699
Change since 2023
No clear change since 2023 (median 132 → 130 days; 90% CI -11 to +8 days).
Open access · fees
Open access (DOAJ) · $3,190

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 BMC Surgery take to accept a paper?

days0601201802402020: middle half 89–173 days1252020n=3672021: middle half 95–207 days1402021n=4152022: middle half 91–200 days1322022n=4272023: middle half 95–197 days1322023n=3862024: middle half 94–213 days1462024n=4352025: middle half 91–191 days1302025n=699
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
2025699911301912810.0%0%
2024435941462133040.0%0%
2023386951321972780.3%0%
2022427911322002850.2%0%
2021415951402072800.2%0%
2020367891251732430.5%0%

Research articles vs reviews (2025)

Typen25th pctMedian75th pct
Research articles55393133200
Reviews11784119155

Distribution in 2025

0–29 days: 0% (0 articles)030–59 days: 8% (55 articles)3060–89 days: 17% (117 articles)6090–119 days: 19% (135 articles)90120–149 days: 16% (115 articles)120150–179 days: 11% (77 articles)150180–209 days: 9% (60 articles)180210–239 days: 6% (41 articles)210240–269 days: 3% (23 articles)240270–299 days: 3% (18 articles)270300–329 days: 2% (13 articles)300330–359 days: 2% (17 articles)330360+ days: 4% (28 articles)360+days from submission to acceptance (30-day bins)
Show as a table
DaysArticlesShare
0–2900.0%
30–59557.9%
60–8911716.7%
90–11913519.3%
120–14911516.5%
150–1797711.0%
180–209608.6%
210–239415.9%
240–269233.3%
270–299182.6%
300–329131.9%
330–359172.4%
360+284.0%

From acceptance to online publication

After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 24 days (middle half 13–37 days, n = 699).

From submission to online publication, the median was 161 days (middle half 120–223 days, n = 699).

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: $3,190 (DOAJ).

OpenAPC has fewer than 5 reported payments for this journal in 2023–2025, so no typical amount is shown.

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
Retractions2 retracted articles among 2,384 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.84 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database.
Accepted within 14 days of submission0.0% of 2025 articles
Publication volume703 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (+67% vs 2024).

Topics and scope

Medicine journalsSurgery 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 BMC Surgery, 130 days.

Paid APC medianDOAJMEDLINE
Annals of Surgical Treatment and Research62 (2025, n = 105)NoNo
Surgical Laparoscopy Endoscopy & Percutaneous Techniques133 (2025, n = 83)NoYes
Updates in Surgery111 (2025, n = 407)≈$3,790NoYes
Surgical Endoscopy94 (2025, n = 972)≈$4,390NoYes
Cirugía Española (English Edition)57 (2025, n = 129)≈$2,540NoYes
Asian Journal of Endoscopic Surgery78 (2025, n = 183)≈$3,240NoYes
World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery77 (2025, n = 492)NoNo
International Journal of Surgery58 (2025, n = 2,468)≈$3,450$4,162 (23 payments)NoYes

Frequently asked questions

How long does BMC Surgery take to accept a paper?

Half of the articles BMC Surgery accepted in 2025 were accepted within 130 days of submission (n = 699); the middle half took 91–191 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.

How long after acceptance are BMC Surgery articles published online?

Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 24 days of acceptance (n = 699).

Does BMC Surgery charge an article processing charge (APC)?

Listed APC: $3,190 (DOAJ).

Sources and method

Journal identity: ISSN-L 1471-2482; NLM ID 100968567; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 699 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.