Journal of the American College of Surgeons: review time and acceptance speed
ISSN 1072-7515 · ISSN 1879-1190 · Lippincott Williams & Wilkins · Medicine
Half of the articles Journal of the American College of Surgeons accepted in 2021 were accepted within 60 days of submission (n = 99); the middle half took 37–91 days.
Accepted articles only · dates deposited by the publisher in PubMed · data as of Sep 15, 2026
How long does Journal of the American College of Surgeons take to accept a paper?
| Year | Articles (n) | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | 90th pct | Accepted <14 days | Have a revised date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 99 | 37 | 60 | 91 | — | 6.1% | 94% |
| 2020 | 176 | 3 | 32 | 62 | — | 33.5% | 68% |
Distribution in 2021
Show as a table
| Days | Articles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 0–29 | 16 | 16.2% |
| 30–59 | 30 | 30.3% |
| 60–89 | 26 | 26.3% |
| 90–119 | 16 | 16.2% |
| 120–149 | 8 | 8.1% |
| 150–179 | 2 | 2.0% |
| 180–209 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 210–239 | 1 | 1.0% |
| 240–269 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 270–299 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 300–329 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 330–359 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 360+ | 0 | 0.0% |
From acceptance to online publication
After acceptance, half of the 2021 articles appeared online within 27 days (middle half 20–35 days, n = 98).
From submission to online publication, the median was 89 days (middle half 68–119 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
Subscription or hybrid (not determined). Listed APC: about $3,600 (as reported by OpenAlex).
No institutional payments for this journal are recorded in OpenAPC.
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 DOAJ | No |
|---|---|
| Articles indexed for MEDLINE in 2021 | Yes |
| Retractions | 0 retracted articles among 1,320 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database. |
| Accepted within 14 days of submission | 6.1% of 2021 articles |
| Publication volume | 129 articles added to PubMed in 2021 (-33% vs 2020). |
Topics and scope
- Cardiac, Anesthesia and Surgical Outcomes (13% of indexed topics)
- Diversity and Career in Medicine (10% of indexed topics)
- Pancreatic and Hepatic Oncology Research (7% of indexed topics)
- Trauma and Emergency Care Studies (6% of indexed topics)
- Colorectal Cancer Surgical Treatments (4% of indexed topics)
- Surgical Simulation and Training (4% of indexed topics)
Similar journals — faster or cheaper, side by side
Journals publishing on the most similar topics (OpenAlex), ordered by similarity. Only 2021 figures are compared with the 2021 median of Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 60 days.
| Paid APC median | DOAJ | MEDLINE | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annals of Surgery Open | 76 (2021, n = 84) | $2,000 | $2,008 (6 payments) | Yes | No |
| International Journal of Surgery | 112 (2021, n = 96) | ≈$3,450 | $4,162 (23 payments) | No | Yes |
| ANZ Journal of Surgery | 67 (2021, n = 742) | ≈$3,920 | — | No | Yes |
| The American Journal of Surgery | 110 (2021, n = 323) | ≈$3,830 | — | No | Yes |
| Cirugía Española (English Edition) | 45 (2021, n = 151) | ≈$2,540 | — | No | Yes |
| British journal of surgery | 79 (2021, n = 248) | ≈$5,007 | — | No | Yes |
| Updates in Surgery | 82 (2021, n = 218) | ≈$3,790 | — | No | Yes |
No journals match these filters.
Frequently asked questions
How long does Journal of the American College of Surgeons take to accept a paper?
Half of the articles Journal of the American College of Surgeons accepted in 2021 were accepted within 60 days of submission (n = 99); the middle half took 37–91 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.
How long after acceptance are Journal of the American College of Surgeons articles published online?
Half of the articles accepted in 2021 appeared online within 27 days of acceptance (n = 98).
Does Journal of the American College of Surgeons charge an article processing charge (APC)?
Listed APC: about $3,600 (as reported by OpenAlex).
Sources and method
Journal identity: ISSN-L 1072-7515; NLM ID 9431305; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 99 articles accepted in 2021 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.