Marine Pollution Bulletin: review time and acceptance speed

ISSN 0025-326X · ISSN 1879-3363 · Elsevier BV · Environmental Science

Half of the articles Marine Pollution Bulletin accepted in 2025 were accepted within 88 days of submission (n = 1,529); the middle half took 57–135 days.

Submission → acceptance (2025)
88 days median
middle half 57–135 · n = 1,529
Acceptance → online
8 days median
middle half 5–10 · n = 1,529
Change since 2023
No clear change since 2023 (median 82 → 88 days; 90% CI +2 to +10 days).
Open access · fees
Hybrid · ≈$3,740

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 Marine Pollution Bulletin take to accept a paper?

days045901351802020: middle half 62–156 days1052020n=9712021: middle half 74–165 days1152021n=1,1592022: middle half 65–149 days1022022n=1,0992023: middle half 58–128 days822023n=1,3032024: middle half 54–127 days822024n=1,3542025: middle half 57–135 days882025n=1,529
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
20251,52957881351970.3%100%
20241,35454821271870.3%100%
20231,30358821281940.2%100%
20221,099651021491980.6%99%
20211,159741151652230.5%100%
2020971621051562220.8%99%

Research articles vs reviews (2025)

Typen25th pctMedian75th pct
Research articles1,4215788135
Reviews1085987136

Distribution in 2025

0–29 days: 3% (52 articles)030–59 days: 24% (372 articles)3060–89 days: 23% (354 articles)6090–119 days: 18% (269 articles)90120–149 days: 11% (171 articles)120150–179 days: 7% (109 articles)150180–209 days: 4% (67 articles)180210–239 days: 3% (47 articles)210240–269 days: 2% (31 articles)240270–299 days: 1% (20 articles)270300–329 days: 1% (10 articles)300330–359 days: 1% (11 articles)330360+ days: 1% (16 articles)360+days from submission to acceptance (30-day bins)
Show as a table
DaysArticlesShare
0–29523.4%
30–5937224.3%
60–8935423.2%
90–11926917.6%
120–14917111.2%
150–1791097.1%
180–209674.4%
210–239473.1%
240–269312.0%
270–299201.3%
300–329100.7%
330–359110.7%
360+161.0%

From acceptance to online publication

After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 8 days (middle half 5–10 days, n = 1,529).

From submission to online publication, the median was 96 days (middle half 65–143 days, n = 1,529).

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

Hybrid (subscription journal with an open-access option). Listed APC: about $3,740 (as reported by OpenAlex).

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 DOAJNo
Articles indexed for MEDLINE in 2025Yes
Retractions0 retracted articles among 6,468 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database.
Accepted within 14 days of submission0.3% of 2025 articles
Publication volume1,511 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (+8% vs 2024).

Topics and scope

Environmental Science 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 Marine Pollution Bulletin, 88 days.

Paid APC medianDOAJMEDLINE
Marine Environmental Research105 (2025, n = 781)≈$3,440NoYes
Environmental Pollution95 (2025, n = 1,740)≈$4,090$2,235 (10 payments)NoYes
Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology159 (2025, n = 71)≈$3,990NoYes
Journal of Xenobiotics50 (2025, n = 211)≈$1,956YesNo
Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology133 (2025, n = 169)≈$3,990NoYes
The Science of The Total Environment107 (2025, n = 2,791)≈$4,250$3,741 (33 payments)NoYes
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety111 (2025, n = 1,955)$3,630$2,672 (28 payments)YesYes
Toxics35 (2025, n = 1,078)≈$3,178$2,176 (36 payments)YesNo
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry138 (2025, n = 278)≈$3,500NoYes
Ecotoxicology165 (2025, n = 55)≈$3,990NoYes

Frequently asked questions

How long does Marine Pollution Bulletin take to accept a paper?

Half of the articles Marine Pollution Bulletin accepted in 2025 were accepted within 88 days of submission (n = 1,529); the middle half took 57–135 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.

How long after acceptance are Marine Pollution Bulletin articles published online?

Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 8 days of acceptance (n = 1,529).

Does Marine Pollution Bulletin charge an article processing charge (APC)?

Listed APC: about $3,740 (as reported by OpenAlex).

Sources and method

Journal identity: ISSN-L 0025-326X; NLM ID 0260231; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 1,529 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.