PLOS Digital Health: review time and acceptance speed
ISSN 2767-3170 · Public Library of Science · Medicine
Half of the articles PLOS Digital Health accepted in 2025 were accepted within 190 days of submission (n = 262); the middle half took 135–254 days.
Accepted articles only · dates deposited by the publisher in PubMed · data as of Sep 15, 2026
How long does PLOS Digital Health take to accept a paper?
| Year | Articles (n) | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | 90th pct | Accepted <14 days | Have a revised date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 262 | 135 | 190 | 254 | 342 | 0.4% | 0% |
| 2024 | 233 | 154 | 213 | 288 | 381 | 0.0% | 0% |
| 2023 | 174 | 137 | 185 | 245 | — | 0.0% | 0% |
| 2022 | 113 | 118 | 162 | 222 | — | 0.0% | 0% |
- 2026: not shown yet — a year is reported once late-indexed articles have arrived (at least 180 days after it ends).
Distribution in 2025
Show as a table
| Days | Articles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 0–29 | 3 | 1.1% |
| 30–59 | 3 | 1.1% |
| 60–89 | 11 | 4.2% |
| 90–119 | 25 | 9.5% |
| 120–149 | 38 | 14.5% |
| 150–179 | 30 | 11.5% |
| 180–209 | 48 | 18.3% |
| 210–239 | 30 | 11.5% |
| 240–269 | 20 | 7.6% |
| 270–299 | 15 | 5.7% |
| 300–329 | 6 | 2.3% |
| 330–359 | 13 | 5.0% |
| 360+ | 20 | 7.6% |
From acceptance to online publication
After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 35 days (middle half 24–48 days, n = 262).
From submission to online publication, the median was 229 days (middle half 176–289 days, n = 262).
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: $3,165 (DOAJ).
Institutions reported paying a median of about $2,884 per article (2023–2025, 25 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 DOAJ | Yes (DOAJ record) |
|---|---|
| Articles indexed for MEDLINE in 2025 | None found (the journal may be in PubMed through PubMed Central instead) |
| Retractions | 0 retracted articles among 865 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database. |
| Accepted within 14 days of submission | 0.4% of 2025 articles |
| Publication volume | 316 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (+32% vs 2024). |
Topics and scope
- Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education (14% of indexed topics)
- Mobile Health and mHealth Applications (14% of indexed topics)
- Digital Mental Health Interventions (9% of indexed topics)
- Machine Learning in Healthcare (8% of indexed topics)
- Telemedicine and Telehealth Implementation (5% of indexed topics)
- Electronic Health Records Systems (5% of indexed topics)
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 PLOS Digital Health, 190 days.
| Paid APC median | DOAJ | MEDLINE | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontiers in Digital Health | 111 (2025, n = 547) | ≈$3,117 | $2,258 (40 payments) | Yes | No |
| npj Digital Medicine | 147 (2025, n = 846) | $4,290 | $3,256 (26 payments) | Yes | No |
| The Lancet Digital Health | 285 (2025, n = 108) | $7,860 | $5,428 (7 payments) | Yes | Yes |
| Digital Health | 133 (2025, n = 867) | $2,000 | $1,507 (49 payments) | Yes | No |
| JMIR AI | 184 (2025, n = 112) | $1,985 | $1,849 (6 payments) | Yes | No |
| Journal of Medical Internet Research | 147 (2025, n = 1,461) | $3,350 | $3,668 (134 payments) | Yes | Yes |
| BMJ Health & Care Informatics | 218 (2025, n = 119) | ≈$3,223 | — | Yes | Yes |
| JMIR Formative Research | 172 (2025, n = 862) | $2,500 | $2,952 (65 payments) | Yes | Yes |
| JMIR Human Factors | 191 (2025, n = 240) | $1,985 | $2,167 (43 payments) | Yes | Yes |
| JMIR Medical Informatics | 178 (2025, n = 312) | $2,750 | $2,708 (21 payments) | Yes | Yes |
No journals match these filters.
Frequently asked questions
How long does PLOS Digital Health take to accept a paper?
Half of the articles PLOS Digital Health accepted in 2025 were accepted within 190 days of submission (n = 262); the middle half took 135–254 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.
How long after acceptance are PLOS Digital Health articles published online?
Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 35 days of acceptance (n = 262).
Does PLOS Digital Health charge an article processing charge (APC)?
Listed APC: $3,165 (DOAJ).
Sources and method
Journal identity: ISSN-L 2767-3170; NLM ID 9918335064206676; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 262 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.