Royal Society Open Science: review time and acceptance speed
ISSN 2054-5703 · Royal Society · Multidisciplinary
Half of the articles Royal Society Open Science accepted in 2025 were accepted within 128 days of submission (n = 525); the middle half took 83–172 days.
Accepted articles only · dates deposited by the publisher in PubMed · data as of Sep 15, 2026
How long does Royal Society Open Science take to accept a paper?
| Year | Articles (n) | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | 90th pct | Accepted <14 days | Have a revised date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 525 | 83 | 128 | 172 | 225 | 4.4% | 95% |
| 2024 | 678 | 89 | 125 | 175 | 248 | 2.4% | 82% |
| 2023 | 610 | 74 | 115 | 167 | 238 | 2.8% | 0% |
| 2022 | 512 | 91 | 135 | 206 | 276 | 1.2% | 0% |
| 2021 | 412 | 86 | 130 | 186 | 274 | 0.7% | 0% |
| 2020 | 618 | 71 | 109 | 159 | 209 | 1.5% | 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 | 31 | 5.9% |
| 30–59 | 41 | 7.8% |
| 60–89 | 79 | 15.0% |
| 90–119 | 78 | 14.9% |
| 120–149 | 109 | 20.8% |
| 150–179 | 67 | 12.8% |
| 180–209 | 46 | 8.8% |
| 210–239 | 37 | 7.0% |
| 240–269 | 13 | 2.5% |
| 270–299 | 5 | 1.0% |
| 300–329 | 7 | 1.3% |
| 330–359 | 4 | 0.8% |
| 360+ | 8 | 1.5% |
From acceptance to online publication
After acceptance, half of the 2025 articles appeared online within 40 days (middle half 33–51 days, n = 526).
From submission to online publication, the median was 170 days (middle half 126–218 days, n = 525).
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: 1,400 GBP (about $1,888 at ECB rates of Sep 15, 2026; DOAJ).
Institutions reported paying a median of about $1,795 per article (2023–2025, 130 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 3,150 added to PubMed in 2021–2025 (0.00 per 1,000), per the Retraction Watch Database. |
| Accepted within 14 days of submission | 4.4% of 2025 articles |
| Publication volume | 621 articles added to PubMed in 2025 (-2% vs 2024). |
Topics and scope
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction (11% of indexed topics)
- Plant and animal studies (6% of indexed topics)
- Marine animal studies overview (6% of indexed topics)
- Primate Behavior and Ecology (6% of indexed topics)
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior (6% of indexed topics)
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation (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 Royal Society Open Science, 128 days.
| Paid APC median | DOAJ | MEDLINE | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biology Letters | 68 (2025, n = 50) | No fee (DOAJ) | $2,611 (10 payments) | Yes | Yes |
| Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences | 85 (2025, n = 149) | — | $2,374 (33 payments) | No | Yes |
| Behavioral Ecology | 213 (2025, n = 86) | ≈$3,906 | — | No | No |
| Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society | 303 (2025, n = 128) | ≈$5,390 | — | No | Yes |
| Journal of Evolutionary Biology | 194 (2025, n = 153) | ≈$3,123 | — | No | Yes |
| Integrative and Comparative Biology | 82 (2025, n = 145) | ≈$4,243 | — | No | Yes |
| Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences | 148 (2025, n = 178) | — | $2,569 (22 payments) | No | Yes |
No journals match these filters.
Frequently asked questions
How long does Royal Society Open Science take to accept a paper?
Half of the articles Royal Society Open Science accepted in 2025 were accepted within 128 days of submission (n = 525); the middle half took 83–172 days. Based on dates in PubMed for accepted articles only.
How long after acceptance are Royal Society Open Science articles published online?
Half of the articles accepted in 2025 appeared online within 40 days of acceptance (n = 526).
Does Royal Society Open Science charge an article processing charge (APC)?
Listed APC: 1,400 GBP (about $1,888 at ECB rates of Sep 15, 2026; DOAJ).
Sources and method
Journal identity: ISSN-L 2054-5703; NLM ID 101647528; OpenAlex record. Speed figures use 525 articles accepted in 2025 with valid dates; excluded records for that year: over 4 years 1.
Spotted a problem with this journal's data, or are you the publisher? Report a correction or email rafiq@gradsummit.com. Verified errors are corrected within five business days.
Get the free Journal Submission Go/No-Go Checklist
The pre-submission checks from Write and Publish a Scientific Paper: journal fit, formatting, cover letter and reviewer suggestions. We’ll email you the download link.
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.