List of academic journals by preprint policy

This is a list of academic journals by their submission policies regarding the use of preprints prior to publication, such as the arXiv, and bioRxiv. Journals focusing on physics and mathematics are excluded because they routinely accept manuscripts that have been posted to preprint servers.

Publishers with unified policies

Publisher	Policy type	Policy text	Source
American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)	Incompatible	Submission page does not explicitly mention preprints, but numerous communications with the journal have confirmed that they do not consider papers for which a preprint has been submitted.	, and
American Institute of Physics (AIP)	Compatible	"Author-prepared files only may be used; files prepared and/or formatted by AIP Publishing or its vendors (e.g., the PDF, PostScript, or HTML article files published in the online journals and proceedings) may not be used for this purpose."
American Physical Society	Compatible	From the submission FAQ: "E-print number, e.g., 0804.1718, assigned by the arXiv e-print servers. This can be used at submission to automatically download files from the e-print server."
American Phytopathological Society	Compatible	From the guidelines to the authors: "Authors are allowed to present and discuss their findings ahead of publication at scientific conferences, on preprint servers (such as arXiv, bioRxiv, or PeerJ preprints among others), in public databases, and other informal communication channels. When submitting a manuscript for review, authors need to disclose preprints, databases, proceedings, or other preliminary communications or depositories. However, abstracts, conferences, or personal communications need not be disclosed. This prior disclosure does not constitute prior publication."
American Society for Microbiology	Compatible	From the submission FAQ: "ASM journals will consider for publication manuscripts that have been posted in a recognized not-for-profit preprint archive, providing that upon acceptance of the manuscript for publication the author is still able to grant ASM copyright or agree to the terms of an Open Access license and pay the associated fee."
EMBO Press	Compatible	All four EMBO Press journals share the same policy: "All EMBO Press journals encourage prior publication on recognized non-peer-reviewed, community preprint servers such as arXiv and bioRxiv for commenting by other scientists before - or in parallel with - formal submission to the journal. Articles that have been published in an EMBO Press journal, accepted for publication, or revised to address referee comments should not be posted to bioRxiv (note that doing so would also contravene policy at bioRxiv and Crossref's policy against duplicative DOI assignment). BioRxiv posts will forward link to formally published papers. BioRxiv posts can be directly submitted with minimal effort to any EMBO Press journal. The details of the preprint server concerned and any accession numbers or DOIs must be included in the cover letter accompanying submission of the manuscript."
Microbiology Society	Compatible	The Society’s Licence to Publish requires that articles have not previously been published in part or in whole within a scientific journal, book or similar entity. Deposition of a preprint version on the author’s personal website, in an institutional repository, or in a recognized preprint archive (such as BioRxiv) is not viewed as prior publication, provided that: The version posted has not been peer-reviewed, edited, or typeset. Upon acceptance of their article for publication the author is still able to grant the Society an exclusive Licence to publish the article, or agree to the terms of the OpenMicrobiology agreement and pay the article processing charge (APC). Authors should inform the journal at the time of submission if and where their article has been previously posted. Authors are required to provide a link to the final published article (known as the Version of Record) alongside the original preprint version.
Nature Publishing Group	Compatible	The policy states "Neither conference presentations nor posting on recognized preprint servers constitute prior publication," and an editorial explains: "Nature never wishes to stand in the way of communication between researchers.[...] Communication between researchers includes not only conferences but also preprint servers. The ArXiv preprint server is the medium of choice for (mainly) physicists and astronomers who wish to share drafts of their papers with their colleagues, and with anyone else with sufficient time and knowledge to navigate it. [...] If scientists wish to display drafts of their research papers on an established preprint server before or during submission to Nature or any Nature journal, that's fine by us."	and
IOP Publishing	Compatible	You may post your Author’s Original on arXiv.org at any time prior to acceptance by IOP. Before acceptance of the article by an IOP journal you may not attribute it to any IOP journal. After acceptance you should add citation information, IOP’s copyright information and, when appropriate, a link to the online abstract of the Version of Record, along with the following wording: “This is an author-created, un-copyedited version of an article accepted for publication in [insert name of journal]. IOP Publishing Ltd is not responsible for any errors or omissions in this version of the manuscript or any version derived from it. The Version of Record is available online at [insert DOI].”. If you do post your Author’s Original on arXiv.org and wish to submit it to IOP for peer review you will be able to use the arXiv article ID number in our online submission form instead of uploading the files. We will automatically pick up the files from arXiv.org. Once you have submitted it to IOP, you may not post the Author’s Original on any other institutional or subject repository prior to acceptance, withdrawal or rejection of your article.
Oxford Journals	Compatible	"Prior to acceptance for publication in the journal, authors retain the right to make their original version of the article available on their own personal website and/or that of their employer and/or in free public servers of original version articles in their subject area, provided that, upon acceptance, they acknowledge that the article has been accepted for publication as follows: This article has been accepted for publication in [Journal Title] Published by Oxford University Press."
Elsevier	Compatible	Elsevier is generally permissive with respect to authors and electronic preprints. "(i) Authors can share their preprint anywhere at any time. (ii) [They] encourage authors to link from the preprint to their formal publication via its Digital Object Identifier (DOI). (iii) Authors can update their preprints on arXiv or RePEc with their accepted manuscript." [However, please note that Cell Press, The Lancet and some society-owned journals have their own preprint policies available in the Information to Authors.]
Springer, incl. SpringerOpen Journals and BioMed Central (BMC)	Compatible	Posting a manuscript on a pre-print server such as ArXiv is not considered to be duplicate publication. SpringerOpen/Biomed Central will also consider peer reviewing manuscripts that have been posted on an author's personal or institutional website.
Wiley-Blackwell	Probably compatible	[Wiley Self-Archiving Policy:] Authors of articles published in Wiley journals are permitted to self-archive the submitted (preprint) version of the article at any time, and may self-archive the accepted (peer-reviewed) version after an embargo period. There is no obligation upon authors to remove preprints posted to not for profit preprint servers prior to submission. Individual journals may have different policies, but pre-print policy seems to be universal, please check for individual journals
PLOS	Compatible	[all PLOS Journals feature this language:] Authors may present and discuss their findings ahead of publication: at medical or scientific conferences, on preprint servers, in public databases, and in blogs, wikis, tweets, and other informal communication channels.	e.g.
PeerJ	Compatible	PeerJ accepts submissions which have previously appeared on preprint servers (including PeerJ PrePrints and arXiv); have previously been presented at conferences; or have previously appeared in other ‘non journal’ venues (for example: blogs or posters).
Rockefeller University Press	Compatible	Posting of un-refereed manuscripts to a community preprint server by the author does not preclude consideration for publication. Authors who post to a community preprint server should identity the preprint server and include the accession # or doi in their cover letter. Upon publication, authors should request that community preprint server acknowledge that the article has published and that the journal reference [including DOI link to the published article] be included.
Royal Society Publishing	Compatible	we encourage researchers to deposit early versions of articles they intend to submit to a peer-reviewed journal in appropriate subject repositories...The manuscript submitted to a journal, an earlier draft, or any part thereof may be deposited at any time and made freely available. Posting a preprint on a recognised preprint server or repository does not constitute prior publication or a breach of our media embargo policy, and will prejudice neither the peer review process nor publication in our journals.
American Chemical Society	Most not compatible	"Each ACS journal has a specific policy on prior publication that is determined by the ACS Editor in accordance with their final responsibility for editorial decisions relative to their publications. Details of the respective prior publication policies of each ACS journal is available at ". In practice, most journals do not explicitly allow preprints.
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Compatible	Cold Spring Harbor journals only accept papers presenting original research that has not been published previously. Conference presentations or posting unrefereed manuscripts on not-for-profit community preprint servers will not be considered prior publication. Authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint with the journal reference (including DOI), and a link to the published article on the appropriate journal website upon publication.	For example:
University of Chicago Press	Likely compatible	We place no conditions on posting a paper intended for submission (but not yet submitted) to one of our journals, except to note that posting a paper online may, in some cases, constitute prior publication – for example, posting to a commercial venue and/or to a venue with a formal review and approval process. Please consult the journal’s editor if you have questions about whether or not a particular use constitutes prior publication.
Canadian Science Publishing (NRC Research Press)	Compatible	Authors retain the right to "post a copy of their submitted manuscript (pre-print) on their own Web site, an institutional repository, a preprint server, or their funding body's designated archive (no embargo period)..." and "... post a copy of their accepted manuscript (post-print) on their own Web site, an institutional repository, a preprint server, or their funding body's designated archive (no embargo period). Authors who archive or self-archive accepted articles are asked to provide a hyperlink from the manuscript to the Journal's Web site."
iMedPub	Compatible	Authors retain the right to "post a copy of their submitted manuscript (pre-print) on their own Web site, an institutional repository, a preprint server, or their funding body's designated archive (no embargo period)..." and "... post a copy of their accepted manuscript (post-print) on their own Web site, an institutional repository, a preprint server, or their funding body's designated archive (no embargo period). Authors who archive or self-archive accepted articles are asked to provide a hyperlink from the manuscript to the Journal's Web site."
Cambridge University Press	Compatible	Author retains (among other rights): The right to deposit Author's Original and Submitted Manuscript Under Review at any time as well as Accepted Manuscript six months after publishing to Non-commercial Subject Repository.
IUCr Journals	Compatible	The inclusion of material in an informal publication, e.g. a preprint server or a newsletter, does not preclude publication in an IUCr journal.

Individual journals

Journal	Publisher	Policy type	Policy text	Source
Science	AAAS	Compatible	Science will not consider any paper or component of a paper that has been published or is under consideration for publication elsewhere. Distribution on the Internet may be considered prior publication and may compromise the originality of the paper as a submission to Science, although we do allow posting of research papers on not-for-profit preprint servers such as arxiv.org. Please contact the editors with questions regarding allowable postings.
PNAS		Compatible	Preprints have a long and notable history in science, and it has been PNAS policy that they do not constitute prior publication. This is true whether an author hands copies of a manuscript to a few trusted colleagues or puts it on a publicly accessible web site for everyone to read, as is common now in parts of the physics community
Current Biology	Cell	Compatible in many cases	If you have questions about whether posting a manuscript or data that you plan to submit to this journal on an openly available preprint server or poster repository would affect consideration, we encourage you to contact an editor so that we may provide more specific guidance. In many cases, posting will be possible.
Current Plant Biology	Elsevier	Compatible	All manuscripts submitted are peer-reviewed before being accepted for publication to Current Plant Biology. By submitting a manuscript to CPB authors state that the manuscript has not being submitted elsewhere, and that it contains unpublished data. Current Plant Biology does not accept work that has already been published elsewhere in the peer-reviewed literature. Activities such as publication of a short abstract; presentation of data to a scientific meeting; posting of the manuscript to any of the author’s personal website, in an online institutional repository or on a freely accessible preprint server such as arXiv or bioRxiv, are not considered prior publication and do not exclude consideration of manuscript by CPB. Publication of a paper in the proceedings of a scientific meeting generally constitutes prior publication
Journal of Neuroscience		Compatible	The Journal of Neuroscience generally does not accept manuscripts that have been previously published. An exception is made for manuscripts that have been posted on the Internet for the purpose of receiving commentary from the community. Such posting is typically done at a pre-publication repository that has been designed for the purpose, but posting on an institutional web site or other Internet location is acceptable
Journal of Theoretical Biology		Compatible	In general, Elsevier is permissive with respect to authors and electronic preprints. If an electronic preprint of an article is placed on a public server prior to its submission to an Elsevier journal or where a paper was originally authored as a thesis or dissertation, this is not generally viewed by Elsevier as “prior publication”
Cell	Cell	Compatible in many cases	If you have questions about whether posting a manuscript or data that you plan to submit to this journal on an openly available preprint server or poster repository would affect consideration, we encourage you to contact an editor so that we may provide more specific guidance. In many cases, posting will be possible.
Neuron	Cell	Compatible in many cases	If you have questions about whether posting a manuscript or data that you plan to submit to this journal on an openly available preprint server or poster repository would affect consideration, we encourage you to contact an editor so that we may provide more specific guidance. In many cases, posting will be possible.
Developmental Cell	Cell	Compatible in many cases	If you have questions about whether posting a manuscript or data that you plan to submit to this journal on an openly available preprint server or poster repository would affect consideration, we encourage you to contact an editor so that we may provide more specific guidance. In many cases, posting will be possible.
Molecular Cell	Cell	Compatible in many cases	If you have questions about whether posting a manuscript or data that you plan to submit to this journal on an openly available preprint server or poster repository would affect consideration, we encourage you to contact an editor so that we may provide more specific guidance. In many cases, posting will be possible.
Journal of Cell Biology	Rockefeller University Press	Compatible	Posting of un-refereed manuscripts to a community preprint server by the author does not preclude consideration for publication. Authors who post to a community preprint server should identity the preprint server and include the accession # or doi in their cover letter. Upon publication, authors should request that community preprint server acknowledge that the article has published and that the journal reference [including DOI link to the published article] be included.
Journal of Experimental Medicine	Rockefeller University Press	Compatible	Posting of un-refereed manuscripts to a community preprint server by the author does not preclude consideration for publication. Authors who post to a community preprint server should identity the preprint server and include the accession # or doi in their cover letter. Upon publication, authors should request that community preprint server acknowledge that the article has published and that the journal reference [including DOI link to the published article] be included.
Journal of General Physiology	Rockefeller University Press	Compatible	Posting of un-refereed manuscripts to a community preprint server by the author does not preclude consideration for publication. Authors who post to a community preprint server should identity the preprint server and include the accession # or doi in their cover letter. Upon publication, authors should request that community preprint server acknowledge that the article has published and that the journal reference [including DOI link to the published article] be included.
Molecular Biology and Evolution	Oxford Journals	Compatible	Author can archive a pre-print version. Author cannot archive a post-print version
Synthetic Biology	Oxford Journals	Compatible	[Authors] may make their manuscripts available on public preprint servers, if they agree to follow the following policy: Authors must declare their intent to, or the presence of, the initial or the revised manuscript on public preprint servers at the time of submission to Synthetic Biology. All manuscripts under consideration at Synthetic Biology whilst posted on a preprint server must contain the journal name on the top-right corner of the first page in bold letters along with the current status of the manuscript (“In review”, “Revision Invited”, or “Accepted”). Authors must update their manuscripts on pre-print servers diligently so the current version matches the version under consideration at Synthetic Biology. If the manuscript is accepted and published inSynthetic Biology, authors must update the preprint listing with the full citation line in Synthetic Biology, and a link to the final published version.	[1][2]
Genes & Development	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Compatible	The journal only accepts papers that present original research that has not been published previously. Conference presentations or posting unrefereed manuscripts on preprint servers will not be considered prior publication. Authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint with the journal reference (including DOI), and a link to the published article on the Genes & Development website upon publication.
Genome Research	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Compatible	The journal only accepts papers that present original research that has not been published previously. Conference presentations or posting unrefereed manuscripts on preprint servers will not be considered prior publication. Authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint with the journal reference (including DOI), and a link to the published article on the Genome Research website upon publication.
Learning & Memory	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Compatible	The journal only accepts papers that present original research that has not been published previously. Conference presentations or posting unrefereed manuscripts on preprint servers will not be considered prior publication. Authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint with the journal reference (including DOI), and a link to the published article on the Learning & Memory website upon publication.
RNA	Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press	Compatible	The journal only accepts papers that present original research that has not been published previously. Conference presentations or posting unrefereed manuscripts on preprint servers will not be considered prior publication. Authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint with the journal reference (including DOI), and a link to the published article on the RNA website upon publication.
eLife		Compatible	Conference presentations, blog discussions, and deposition to open, online repositories will not affect consideration of a manuscript by eLife. We want to encourage high-quality, informed, and widespread discussion of new research before and after publication, depending on interest in the material and the authors' preferences. So, yes, works posted to arXiv are eligible for submission to eLife.
F1000Research	F1000	Compatible	Articles must not have been published, nor be currently under consideration or review elsewhere, except on a preprint server such as F1000Posters, ArXiv or PeerJ PrePrints.
Frontiers in Journals		Compatible	This shall not prevent the author from issuing abstracts to conferences or depositing the draft article in a non-commercial, non peer-reviewed preprint archive such as arXiv.org or similar depositaries in accordance with usual academic practice.
Biophysical Journal	Cell	Compatible	BJ will consider for publication manuscripts that have been posted informally on a private website or on ArXiv or BioRxiv, but will not consider manuscripts that have been posted on other preprint servers or "virtual journal" websites. Questions related to this policy should be directed to the Editorial Office.
Journal of Bacteriology	American Society for Microbiology	Compatible	ASM journals will consider for publication manuscripts that have been posted in a recognized not-for-profit preprint archive.
Journal of Biology of the Cell		Likely Incompatible / Unclear	Unclear. When submitting a manuscript to BoC it is understood that the data have been neither published nor also submitted for publication elsewhere in any language (excluding abstracts for conferences of less than one page and without illustrations)
The EMBO Journal, EMBO Reports, EMBO Molecular Medicine, Molecular Systems Biology	EMBO Press	Compatible	All EMBO Press journals encourage prior publication on recognized non-peer-reviewed, community preprint servers such as arXiv and bioRxiv for commenting by other scientists before - or in parallel with - formal submission to the journal. Articles that have been published in an EMBO Press journal, accepted for publication, or revised to address referee comments should not be posted to bioRxiv (note that doing so would also contravene policy at bioRxiv and Crossref's policy against duplicative DOI assignment). BioRxiv posts will forward link to formally published papers. BioRxiv posts can be directly submitted with minimal effort to any EMBO Press journal. The details of the preprint server concerned and any accession numbers or DOIs must be included in the cover letter accompanying submission of the manuscript.
Journal of Neurophysiology		Compatible	Authors submitting to the Journal of Neurophysiology (JN) may submit papers that have been previously posted to preprint servers and other non-peer-reviewed websites.
Molecular & Cellular Proteomics	ASBMB	Compatible	The following do not constitute prior or duplicate publication and will not preclude a manuscript from consideration: [...] a manuscript posted in a recognized not-for-profit preprint archive provided that upon acceptance of the manuscript for publication, the author is still able to grant ASBMB copyright or agree to the terms of an Open Access license and pay the associated fee
Journal of Biological Chemistry	ASBMB	Compatible	The following do not constitute prior or duplicate publication and will not preclude a manuscript from consideration: a manuscript posted in a recognized not-for-profit preprint archive provided that upon acceptance of the manuscript for publication, the author is still able to grant ASBMB copyright or agree to the terms of an Open Access license and pay the associated fee
Proteomics	Wiley	Compatible	There is no obligation upon authors to remove preprints posted to not for profit preprint servers prior to submission.
Journal of Proteome Research	ACS	Incompatible	The Journal of Proteome Research considers for publication only original work that has not been previously published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. When submitting a manuscript, an author should inform the editor of any prior dissemination of the content in print or electronic format. This includes electronic posting of conference esentations, posters, and preprints on institutional epositories and other Web sites. Any content that has been made publicly available, either in print or electronic format, and that contains a significant amount of new information, if made part of a submitted manuscript, may jeopardize the originality of the submission and may preclude consideration for publication.
American Journal of Human Genetics	Cell	Compatible	Per AJHG, the following text applies to engagement with media only: Work intended for submission to AJHG, currently under consideration at AJHG, or in press at AJHG may not be discussed with the media before publication. Providing preprints, granting interviews, discussing data with members of the media, or participating in press conferences in advance of publication without prior approval from the AJHG editorial office may be grounds for rejection.
Genetics		Compatible	Genetics allows authors to deposit manuscripts (currently under review or those for intended submission to GENETICS) in non-commercial, pre-print servers such as ArXiv.
Development	The Company of Biologists	Compatible	Deposition of manuscripts prior to submission on community pre-print servers, or of conference presentations online, will not be considered prior publication and will not compromise potential publication in Development. Versions of a manuscript that have altered as a result of the peer review process may not be deposited. Authors should provide details of the deposition in the cover letter accompanying manuscript submission.
Journal of Experimental Biology	The Company of Biologists	Compatible	Deposition of research manuscripts (e.g. Research Articles, Short Communications and Methods & Techniques) prior to submission on community pre-print servers, or of conference presentations online, will not be considered prior publication and will not compromise potential publication in JEB. Versions of a manuscript that have altered as a result of the peer review process may not be deposited. Authors should provide details of the deposition in the cover letter accompanying manuscript submission. Authors are requested to update the pre-print server record with a link to the final published version of the article on the JEB website. Review-type articles (e.g Reviews, Commentaries) may not be posted before publication in JEB.
Disease Models & Mechanisms	The Company of Biologists	Compatible	Deposition of research manuscripts (e.g. Research and Resource Articles) prior to submission on community pre-print servers, or of conference presentations online, will not be considered prior publication and will not compromise potential publication in DMM. Versions of a manuscript that have altered as a result of the peer review process may not be deposited. Authors should provide details of the deposition in the cover letter accompanying manuscript submission. Authors are requested to update the pre-print server record with a link to the final published version of the article on the DMM website. Review-type articles (e.g. Reviews, Commentaries) may not be posted before publication in DMM.
Biology Open (BiO)	The Company of Biologists	Compatible	Deposition of research manuscripts (e.g. Research Articles and Methods & Techniques) prior to submission on community pre-print servers, or of conference presentations online, will not be considered prior publication and will not compromise potential publication in BiO. Versions of a manuscript that have altered as a result of the peer review process may not be deposited. Authors should provide details of the deposition in the cover letter accompanying manuscript submission. Authors are requested to update the pre-print server record with a link to the final published version of the article on the BiO website.
Evolution		Compatible	Evolution allows authors to deposit manuscripts (currently under review or those for intended submission to Evolution) in non-commercial, pre-print servers such as ArXiv. The deposited version must be the author version (before peer-review). 12 months after publication in Evolution one can deposit the final version.
The Plant Cell	ASPB	Compatible	The Plant Cell will review manuscripts that include data that are posted on an author's web site. If the data are posted in the form of a preprint, it should be clearly stated beneath the title of the web preprint that is under review (or accepted for publication) by The Plant Cell.
Plant Physiology	ASPB	Compatible	PLANT PHYSIOLOGY will review manuscripts that include data that are posted on an author's web site. If the data are posted in the form of a preprint, it should be clearly stated beneath the title of the web preprint that is under review (or accepted for publication) by PLANT PHYSIOLOGY.
Bioessays	Wiley	Likely incompatible	Based on personal communication with editorial staff, deposition on preprint servers is considered prior publication.
Molecular Biology of the Cell	American Society for Cell Biology	Compatible	The following activities prior to submission of a manuscript to MBoC do not constitute prior publication and do not preclude consideration of the manuscript by MBoC: publication of a short abstract; presentation of data at a scientific meeting or in a Webcast of such a meeting; or posting of a manuscript on an author's personal website, in an online institutional repository, or on a freely accessible preprint server such as arXiv or bioRxiv.
MPMI	APS	Compatible	Authors are allowed to present their findings ahead of publication on preprint servers. When submitting a manuscript for review, authors need to disclose preprints, databases, proceedings, or other preliminary communications or depositories. This prior disclosure does not constitute prior publication.
Phytopathology	APS	Compatible	Authors are allowed to present their findings ahead of publication on preprint servers. When submitting a manuscript for review, authors need to disclose preprints, databases, proceedings, or other preliminary communications or depositories. This prior disclosure does not constitute prior publication.
Plant Disease	APS	Compatible	Authors are allowed to present their findings ahead of publication on preprint servers. When submitting a manuscript for review, authors need to disclose preprints, databases, proceedings, or other preliminary communications or depositories. This prior disclosure does not constitute prior publication.
JCI	ASCI	Incompatible	The JCI considers the following to be prior publication and therefore unacceptable: any printed or online material describing the findings, methods, or results of a submitted/in-press manuscript in excess of 400 words; any published tables or illustrations that in any way duplicate the content of another manuscript; any posters shown other than at a professional meeting and leaflets distributed other than to a professional audience (...)
Journal of Statistical Software	ASA	Compatible	Based on a personal e-mail communication with the Editor/Publisher on 2015/08/07. Relevant quote from the communication: "Drafts may appear prior to publication on pre-print servers such as arXiv or bioRxiv."

See also

• List of open-access journals
• SHERPA/RoMEO Publisher copyright policies & self-archiving search service

References

1. "Oxford Journals on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-04-14.
2. "Oxford Journals on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-04-14.