Cell Reports Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

Cell Reports uses a short, single-paragraph Summary in place of a structured abstract.

• Word limit: 150 words maximum

• Structure: Single paragraph, no subheadings

• Citations: Not allowed

• Highlights: Cell Reports requires 3-4 bullet-point "Highlights" in addition to the abstract

The 150-word abstract is tight. State the problem, the approach, the main finding, and the implication. That's it. Don't waste words on general background.

Highlights are a Cell Press feature that appears on the article landing page:

• 3-4 bullet points

• Each bullet is 85 characters or fewer, including spaces

• Avoid abbreviations

• Convey the core findings of the paper

Highlights are more important than many authors realize. They're prominently displayed on the article page and are often what readers see first when browsing. Good Highlights are specific and results-focused. Bad Highlights are vague statements about the field.

Good Highlight: "Single-cell sequencing reveals 12 previously uncharacterized astrocyte subtypes in the human cortex"

Weak Highlight: "This study provides insights into brain cell diversity"

A graphical abstract is required at Cell Reports. Cell Press lists graphical abstracts as optional only for Cell Systems, Current Biology, Patterns, Neuron, and Newton, and asks for the image with the final files.

Graphical abstract specifications:

The graphical abstract appears on the table of contents page and the article landing page. It's the visual that represents your paper across social media, email alerts, and journal browsing. Investing time in a clear, attractive graphical abstract directly affects how many people click through to read your paper.

Cell Press provides graphical abstract guidelines with examples of effective and ineffective designs. The most common mistake is cramming too much text into the square format. Treat it like a poster, not a figure legend.

Research articles and Resources may have up to 7 figures and/or tables, and Reports up to 4. Main figures and tables count together.

Figure specifications:

Table requirements:

• Tables should be editable (created in Word, not as images)

• Tables should be in black and white, with no colored text or shading

• Tables are numbered Table 1, Table 2, and are not divided into panels (no Table 1A)

• Every table needs a title; legends and footnotes are optional

Supplemental figures and tables: There's no strict cap on supplemental items, but Cell Press recommends that you do not exceed 20 supplemental figures per paper and that the supplemental information stay limited to material that supports the main findings. If you have 7 main figures and 25 supplemental figures, reviewers will question whether the main figures tell a clear enough story.

Multi-panel figures: Common at Cell Reports. Panels A-G in a single figure are normal. Each multi-panel figure counts as one figure toward the figure limit. Cell Press asks that panels be labeled with capital letters and that each figure file include all of its panels.

Cell Reports uses numbered superscript citations, not an author-date style.

In-text citations: Superscript numbers, in the order of first citation.

• Example: "Multiple reports support this observation1,2"

• Example with an author: "This observation is supported by Smith et al.1"

Reference list format:

Sondheimer, N., and Lindquist, S. (2000). Rnq1: an epigenetic modifier of protein function in yeast. Mol. Cell 5, 163-172. 10.1016/S1097-2765(00)80412-8.

Key details from the Cell Reports instructions:

• References are sequentially numbered according to their first citation in the manuscript

• Each reference contains only one article and may not be split into parts a, b, c

• "et al." is used only after 10 author names

• Include only material that is published or in press; DOIs are encouraged whenever possible

• Preprints may be included with identification information and an independent persistent identifier, such as a DOI

• Cell Press offers CSL and EndNote styles

Common mistake: Authors switching from an author-date journal forget to change to numbered superscript citations. Check both the in-text calls and the reference list.

Cell Reports does not publish a maximum number of references for research articles. Reviews may have up to 100 references.

STAR Methods is the defining feature of Cell Press formatting. It stands for Structured, Transparent, Accessible Reporting, and it replaces the traditional Methods section with a standardized format.

The STAR Methods text goes after the main figure and table legends and before the references in the manuscript file. It is required for acceptance and is not required at initial submission, although Cell Press encourages it. The text is organized under four standard headings, and Method Details is the heading required for every manuscript:

1. Experimental Model and Study Participant Details

• Cell lines, animal models, patient cohorts, plants, and microbe strains, each under its own heading

• For human studies: sex, gender, ancestry, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and age, plus the approving committee and informed consent

• For animal studies: sex and age or developmental stage, with details recommended by the ARRIVE guidelines

• Omit this heading if your study does not use experimental models typical in the life sciences

2. Method Details (required)

• Precise details of all procedures, with enough detail that readers do not need to refer to other papers

• This is the equivalent of the traditional Methods section

3. Quantification and Statistical Analysis

• Statistical tests, software, exact value of n and what n represents, and how significance was defined

• Omit this heading if your study includes no statistical analysis or quantification

4. Additional Resources

• Links to websites created or expanded by the study, and clinical trial registry numbers

• Omit this heading if it does not apply

Resource Availability is a separate section of the main text (before the Acknowledgments) with the subheadings Lead Contact, Materials Availability, and Data and Code Availability. It is not one of the STAR Methods headings.

Key Table: Key Resources Table

STAR Methods includes a Key Resources Table that summarizes the materials and resources essential to reproduce the results, including reagents, cell lines, genetically modified organisms, software, and original source data for computational studies. Each entry gives the resource, its source, and an identifier; Cell Press highly recommends RRIDs as the identifiers for antibodies and model organisms, and asks you not to add custom headings.

This Key Resources Table is one of the most time-consuming parts of a Cell Reports submission. Start building it early. Tracking down catalog numbers and RRIDs for every reagent, antibody, and software tool takes longer than most authors expect.

Cell Reports supplemental material is published online alongside the article. It is not copyedited, so prepare it with the same care as the main text.

Supplemental items include:

• Supplemental figures (Figure S1, Figure S2, etc.)

• Supplemental tables (Table S1, Table S2, etc.)

• Supplemental videos (Video S1, Video S2, etc.)

• Data files (Data S1, Data S2, etc.)

Formatting rules:

• Supplemental figures, schemes, and tables that fit in 3 pages or fewer go into a single primary PDF (A4 or Letter size, 50 MB or smaller), listed as Document S1 in the supplemental information index

• Supplemental tables longer than 3 pages, datasets, code, and videos are uploaded as separate files

• Supplemental figure titles and legends go in the supplemental PDF with the figures, not in the main manuscript

• In the main text, cite supplemental items as "Figure S1" (not "Supplementary Figure 1")

Data deposition: Cell Press requires that all genomics, proteomics, and structural data be deposited in public repositories. Accession numbers must be reported in the Data and Code Availability statement within the Resource Availability section of the main text.

For manuscripts targeting Cell Reports, four patterns generate the most consistent desk-rejection outcomes.

STAR Methods section absent or Key Resources Table missing. Cell Reports requires the STAR Methods format, with a Key Resources Table, for acceptance, although Cell Press says it is not required for the initial submission. The Key Resources Table summarizes the materials and resources essential to reproduce the results, such as antibodies, cell lines, organisms, reagents, and software, and Cell Press highly recommends RRIDs as the identifiers for antibodies and model organisms. A manuscript that arrives with an unstructured methods section can still be considered, but it has to be converted before acceptance, and thin methods at submission often leave reviewers with reproducibility questions.

Graphical abstract absent or not self-explanatory. Cell Reports requires a graphical abstract for all research articles. The graphical abstract is a single image that should communicate the main finding of the study without the reader needing to consult the text. A common error is providing a schematic of the experimental system or a cartoon of the molecular pathway, rather than a visual representation of the key result. Reviewers expect the graphical abstract to convey the directional outcome of the study.

Scope misalignment: study does not meet the "broad biological significance" standard. Cell Reports describes its primary criterion for publication as "new biological insight." Editors evaluate whether the finding advances understanding of a biological process in a way that is relevant beyond the specific system studied. Manuscripts that characterize a new gene or protein function in a single cell type or model organism, without demonstrating relevance to a broader biological principle or translational context, are assessed as too narrow for Cell Reports.

Statistical analysis section insufficient for Cell Press standards. Cell Reports reviewers evaluate statistical rigor in detail: the number of independent biological replicates (n), the specific statistical tests used and their assumptions, whether data are normally distributed when parametric tests are applied, and whether p-values are supplemented with effect sizes or confidence intervals. Manuscripts that report n as technical replicates rather than independent biological experiments, or that apply t-tests to data with small sample sizes without justification, are flagged for statistical revision in the first review cycle.

A Cell Reports submission readiness check evaluates manuscript structure, STAR Methods compliance, graphical abstract, and statistical rigor against these desk-rejection patterns before you submit.

For a manuscript-specific signal before you submit, run a Cell Reports submission readiness check.

Or see example reports before you finalize.