Gut APC and Open Access: BMJ's Gastroenterology Flagship at a Reasonable Price

Gut is a hybrid journal. That means you have two publication routes:

1. Subscription track (default, no APC): Your article is made available to Gut's subscribers. You pay nothing.

1. Gold open access track (4,500 GBP): Your article is open access, reusable under the relevant Creative Commons licence. You or your funder/institution pays the APC, which you choose during submission.

Gut's About page lists its publication model as subscription with a hybrid open access option, and the authors page says authors can still choose to publish at no cost, with articles made available to subscribers.

BMJ has open access agreements with institutions and consortia in many countries. For the UK, BMJ's agreement with the Jisc consortium lets corresponding authors at participating universities and research institutions publish eligible funded research open access in a range of BMJ journals, with fees fully covered by the agreement.

For UK authors, BMJ asks you to confirm eligibility at submission using your Ringgold ID or institution domain and to validate your funder from the drop-down list. You must be the corresponding author, a current staff member or student of an eligible institution when the paper is accepted, and the article must be original research.

Outside the UK, check BMJ's open access agreements page for your country and ask your library. Your institution's agreement must be active and have sufficient funds when your article is accepted. Don't assume your existing Elsevier or Springer Nature deal extends to BMJ titles.

BMJ's waiver system is set out on its Author Hub:

Full waiver:

• Full APC waiver for authors based in low-income countries on BMJ's waiver list. All authors must be located in a listed country, area or territory, the research must have been carried out in one, and the research must be unfunded or have no funding available to support publication.

• Gut's authors page says the list is based on HINARI Core Offer Groups A and B and the World Bank Country and Lending Groups; the Author Hub says it is based on Research4Life (Group A) and the World Bank lists.

Partial discounts:

• BMJ will also consider partial discounts of up to 50% on a case-by-case basis for requests from countries that are not eligible for a full waiver.

When to apply:

• Apply before or during initial submission. Requests made while an article is being peer reviewed or after it has been accepted will not be considered, and BMJ expects the APC to be paid if a funder with an open access mandate covers it.

• Requests are assessed by BMJ staff, not journal editors, and a waiver decision does not influence any editorial decision.

Gut offers three licence types: an exclusive licence to BMJ, CC-BY-NC and CC-BY (the Creative Commons open access licences require payment of the APC). Plan S funders require CC BY. If your funder is a cOAlition S member, make sure you select CC BY at the licensing stage. Choosing CC BY-NC won't satisfy Plan S requirements.

If your funder accepts a repository copy, the subscription route plus BMJ's green open access policy is the alternative. The Gut authors page points to BMJ's author self archiving and permissions policies page for what you may post and when, so check it before you plan a deposit.

For UKRI-funded researchers at participating UK institutions, the Jisc agreement can cover the APC and funded articles are published under CC-BY.

Gut has a distinctive editorial identity within gastroenterology. The journal publishes across the full spectrum of GI and hepatology research, but it has particular strength in:

• Microbiome research: Gut has been one of the leading journals for microbiome studies since the field exploded in the early 2010s. It published several landmark studies linking gut microbiota to metabolic disease.

• IBD: Inflammatory bowel disease research is a core area for the journal, including clinical trials, pathogenesis studies, and epidemiology.

• GI oncology: Upper and lower GI cancers, screening studies, and early detection.

• Hepatology: Despite being a general GI journal, Gut publishes substantial liver disease research, competing directly with Hepatology and Journal of Hepatology.

Gut About: Journal Statistics 2025 reports 12% for Gut's acceptance rate (2025; source checked 2026-10-21). However, it does not establish a comparable desk-rejection percentage for Nature or Cell. Gut reports a median of 3 days to a first decision without review and 23 days with review (2025).

Gut is co-owned by the British Society of Gastroenterology and BMJ. The journal launched in 1960, giving it over 65 years of history in the field. It's indexed in Web of Science, MEDLINE, PubMed Central, Scopus, Embase, CINAHL, and Google Scholar.

For current APC rates and author guidelines, visit the official Gut author information page.

Gut doesn't charge submission fees, page fees, or online-only colour figure charges. Choosing colour in the print edition instead of the default black and white costs 510 GBP. But watch for these:

• Currency fluctuations: APCs are in GBP. If your grant budget is in USD or EUR, exchange rate movements can change the effective cost between budgeting and payment.

• VAT for UK and EU authors: the 4,500 GBP figure is exclusive of VAT for UK and EU authors, so expect VAT to be added to the invoice if you are paying out of pocket.

• Data sharing costs: Gut follows BMJ's Tier 3 data policy: all research articles must contain a Data Availability Statement, and the journal strongly encourages sharing the data behind your article where legally and ethically possible. Preparing datasets for sharing takes staff time even if repository deposit is free.

• Reprints: Reprints are ordered separately through BMJ. Most researchers don't need these, but some promotion committees still ask for them.

• Statistical review revisions: Gut has rigorous statistical review. If your analysis needs revision, the time cost of re-running analyses and revising methods sections can be substantial, though this isn't a journal fee.

Gut's cost equation is straightforward:

1. Participating UK institution with eligible funded research? Publish OA through the Jisc agreement, which can cover the fee. Confirm eligibility at submission.

1. Plan S funder, no agreement covering you? Pay the 4,500 GBP APC for gold OA, or check whether the subscription route plus a repository copy satisfies your funder.

1. Funder without an OA mandate for this paper? Publish via the subscription track at no cost and check BMJ's self-archiving policy for what you may deposit.

1. Budget-conscious? The subscription track has no APC, and articles are made available to Gut's subscribers.

Gut pairs a high-impact specialty journal with a free subscription route and open access agreements in many countries.

Before submitting, make sure your manuscript meets Gut's editorial standards. The journal is selective, and a desk rejection wastes time you could spend targeting the right venue. Gut submission readiness check to identify formatting, statistical, and structural issues before your paper reaches the editors. For a broader look at BMJ's portfolio pricing, see our BMJ APC breakdown.

Worth paying if:

• Your funder mandates open access (check Plan S / cOAlition S requirements)

• An institutional Read & Publish agreement covers the fee

• Open access visibility meaningfully benefits your research area

• The APC fits within your grant budget

Consider alternatives if:

• The APC is a personal out-of-pocket expense

• A subscription option or green OA (preprint + embargo) satisfies your funder

• Another OA journal with a lower APC would provide similar visibility

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

Or see example reports before you finalize.