Nature Communications APC and Open Access: Current Pricing, Funding Support, and What the Fee Really Buys
Nature Communications APC is $7,350 / EUR 6,150 / GBP 5,490. Current fully open-access pricing, funding support, waiver policy, and journal context.
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Nature Communications publishing costs and open access options
APC is one cost. Funder mandates, institutional agreements, and access route timing all shape what you actually pay.
What shapes what you pay
- Gold OA at Nature Communications costs Verify current Nature Communications pricing page. Check whether your institution has a read-and-publish agreement that waives this.
- Funder mandates (NIH, Wellcome, UKRI) may require immediate OA — verify compliance before choosing a subscription route.
- Accepted authors typically have 48-72 hours to choose their access route before proofs begin.
When OA is worth the cost
- When your funder or institution requires it — non-compliance can affect future funding.
- When your topic benefits from broad immediate access beyond institutional subscribers.
- Nature Communications's IF 15.7 means OA papers here have real citation upside.
Quick answer: Nature Communications currently lists an APC of $7,350 / EUR 6,150 / GBP 5,490. The journal is fully open access, so there is no free subscription route. The older idea that the APC is simply a fixed out-of-pocket fee is too crude, though. Springer Nature now explicitly routes authors to funding support, open-access agreements, and waiver programs to check whether the journal is covered. For the hub, see the Nature Communications journal page.
If the bigger issue is whether the manuscript is strong enough for the journal before the fee matters, use a Nature Communications submission readiness check.
Nature Communications APC at a glance
Item | Current position |
|---|---|
Journal model | Fully open access |
APC, USD | $7,350 |
APC, EUR | EUR 6,150 |
APC, GBP | GBP 5,490 |
Subscription route | No |
Institutional/funder support | Yes, check eligibility through Springer Nature |
Waivers and discounts | Yes |
2024 impact factor | 15.7 |
5-year impact factor | 17.2 |
CiteScore | 20.4 |
SJR | 4.521 |
h-index | 473 |
First editorial decision | 8 days |
2024 article downloads | 177,272,701 |
What Springer Nature currently says
The current Nature Communications OA page is straightforward:
- every article is open access
- the APC is $7,350 / EUR 6,150 / GBP 5,490
- funding and agreement coverage may be available
- waiver and discount support exists for qualifying authors
That last part is the important update. The practical question is not just "what is the APC?" but also "who actually pays it?"
What authors actually choose between
Route | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
Direct APC payment | You or your grant pay the full listed amount |
Institutional support | Your institution may cover the APC if Nature Communications is included |
Funder support | Some funders directly support OA publication costs |
Waiver or discount support | Qualifying authors may receive full or partial support |
Nature Communications is not a hybrid decision. There is no subscription fallback. That makes funding clarity more important here than at a premium hybrid journal.
Metrics context behind the APC
Metric | Current figure | Why it matters with the APC |
|---|---|---|
Impact Factor | 15.7 | Strong top-tier multidisciplinary profile |
5-year JIF | 17.2 | Longer-run authority remains stronger than the shorter citation window |
CiteScore | 20.4 | Broad cross-database citation strength |
SJR | 4.521 | Prestige-weighted influence is high |
h-index | 473 | Deep accumulated impact |
First editorial decision | 8 days | The desk screen is fast and selective |
Acceptance rate | ~8% | The fee does not buy an easy editorial path |
2024 article downloads | 177,272,701 | The OA visibility footprint is enormous |
Nature Communications is charging like a major broad-scope brand journal because it still behaves like one: fast at editorial triage, heavy on desk rejection, and very visible after publication.
Long-run impact factor trend
Year | Impact factor |
|---|---|
2019 | 12.1 |
2020 | 14.9 |
2021 | 17.7 |
2022 | 16.6 |
2023 | 16.1 |
2024 | 15.7 |
The year-over-year move is negative but controlled. Nature Communications is down from 16.1 in 2023 to 15.7 in 2024. That is a normalization story, not a collapse. The five-year JIF staying above the two-year JIF supports that interpretation.
Readiness check
Run the scan while the topic is in front of you.
See score, top issues, and journal-fit signals before you submit.
How Nature Communications compares with nearby options
Journal | APC structure | Metric profile | Practical fit |
|---|---|---|---|
Nature Communications | Fully OA, $7,350 listed APC | IF 15.7, CiteScore 20.4 | Broad-scope selective work that clears a fast professional-editor screen |
Fully OA | Similar prestige band, lower APC | Strong alternative for broad work at a lower fee level | |
Hybrid | Lower top-line metrics, strong reputation | Better when hybrid flexibility matters | |
Fully OA | Much lower selectivity and lower citation band | Better when soundness review is enough | |
Fully OA model | Lower prestige tier, different editorial posture | Better when cost and openness dominate the decision |
The real comparison is usually with Science Advances or PNAS, not with Scientific Reports. Nature Communications is expensive because it still occupies a top broad-journal lane, not a soundness-megajournal lane.
What we see in pre-submission review work with Nature Communications manuscripts
The APC is rarely the first problem. Editorial triage is.
Cross-field significance is the real screen. Nature Communications does not need Nature-level general-interest breadth, but it does need more than a narrow specialist result.
The 8-day first decision figure matters. Authors often underestimate how quickly professional editors decide that the paper is not for this lane.
Funding support only matters if the paper is truly competitive. The worst sequence is to solve the APC question first and the fit question second.
The right order is:
- confirm the paper is genuinely competitive for Nature Communications
- confirm the evidence package is complete
- then confirm APC coverage or support
Submit if / Think twice if
Submit and accept the APC logic if:
- the manuscript has strong specialist significance with some reach beyond a narrow subfield
- the evidence package is already complete
- institutional or funder support is likely
- the journal's broad OA visibility is strategically valuable
Think twice if:
- the manuscript is strong but narrow
- you are relying on revision rounds to add key missing evidence
- you have not checked whether the APC is actually fundable
- a lower-cost broad journal would serve the paper nearly as well
Practical verdict
Nature Communications is a high-APC journal, but it is not a lazy premium.
The fee buys entry into a very visible fully OA lane with:
- strong citation performance
- extreme download scale
- and a fast professional-editor front end
What it does not buy is tolerance for weak framing, incomplete evidence, or a paper that is simply too narrow for the journal.
Frequently asked questions
Nature Communications currently lists an APC of $7,350, EUR 6,150, or GBP 5,490, subject to VAT or local taxes where applicable. The journal is fully open access, so every accepted paper goes through this route.
No. Nature Communications is fully open access. There is no subscription route and no hybrid option.
Sometimes yes. Nature Communications points authors to Springer Nature open-access funding and agreement tools to check whether institutions or funders cover the APC for this journal.
Yes. Springer Nature says corresponding authors in qualifying low-income countries can receive full waivers, and some lower-middle-income-country authors can receive partial support. Additional hardship requests may also be considered.
It remains a selective broad-scope journal. Current planning numbers around the site are impact factor 15.7, median 8 days to first editorial decision, and an overall acceptance rate near 8%.
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