Nature Neuroscience Impact Factor
Nature Neuroscience impact factor is 27.7. See the current rank, quartile, and what the number actually means before you submit.
Research Scientist, Neuroscience & Cell Biology
Author context
Works across neuroscience and cell biology, with direct expertise in preparing manuscripts for PNAS, Nature Neuroscience, Neuron, eLife, and Nature Communications.
Journal evaluation
Want the full picture on Nature Neuroscience?
See scope, selectivity, submission context, and what editors actually want before you decide whether Nature Neuroscience is realistic.
A fuller snapshot for authors
Use Nature Neuroscience's impact factor as one signal, then stack it against selectivity, editorial speed, and the journal guide before you decide where to submit.
What this metric helps you decide
- Whether Nature Neuroscience has the citation profile you want for this paper.
- How the journal compares to nearby options when prestige or visibility matters.
- Whether the citation upside is worth the likely selectivity and process tradeoffs.
What you still need besides JIF
- Scope fit and article-type fit, which matter more than a high number.
- Desk-rejection risk, which impact factor does not predict.
- Timeline and cost context.
Five-year impact factor: 28.2. These longer-window metrics help show whether the journal's citation performance is stable beyond a single JIF snapshot.
How authors actually use Nature Neuroscience's impact factor
Use the number to place the journal in the right tier, then check the harder filters: scope fit, selectivity, and editorial speed.
Use this page to answer
- Is Nature Neuroscience actually above your next-best alternatives, or just more famous?
- Does the prestige upside justify the likely cost, delay, and selectivity?
- Should this journal stay on the shortlist before you invest in submission prep?
Check next
- Acceptance rate: ~9%. High JIF does not tell you how hard triage will be.
- First decision: 45-60 days. Timeline matters if you are under a grant, job, or revision clock.
- Publishing cost and article type, since those constraints can override prestige.
Quick answer: Nature Neuroscience impact factor is 20.0; five-year JIF is 24.8.
The point of an impact-factor page is not to tell you where to submit on prestige alone. It is to give you a clean read on the journal's citation position and keep that separate from questions like scope fit, editor behavior, and review speed.
Nature Neuroscience Impact Factor At a Glance
Metric | Value |
|---|---|
Impact Factor | 20.0 |
5-Year JIF | 24.8 |
What This Number Does Tell You
It gives you a rough citation-density signal for the journal. A higher JIF usually means articles in that journal are cited more often on average within the JCR window. That can matter for visibility, but it is still only one input.
What This Number Does Not Tell You
- whether your manuscript actually fits the journal
- how likely the editor is to desk reject
- how long peer review will take
- how your specific paper will perform after publication
How To Use It
Use the JIF together with article type, scope fit, editorial bar, and timeline. That is a much better submission decision than chasing one number in isolation.
Bottom Line
Nature Neuroscience has an impact factor of 20.0, with a five-year JIF of 24.8. Treat that as a citation signal, not as a substitute for journal fit.
- Nature Portfolio journal metrics page for Nature Neuroscience
Jump to key sections
Reference library
Use the core publishing datasets alongside this guide
This article answers one part of the publishing decision. The reference library covers the recurring questions that usually come next: how selective journals are, how long review takes, and what the submission requirements look like across journals.
Dataset / reference guide
Peer Review Timelines by Journal
Reference-grade journal timeline data that authors, labs, and writing centers can cite when discussing realistic review timing.
Dataset / benchmark
Biomedical Journal Acceptance Rates
A field-organized acceptance-rate guide that works as a neutral benchmark when authors are deciding how selective to target.
Reference table
Journal Submission Specs
A high-utility submission table covering word limits, figure caps, reference limits, and formatting expectations.
Before you upload
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Scope, selectivity, what editors want, common rejection reasons, and submission context, all in one place.
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Supporting reads
Want the full picture on Nature Neuroscience?
These pages attract evaluation intent more than upload-ready intent.