Science Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

Science's abstract has a specific internal structure, even though it appears as a single paragraph without labeled sections.

• Word limit: 125 words maximum
• Structure: Single paragraph, but must contain four elements: introduction (1-2 sentences on the problem), methods approach (brief), results, and interpretation
• Citations: Not permitted in the abstract
• Keywords: Not required by Science. The journal assigns its own indexing terms.

At 125 words, Science has one of the shortest abstract limits among top journals. Nature gives you 150. The Lancet gives you 300. Science's 125-word cap forces extreme compression.

A practical tip: write the abstract last, and count every word. Science's submission system will flag abstracts that exceed the limit, and reviewers notice padding immediately. Don't start with "Here we show" or "In this study, we." Start with the finding.

Science is strict about both count and quality.

Multi-panel figures are standard in Science. A four-panel figure (A, B, C, D) counts as one display item. There's no explicit panel limit, but Science's editors will push back on figures that are too dense to read at publication size. Practically, 6 panels per figure is a reasonable ceiling.

Color figures: Science doesn't charge for color in the online version. Print color was historically extra, but since Science moved to primarily digital distribution, this is rarely relevant anymore.

Figure legends: Each legend should start with a bolded one-sentence title, followed by explanatory text. Legends are included in the manuscript but not counted toward the body word limit. Keep them concise anyway. A 200-word legend for a single panel suggests the figure isn't self-explanatory.

Science uses numbered references in parentheses (not superscript, which is the Nature style).

In-text citations: Numbers in parentheses, e.g., (1, 2). In the typeset article, these appear as italicized numbers in parentheses. In your manuscript, just use parentheses with numbers.

Reference list format:

1. A. B. Author, C. D. Author, E. F. Author, Title of article. Journal Abbrev. Volume, Pages (Year).

Key formatting details specific to Science:

• Author initials come before the last name (e.g., "J. K. Smith" not "Smith, J. K.")
• Use commas between all authors, no "&" before the last author
• Journal names are abbreviated using ISO 4
• Volume is in bold
• Page numbers use an en dash
• Year in parentheses at the end
• DOIs are required for references that have them (added during production if missing)

The reference cap for Reports is approximately 30. This isn't an absolute hard limit, but exceeding 35 will draw editorial attention. Research Articles get roughly 40 references. Reviews can go up to 80.

One Science-specific detail: references to preprints are discouraged in the main reference list. If you must cite a preprint, Science's editors will often ask you to update it to the published version during revision or move it to the Supplementary Materials references.

Science calls its supplementary content "Supplementary Materials" (SM), and it has its own formatting rules that are more structured than most journals.

What goes in SM:

• Materials and Methods (if extensive, the full Methods section lives here)
• Supplementary Text (additional analysis, derivations, extended discussion)
• Supplementary Figures (fig. S1, S2, etc.)
• Supplementary Tables (table S1, S2, etc.)
• Data and code availability statements
• References cited only in SM

Formatting rules:

• SM must be compiled as a single PDF file
• SM has its own sequential figure and table numbering (fig. S1, table S1, etc.)
• SM references continue from the main text numbering. If your main text ends at reference 28, SM references start at 29.
• SM should include a table of contents if it exceeds 10 pages

Size limits: The SM PDF can be up to 25 MB. For larger datasets or multimedia content, Science requires deposition in a recognized repository (Dryad, Zenodo, GenBank, etc.) with accession numbers cited in the paper.

A major formatting detail: Science's Methods section for Reports typically lives in the Supplementary Materials, not in the main text. The main text includes only a brief methods summary (a few sentences within the body text). The full Materials and Methods go in the SM. For Research Articles, the full Methods can be in the main text. This catches many first-time Science authors off guard.

Like Nature, Science doesn't use a traditional cover page. Metadata is entered through the online submission system.

Required submission components:

• Title: Concise, informative, no abbreviations. Science titles tend to be shorter than other journals. Aim for 10-15 words.

• One-sentence summary: A single sentence (up to 125 characters) summarizing the finding. This appears in the table of contents and is separate from the abstract. Many authors overlook this and have to add it during revision.

• Author list and affiliations: Entered through the submission portal.

• Corresponding author: Email address required.

• Cover letter: Recommended but not technically mandatory. However, submitting without one signals to editors that you're unfamiliar with the process. The letter should explain why the work fits Science's scope and audience.

ORCID iDs: Encouraged for all authors, required for the corresponding author at the acceptance stage.

These are the details that separate experienced Science authors from first-timers:

The one-sentence summary. This isn't the same as the abstract. It's a separate, standalone sentence of up to 125 characters that summarizes the main finding. It appears in the journal's table of contents. Many submission systems for other journals don't have this field, so authors miss it. It must be entered during initial submission.

Methods in Supplementary Materials. For Reports (the main research format), the detailed Methods section goes in the SM, not the main text. You include a brief methodological note in the body, but the full protocol, reagent lists, and statistical descriptions go in the supplementary PDF. This is the opposite of journals like Cell, where Methods are in the main text.

Teaser/abstract distinction. Science has both an abstract (125 words, in the paper) and an editor-written teaser that appears on the website and in email alerts. You don't write the teaser. But knowing it exists helps you understand why the abstract should be technically precise, as the popular-audience hook is handled separately by the editorial team.

No explicit Introduction/Results/Discussion headings. Like Nature, Science doesn't require labeled sections for the main text of Reports. The paper flows as continuous prose with subheadings at the author's discretion. Research Articles do use labeled sections.

Structured data availability. Science requires a formal data and materials availability statement at the end of the paper (before SM). This must specify exactly where all data, code, and materials can be accessed, including database accession numbers and any restrictions on availability.

Ethics and competing interests. All authors must complete the AAAS competing interests form. Clinical trials must reference registration numbers. Animal and human subjects research must state institutional approval details in the Methods.

Embargo policy. Science has a strict embargo policy. Don't post your manuscript to a preprint server between acceptance and publication without contacting the editor first. While Science does accept papers previously posted to recognized preprint servers (bioRxiv, arXiv, medRxiv), the timing of posting relative to editorial decisions matters.

1. Line numbers and double-spacing. Required for the review manuscript. Science will return unformatted manuscripts.

1. Figure callouts in order. Figures must be cited in numerical order in the text. If you reference Fig. 3 before Fig. 2, you'll need to renumber.

1. Supplementary Materials references. SM references continue the main text numbering. Don't restart at 1 in the SM section.

1. Author order and equal contributions. If authors contributed equally, this must be noted with a specific footnote using a dagger symbol, not an asterisk.

1. Gene and species nomenclature. Gene names must be italicized. Species names must be in italics with the genus capitalized. Science is strict about nomenclature consistency.

In our pre-submission review work on Science-targeted manuscripts, three patterns consistently predict formatting desk-screen failure at Science. The patterns below are the same ones Holden Thorp and outside reviewers flag at first-pass triage.

Scope-fit ambiguity in the abstract. Science editors move fastest on manuscripts whose contribution is obviously aligned with broad-impact research. The named failure pattern: manuscripts that require specialist translation in the discussion get desk-rejected by BoRE within 7 days. Check whether your abstract reads to Science's scope

Methods package incomplete for the journal's reviewer pool. Science reviewers expect specific methodological detail. Cover letters that don't name the multidisciplinary audience the work targets extend editorial consultation. Check if your methods package is reviewer-complete

Reference-list and clean-citation failure mode. Editorial team at Science screens reference lists for retracted-paper inclusion. Recent retractions in the Science corpus we audit include 10.1126/science.abm9818, 10.1126/science.abf6359, and 10.1126/science.abj4338. Citing any of these without a retraction-notice acknowledgment is an automatic desk-screen flag. Check whether your reference list is clean against Crossref + Retraction Watch

Manusights submission-corpus signal for Science. Of the manuscripts our team screened before submission to Science and peer venues in 2025, the editorial-culture mismatch most consistent across the cohort is science board of reviewing editors (BoRE) screens for cross-disciplinary impact in the first 7-10 days; subfield-bounded papers get desk-rejected fast. In our analysis of anonymized Science-targeted submissions, Recent retractions in the Science corpus include 10.1126/science.abm9818, 10.1126/science.abf6359, and 10.1126/science.abj4338.

In our pre-submission review work with manuscripts targeting Science, four patterns generate the most consistent desk-rejection outcomes.

Breakthrough framing fails Science's "exceptional advance" standard. Science publishes "significant advances that will be of interest to scientists across disciplines." Editors reject most manuscripts not because the science is incorrect, but because the advance does not rise to cross-disciplinary significance. Manuscripts where the Introduction explains importance entirely within the specialty, without articulating why a chemist, physicist, or biologist outside the immediate field should care, are declined within days. Science editors read hundreds of manuscripts per week and recognize specialist-framing immediately.

Research Article exceeds the 4,000-word limit or Reports exceed 1,500 words without prior approval. Science Articles have a target length of 4,000 words (not a hard cap, but strongly enforced). Reports are limited to 1,500 words with a maximum of 3 figures. Manuscripts submitted as Reports that arrive at 2,500 words with 5 figures are returned for format correction. Authors should verify the actual word count and figure count against the format selected before submission.

Summary paragraph not written for a general scientific audience. Science requires a short Summary (125 words for Articles, 100 words for Reports) written in non-technical language accessible to a high-school-level science reader. Summaries that read at the same technical level as the abstract, or that use unexplained jargon, are returned for revision. The Summary is evaluated by editors as evidence of whether the work can communicate to the broad Science readership.

Data availability and code deposit not completed at submission. Science requires that all data and custom code supporting the manuscript be deposited in a publicly accessible repository at time of submission. "Available upon request" policies are not accepted. For computational work, this means depositing code to GitHub or Zenodo with a DOI before the manuscript is submitted. Manuscripts that reference data or code without providing a direct access link are returned for correction.

A Science formatting and readiness check evaluates manuscript structure, cross-disciplinary significance framing, and data availability compliance against these desk-rejection patterns before you submit.