Science Journal Review Time 2026: Time to First Decision and Full Timeline

Decision cue: If you need a yes/no submission call today, compare your draft with 3 recent accepted papers from this journal and only submit when scope, methods depth, and claim strength line up.

Related: How to choose a journal • How to avoid desk rejection • Pre-submission checklist

Science, published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), is one of the two dominant general science journals alongside Nature. Its 2024 JIF is 45.8 (JCR 2024), placing it third among multidisciplinary journals globally. The editorial model closely mirrors Nature: professional editors apply a high threshold for broad significance before papers ever reach external reviewers.

Science's editorial pipeline

Science uses a team of in-house editors with active research backgrounds who transitioned to editorial roles. Unlike some journals where decisions come from the editor-in-chief alone, Science has editors assigned by discipline (life sciences, physical sciences, etc.), and complex papers may be co-evaluated by two editors.

The desk review threshold

Science is explicit about its criteria: papers must represent "major advances" that "readers across all of science" would find important. That bar is deliberately narrow. The journal publishes roughly 700-900 Research Articles per year from 10,000+ annual submissions across all article types.

Desk rejection at Science is fast and common. Papers usually come back with a brief note from the editor explaining the mismatch. Most often the reason is one of these:

• The advance is significant within a field but not across fields
• The finding confirms what was already expected or suspected
• Scope fits better in a specialist Science family journal (Science Advances, Science Translational Medicine, Science Immunology, etc.)
• The paper describes a method or tool without a scientific discovery attached

The Science family of journals creates a useful alternative path. Science Advances, for example, accepts papers with field-level significance that don't clear the cross-disciplinary bar. If Science desk-rejects your paper, the editor sometimes suggests a Science family journal. Consider whether that offer matches your career needs before deciding where to resubmit.

Why timelines vary by discipline

Science covers the entire spectrum of natural sciences. Review timelines differ by field because:

Reviewer availability varies by subfield. In well-populated research areas like molecular biology or materials science, qualified reviewers are plentiful. In emerging or highly interdisciplinary areas, finding three suitable and willing reviewers can take 3-5 weeks.

Experimental validation expectations differ. Life sciences papers often require replication experiments, statistical power analysis, or additional controls that physical sciences papers don't. When editors anticipate these needs, they may request additional data before peer review, adding weeks.

Pre-publication embargo coordination. Science handles a large number of coordinated releases: papers tied to policy announcements, clinical trial results, or findings the AAAS press office plans to publicize. These papers can move faster or slower depending on coordination needs.

What slows peer review

Once your paper is with reviewers, several things predictably delay the process:

Reviewer scheduling. Three reviewers, each given 4-6 weeks and typically delayed by their own research demands. Late reviewers are the single most common cause of timeline extension. Science editors will chase late reviewers but they're working with the same finite pool everyone else is.

Requests for clarification. If reviewers have questions mid-review that require clarification before they can complete their assessment, the editor may contact you for a response. This is uncommon but adds 2-3 weeks when it happens.

Post-review editorial deliberation. On papers with split reviewer opinions, editors sometimes consult a fourth reviewer or have an internal editorial discussion before making a decision. Strong papers with divided reviewers can sit for 2-4 extra weeks in this phase.

What you can control

Pre-submission inquiry. Science actively encourages pre-submission inquiries for Research Articles and Reviews. Send a 200-word abstract and a statement of significance to the relevant disciplinary editor. Editors respond in 1-2 weeks. If the response is discouraging, you've saved months of queue time. If positive, you have informal feedback on the angle to develop.

Cover letter. Science editors describe the cover letter as the single most important document in the submission package. It needs to answer: what was the key open question, what did you find, and why would a paleontologist, a chemist, and an immunologist all care? The cross-disciplinary significance argument must be explicit, not implied.

Technical file preparation. Science has specific requirements for figure resolution (minimum 300 DPI), supplementary materials (separate from main text), and data availability statements. Papers that arrive with technical issues get held up at the administrative stage before any editor reads them.

Reviewer suggestions. You can suggest preferred reviewers. Science uses these at its discretion. Suggesting active researchers who've published at Science or peer journals in your area is more useful than suggesting your direct collaborators (who will be excluded).

When to follow up

Science asks authors not to inquire about status before 6 weeks. After that point, a brief inquiry through the submission portal or by email to the handling editor is appropriate.

If your paper has been in "Under Review" status for more than 10 weeks, it's usually because reviewer recruitment was slow or a reviewer is late. An inquiry at that point is reasonable and won't be seen as impatient.

If your paper moves to "Decision in Process" and stays there for more than 2 weeks, the editorial team is deliberating. Don't inquire during this stage unless it extends past 3 weeks.

Faster alternatives if timeline matters

Science is not the right journal if you need a decision within 2-3 months. Faster alternatives for significant work:

• PNAS: Pre-submission inquiry option, 3-4 month average decision
• eLife: 5-8 weeks to first decision for most papers
• Current Biology: Fast review, typically 6-8 weeks to first decision for life sciences
• Physical Review Letters: 2-3 months for physical sciences, streamlined review process
• Preprint first: Post to arXiv, bioRxiv, or chemRxiv immediately to establish priority while review runs in parallel

Sources

• Clarivate Analytics, Journal Citation Reports 2024 (JIF 45.8)
• AAAS Science editorial policies and author guidelines
• SciRev author-reported review time aggregates
• Science journal overview
• Science acceptance rate
• Science impact factor 2026