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PLoS Biology

Public Library of Science · United States · Est. 1980

ISSN1544-9173eISSN1545-7885

SJR Q1✓ WOS SCIE✓ Scopus / SJR✓ DOAJ✓ Open Access

Impact Factor & Quartile · Web of Science (JCR)

✓ Indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection (SCIE) — Clarivate publishes an official Journal Impact Factor and JCR quartile for this journal.

See the official Impact Factor & quartile on the journal’s page ↗

The Impact Factor & JCR quartile are licensed by Clarivate — we link you to the official source instead of reprinting a number that can go out of date. Open metrics below: SCImago Q1. Source: Clarivate Journal Citation Reports.

📊 Standing in its field

Where this journal ranks among others in the same subject area.

SJR · Scopus

Top 25% in field

Clarivate’s JCR quartile is a separate ranking and may differ

SJR Scorei

2.525

H-Indexi

386

SNIPi

1.546

Total Worksi

8,534

Total Citationsi

788,133

2yr Mean Citednessi

5.83

Open Impact Factor alternative

Retractions

Source: Retraction Watch

Aims & Scope

PLOS Biology publishes original research and commentary in all areas of the biological sciences. The journal aims to publish papers of general interest to biologists, with a focus on significant advances and discoveries. It covers a wide range of topics, including molecular biology, cell biology, genetics, evolution, ecology, and systems biology.

General Information

Country / RegionUnited States

Primary LanguageEnglish

1st Year Published1980

FrequencyMonthly

StatusActive (last: 2026)

Total Publications8,534

Publisher OrgPublic Library of Science

OA Since2002

Visit Journal Website

Submission Info

Peer ReviewSingle-blind

OA LicenseCC BY

OA Rate—

Ethics & Quality

COPE Member✗ No

OASPA Member✗ No

Not on Predatory Lists✓ Yes

Plagiarism Detection✓ Yes

Think.Check.Submit Compliance

thinkchecksubmit.org

9/11 · 82%

✅

Do you know the journal / publisher?

Public Library of Science

✅

Does the journal have a website?

✓ Linked

✅

Is the ISSN verified?

1544-9173 / 1545-7885

✅

Indexed in a trusted database?

WoS, Scopus, DOAJ, PubMed

✅

Peer review process documented?

Single-blind

❌

Follows ethical publishing standards (COPE)?

N/A

✅

Not on predatory/blacklists?

✓ Clean

❌

Long-term digital preservation?

N/A

✅

Plagiarism detection in place?

Yes

✅

Listed in DOAJ (verified OA)?

DOAJ verified

✅

Primary language documented?

English

A twelfth criterion — whether APC fees are clearly disclosed — is not scored here; it is left out of the total rather than counted as a failure. Publication charges appear in the metrics card above.

Based on the Think.Check.Submit framework by DOAJ, COPE & OASPA. All data from verified open sources.

Publication & Citation Trend

Articles published

Citations received

497

35k

2019

362

34k

2020

353

18k

2021

413

13k

2022

485

11k

2023

490

6.8k

2024

576

2.9k

2025

376

281

2026

Source: OpenAlex · Each year’s green bar = citations earned by that year’s papers, counted to date — so recent years look lower simply because their papers haven’t had time to be cited yet.

SJR Quartile by Discipline

Scimago ranks this journal separately in each subject category — its quartile can differ by discipline.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)Q1

Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (miscellaneous)Q1

Immunology and Microbiology (miscellaneous)Q1

Neuroscience (miscellaneous)Q1

Subject Classification

Web of Science Categories

Biochemistry & Molecular BiologyBiology

Scopus Categories

Neuroscience (miscellaneous)Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (miscellaneous)Immunology and Microbiology (miscellaneous)

Research Topics (OpenAlex)

Neural dynamics and brain functionNeurobiology and Insect Physiology ResearchRNA and protein synthesis mechanismsEvolution and Genetic DynamicsNeuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchRNA Research and SplicingCRISPR and Genetic EngineeringGenetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model OrganismsPlant and animal studiesGenomics and Phylogenetic Studies

Frequently asked questions about PLoS Biology

Is PLoS Biology a predatory journal?

PubScope has no integrity flags on record for PLoS Biology: it is indexed in Web of Science, Scopus, DOAJ, and is not on DOAJ's withdrawn list. Indexing is a transparency signal, not a guarantee — always confirm fit and policies before submitting.

What is the impact factor of PLoS Biology?

PLoS Biology is indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection, so Clarivate publishes an official Journal Impact Factor for it (since the 2023 Journal Citation Reports, every Core Collection journal — including Arts & Humanities and Emerging Sources titles — receives one). PubScope links to Clarivate's official source rather than reprinting the number, which can be out of date. Its open 2-year mean citedness is 5.83.

Is PLoS Biology indexed in Scopus and Web of Science?

PLoS Biology is indexed in Web of Science, Scopus, DOAJ.