How to screen out questionable journals
Educational resource · Updated September 2026
No single signal proves that a journal is legitimate or questionable. Use a verification process rather than one badge, one email invitation, or one metric.
Check the journal identity
- Confirm the journal title, publisher, ISSN, and official website.
- Verify claimed PubMed/MEDLINE status in the NLM Catalog.
- Look for a transparent editorial board and real institutional affiliations.
Read the publication policies
- Peer-review process should be described.
- Fees should be disclosed before submission or acceptance.
- Retraction, correction, ethics, and conflict-of-interest policies should be visible.
Be skeptical of pressure
Unsolicited invitations, guaranteed acceptance, implausibly rapid peer review, and aggressive payment requests deserve scrutiny. Fast editorial processing can be legitimate, but speed should not be presented as guaranteed acceptance.
Verify before paying
If you cannot independently confirm the journal’s identity, indexing, publisher, and policies, do not send payment simply because you received an acceptance email.