PubMed vs MEDLINE vs PMC
Educational resource · Updated September 2026
These terms are related but not interchangeable. Confusing them can lead authors to think a journal has a different indexing status than it actually does.
PubMed
PubMed is a search and discovery system maintained by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. A journal’s articles may appear in PubMed through more than one route.
MEDLINE
MEDLINE is the NLM’s major bibliographic database and uses controlled indexing, including MeSH. A journal being searchable in PubMed does not by itself mean that the journal is MEDLINE indexed.
PubMed Central (PMC)
PMC is a full-text archive. Participation in PMC is different from MEDLINE indexing, although PMC content can be discoverable through PubMed.
What should an author verify?
When indexing matters, check the journal’s current NLM Catalog record and read the exact status. Avoid relying only on the journal website, a search-engine snippet, or an old spreadsheet.