Whether you are trying to decide where to publish your research findings, searching for a publication to share at an upcoming journal club, or simply interested in exploring the latest research in your field, you are likely to find this article helpful. We have compiled a list of the 200 highest impact factor academic journals in the world.
In general, these journals are well-known within their respective fields and are regarded to publish highly impactful research, review articles, and other pieces that set a quality standard for other journals.
However, while impact factor is one metric for assessing the prestige and comparative quality of a journal, it is not the only means by which an academic journal should be evaluated.
The quality of a journal should be assessed holistically, taking a variety of factors into consideration beyond impact factor.
In addition to reviewing these rankings we encourage you to visit the website of each journal, where you can learn more about its purpose, scope, editorial board and practices, publication policies, open access status, and other details that may better inform your search.
Impact factor is not an infallible ranking metric. Artifacts and gross manipulations that can result in misleadingly high impact factors for some journals.
For example, journals that exclusively publish review articles (which are often cited with greater frequency) can have higher impact factors than their non-review-based counterparts.
Check out our article on the history, definition, and implications of impact factor for more information on the metric and how it should be interpreted.
Data on the impact factor of each journal represents the two-year impact factor for 2020-2021 as identified by the Journal Citation Reports (JCI). Our list represents the 200 journals identified by JCI to have the highest impact factor in the world.
Keep in mind that these rankings include journals from multiple disciplines. If you are looking to learn about the rankings of journals from specific fields, consider checking out our other journal rankings.
Interested in learning how to improve the quality of your manuscript? Consider reading “How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper” (affiliate link) by Robert Day and Barbara Gastel. This engaging text has been described as “[required reading] for anybody embarking on a career in science” and “important guidance” even for accomplished scientists.
Top 200 Highest Impact Factor Journals (2022)
- CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians – Impact Factor: 286.13
- Lancet – Impact Factor: 202.731
- New England Journal of Medicine – Impact Factor: 176.079
- JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association – Impact Factor: 157.335
- Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology – Impact Factor: 113.915
- Nature Reviews Drug Discovery – Impact Factor: 112.288
- Nature Reviews Immunology – Impact Factor: 108.555
- Lancet Respiratory Medicine – Impact Factor: 102.642
- BMJ: British Medical Journal – Impact Factor: 93.333
- Nature Medicine – Impact Factor: 87.241
- Lancet Microbe – Impact Factor: 86.208
- World Psychiatry – Impact Factor: 79.683
- Nature Reviews Microbiology – Impact Factor: 78.297
- Lancet Psychiatry – Impact Factor: 77.056
- Nature Reviews Materials – Impact Factor: 76.679
- Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology – Impact Factor: 73.082
- Lancet Public Health – Impact Factor: 72.427
- Chemical Reviews – Impact Factor: 72.087
- Lancet Infectious Diseases – Impact Factor: 71.421
- Nature Reviews Cancer – Impact Factor: 69.8
- Nature – Impact Factor: 69.504
- Nature Biotechnology – Impact Factor: 68.164
- Nature Energy – Impact Factor: 67.439
- Cell – Impact Factor: 66.85
- Nature Reviews Disease Primers – Impact Factor: 65.038
- Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology – Impact Factor: 65.011
- Science – Impact Factor: 63.714
- Chemical Society Reviews – Impact Factor: 60.615
- Lancet Neurology – Impact Factor: 59.935
- Nature Reviews Genetics – Impact Factor: 59.581
- Psychological Science in the Public Interest – Impact Factor: 56.2
- Lancet Oncology – Impact Factor: 54.433
- Annals Of Oncology – Impact Factor: 51.769
- Annals Of Internal Medicine – Impact Factor: 51.598
- Journal Of Clinical Oncology – Impact Factor: 50.717
- Reviews Of Modern Physics – Impact Factor: 50.485
- Clinical Microbiology Reviews – Impact Factor: 50.129
- Nature Reviews Cardiology – Impact Factor: 49.421
- Progress In Materials Science – Impact Factor: 48.165
- Nature Methods – Impact Factor: 47.99
- Nature Materials – Impact Factor: 47.656
- Nature Reviews Endocrinology – Impact Factor: 47.564
- Physiological Reviews – Impact Factor: 46.5
- Cell Research – Impact Factor: 46.297
- Joule – Impact Factor: 46.048
- Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology – Impact Factor: 45.042
- Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology – Impact Factor: 44.867
- Nature Reviews Neurology – Impact Factor: 44.711
- JAMA Internal Medicine – Impact Factor: 44.409
- Immunity – Impact Factor: 43.474
- Living Reviews in Relativity – Impact Factor: 42.9
- Nature Reviews Nephrology – Impact Factor: 42.439
- Intensive Care Medicine – Impact Factor: 41.787
- Molecular Cancer – Impact Factor: 41.444
- Nature Genetics – Impact Factor: 41.307
- Nature Catalysis – Impact Factor: 40.706
- Nature Nanotechnology – Impact Factor: 40.523
- Circulation – Impact Factor: 39.918
- Nature Photonics – Impact Factor: 39.728
- Energy & Environmental Science – Impact Factor: 39.714
- Journal of Travel Medicine – Impact Factor: 39.194
- Lancet Global Health – Impact Factor: 38.927
- Nature Reviews Neuroscience – Impact Factor: 38.755
- Journal of Infection – Impact Factor: 38.637
- Cancer Cell – Impact Factor: 38.585
- Cancer Discovery – Impact Factor: 38.272
- Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy – Impact Factor: 38.104
- Cell Discovery – Impact Factor: 38.079
- Lancet Child & Adolescent Health – Impact Factor: 37.746
- Journal of Public Transportation – Impact Factor: 37.667
- Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics – Impact Factor: 37.226
- Nature Reviews Earth & Environment – Impact Factor: 37.214
- Lancet Digital Health – Impact Factor: 36.615
- MMWR Recommendations and Reports – Impact Factor: 36.286
- Nature Reviews Physics – Impact Factor: 36.273
- European Heart Journal – Impact Factor: 35.855
- Astronomy and Astrophysics Review – Impact Factor: 35.786
- Lancet Rheumatology – Impact Factor: 35.482
- Progress in Energy and Combustion Science – Impact Factor: 35.339
- MMWR: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report – Impact Factor: 35.301
- Military Medical Research – Impact Factor: 34.915
- Nature Reviews Chemistry – Impact Factor: 34.571
- Gastroenterology – Impact Factor: 33.883
- IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials – Impact Factor: 33.84
- European Respiratory Journal – Impact Factor: 33.795
- Materials Science & Engineering R: Reports – Impact Factor: 33.667
- Nature Electronics – Impact Factor: 33.255
- JAMA Oncology – Impact Factor: 33.006
- Electrochemical Energy Reviews – Impact Factor: 32.804
- Annual Review of Immunology – Impact Factor: 32.481
- Annual Review of Pathology: Mechanisms of Disease – Impact Factor: 32.35
- Nature Reviews Rheumatology – Impact Factor: 32.286
- Advanced Materials – Impact Factor: 32.086
- Gut – Impact Factor: 31.793
- Cell Metabolism – Impact Factor: 31.373
- Cell Host & Microbe – Impact Factor: 31.316
- Progress in Polymer Science – Impact Factor: 31.281
- Nature Immunology – Impact Factor: 31.25
- Nature Microbiology – Impact Factor: 30.964
- Science Immunology – Impact Factor: 30.63
- American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine – Impact Factor: 30.528
- Physics Reports: Review Section of Physics Letters – Impact Factor: 30.51
- JAMA Cardiology – Impact Factor: 30.154
- Lancet Haematology – Impact Factor: 30.153
- Journal Of Hepatology – Impact Factor: 30.083
- JAMA Neurology – Impact Factor: 29.907
- Advanced Energy Materials – Impact Factor: 29.698
- Nature Biomedical Engineering – Impact Factor: 29.234
- Radiology – Impact Factor: 29.146
- MMWR Surveillance Summaries – Impact Factor: 29.095
- Nature Neuroscience – Impact Factor: 28.771
- Lancet Planetary Health – Impact Factor: 28.75
- Living Reviews in Solar Physics – Impact Factor: 28.7
- Nature Climate Change – Impact Factor: 28.66
- Annual Review of Plant Biology – Impact Factor: 28.31
- Nature Cell Biology – Impact Factor: 28.213
- Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases – Impact Factor: 27.973
- Annual Review of Psychology – Impact Factor: 27.782
- Science Robotics – Impact Factor: 27.541
- Annual Review of Biochemistry – Impact Factor: 27.258
- Journal of the American College of Cardiology – Impact Factor: 27.203
- Nature Sustainability – Impact Factor: 27.157
- Dialogues In Human Geography – Impact Factor: 27
- Materials Today – Impact Factor: 26.943
- JAMA Pediatrics – Impact Factor: 26.796
- JAMA Psychiatry – Impact Factor: 25.911
- Nature Machine Intelligence – Impact Factor: 25.898
- Chem – Impact Factor: 25.832
- Studies In Mycology – Impact Factor: 25.731
- Psychotherapy And Psychosomatics – Impact Factor: 25.617
- Blood – Impact Factor: 25.476
- Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics – Impact Factor: 25.293
- Cell Stem Cell – Impact Factor: 25.269
- Endocrine Reviews – Impact Factor: 25.261
- Reviews Of Geophysics – Impact Factor: 24.946
- Fungal Diversity – Impact Factor: 24.902
- International Journal of Oral Science – Impact Factor: 24.897
- Coordination Chemistry Reviews – Impact Factor: 24.833
- Infomat – Impact Factor: 24.798
- Advances In Optics and Photonics – Impact Factor: 24.75
- Trends In Cognitive Sciences – Impact Factor: 24.482
- Accounts Of Chemical Research – Impact Factor: 24.466
- Applied Catalysis B-environmental – Impact Factor: 24.319
- IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence – Impact Factor: 24.314
- Nature Chemistry – Impact Factor: 24.274
- European Urology – Impact Factor: 24.267
- Nature Human Behaviour – Impact Factor: 24.252
- ACS Energy Letters – Impact Factor: 23.991
- Annual Review of Condensed Matter Physics – Impact Factor: 23.978
- Advances In Physics – Impact Factor: 23.75
- Nano-Micro Letters – Impact Factor: 23.655
- Circulation Research – Impact Factor: 23.213
- National Science Review – Impact Factor: 23.178
- Nature Cancer – Impact Factor: 23.177
- Journal of Hematology & Oncology – Impact Factor: 23.168
- Psychological Bulletin – Impact Factor: 23.027
- Drug Resistance Updates – Impact Factor: 22.841
- Annual Review of Entomology – Impact Factor: 22.682
- Trends in Chemistry – Impact Factor: 22.448
- Annual Review of Physiology – Impact Factor: 22.163
- Annual Review of Clinical Psychology – Impact Factor: 22.098
- Cellular & Molecular Immunology – Impact Factor: 22.096
- Trends in Plant Science – Impact Factor: 22.012
- Molecular Plant – Impact Factor: 21.949
- Trends in Biotechnology – Impact Factor: 21.942
- Annual Review of Public Health – Impact Factor: 21.87
- Carbon Energy – Impact Factor: 21.556
- Nature Geoscience – Impact Factor: 21.531
- Behavioral and Brain Sciences – Impact Factor: 21.357
- Eurosurveillance – Impact Factor: 21.286
- Trends in Cell Biology – Impact Factor: 21.167
- Clinical Infectious Diseases – Impact Factor: 20.999
- Energy Storage Materials – Impact Factor: 20.831
- Journal of Medical Virology – Impact Factor: 20.693
- Trends in Ecology & Evolution – Impact Factor: 20.589
- Science Bulletin – Impact Factor: 20.577
- Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease – Impact Factor: 20.441
- Nature Food – Impact Factor: 20.43
- Light: Science & Applications – Impact Factor: 20.257
- Journal of Thoracic Oncology – Impact Factor: 20.121
- Matter – Impact Factor: 19.967
- Advanced Functional Materials – Impact Factor: 19.924
- Nature Metabolism – Impact Factor: 19.865
- Photonix – Impact Factor: 19.818
- Annual Review of Biophysics – Impact Factor: 19.763
- Trends in Immunology – Impact Factor: 19.709
- Progress in Retinal and Eye Research – Impact Factor: 19.704
- Nature Physics – Impact Factor: 19.684
- Emerging Microbes & Infections – Impact Factor: 19.568
- Applied Physics Reviews – Impact Factor: 19.527
- Journal of Clinical Investigation – Impact Factor: 19.456
- Critical Care – Impact Factor: 19.334
- Molecular Cell – Impact Factor: 19.328
- Science Translational Medicine – Impact Factor: 19.319
- American Journal of Psychiatry – Impact Factor: 19.242
- Academy of Management Annals – Impact Factor: 19.241
- Brain Behavior and Immunity – Impact Factor: 19.227
- Trends in Cancer – Impact Factor: 19.161
- Nucleic Acids Research – Impact Factor: 19.16
- IEEE Transactions on Cybernetics – Impact Factor: 19.118
Trying to find the best journal for your manuscript? Consider checking out our other journal rankings or exploring the ImmunoFrontiers Research Hub.
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FAQs
How do you find the impact factor of 2022? ›
To calculate the 2022 Journal Impact Factor for a journal, all citations to its 2020 and 2021 articles must be counted. After dividing the total by the number of articles cited in the journal in those years, we arrive at the JIF for the current year (2022), which is published in 2023.
When journals impact factor for 2022 will release? ›The JCR Impact Factor 2022 release date is 30th June 2022. Journal Citation Report is released in the month of June, every year. The date has been announced as 30th June 2022, Thursday, 2:00 am.
Is 7 a good impact factor? ›In most fields, the impact factor of 10 or greater is considered an excellent score while 3 is flagged as good and the average score is less than 1.