What is the Impact Factor of Soft Matter?

According to the latest Clarivate Journal Citation Reports (JCR), the Journal Impact Factor of Soft Matter is 2.90, ranking in quartile Q3 of Web of Science (SCIE).

Is Soft Matter indexed in Web of Science or Scopus?

Yes, Soft Matter is indexed in Web of Science (SCIE, Q3 quartile). Furthermore, in Scopus (SCImago), it holds an SJR rating of 0.667 (Q2) and an H-index of 217.

Who publishes Soft Matter and what is the Article Processing Charge (APC)?

Soft Matter is published by Royal Society of Chemistry. The estimated Article Processing Charge (APC) is approximately $3,179 USD, subject to institutional waivers and corresponding author affiliations.

What is the ISO-4 abbreviation and acronym of Soft Matter?

The official ISO-4 abbreviation of Soft Matter is "Soft Matter" with common acronym "sm". This standardized title abbreviation is used in citation lists conforming to IEEE, APA, Harvard, or Vancouver styles.

WoS SCIE Q3Scopus Q2SCImago #8,740Hybrid

Soft Matter

Acronym:sm

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Abbreviation (ISO):Soft Matter

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Identifier (ISSN):1744-683X(Print)/1744-6848(Online)

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Publisher:Royal Society of Chemistry

Official Website Submission Portal Compare

Clarivate IF (2026)

2.9↑ +0.1

Journal Impact Factor

IF Trend↓

WoS Quartile

WoS SCIEJCR Quartile

Clarivate WoS JCR

WoS Categories↓

JCR Release Date: 2026-06-17

Impact Factor Trend (2018–2026)

Clarivate IF trend for Soft Matter

WoS Q3

Annual Impact Factor Metric

Current (2026):2.9

Scopus SJR & RankScopus Q2

0.667

#8,740

SCImago Journal Rank citation prestige weighting

Scopus Year: 2025

H-Index (2025)

217

217 papers with at least that number of citations each

WoS: SCIE / JCRQ3

Self-Citation Rate10.3%

Safe Level (< 15%)Warning Level (> 20%)

Self-citation below 15% indicates strong scholarly independence.

Volume & Open AccessHybrid

1,058articles/year

40.97% Gold OA•95.91% Original Research

Aims & Scope

Where physics meets chemistry meets biology for fundamental soft matter research.

Topics Covered (Recognized by AI)

Physics80.5%Chemistry79.2%Materials science75.5%Engineering71.2%Organic chemistry60.6%Quantum mechanics55.1%Composite material53.4%Biology49.5%Chemical engineering45.8%Nanotechnology40.6%Thermodynamics35.7%Biochemistry32.6%Nuclear magnetic resonance31.2%Polymer27.7%Geology24.8%Mathematics24.8%Physical chemistry24.3%Chemical physics23.8%Genetics21.1%Computer science21%

Primary Research Areas

Rank52/96

IndexSCIE

Category	Index	Rank	Quartile
CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL	JCRSCIE	122/191	Q3
MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY	JCRSCIE	286/472	Q3
PHYSICS, MULTIDISCIPLINARY	JCRSCIE	33/112	Q2
POLYMER SCIENCE	JCRSCIE	56/96	Q3
CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL	JCISCIE	106/191	Q3
MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY	JCISCIE	268/473	Q3
PHYSICS, MULTIDISCIPLINARY	JCISCIE	51/112	Q2
POLYMER SCIENCE	JCISCIE	52/96	Q3

Annual Historical Statistics & Publications

Track annual publication volume, total citations, and Impact Factor evolution

12 year

2026Latest

IF2.9

Articles / Year615

Total Citations171

2025

IF2.8

Articles / Year989

Total Citations2,508

2024

IF2.9

Articles / Year1,024

Total Citations4,941

2023

IF3.4

Articles / Year1,033

Total Citations8,030

2022

IF4.046

Articles / Year988

Total Citations10,484

Year	Impact Factor	Articles / Year	Total Citations
2026	2.9	615	171
2025	2.8	989	2,508
2024	2.9	1,024	4,941
2023	3.4	1,033	8,030
2022	4.046	988	10,484
2021	3.679	1,106	13,978
2020	3.14	1,331	24,295
2019	3.399	1,226	24,577
2018	3.709	1,246	28,326
2017	—	1,416	26,244
2016	—	1,069	31,926
2015	—	1,213	38,412

SCImago & Scopus Journal Intelligence

Global SCImago ranking, SJR prestige index, Scopus coverage, and societal policy impact

Rank #8,740Scopus Q2SCImago Profile

Scopus Coverage:2005-2026

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Scopus Broad Areas:ChemistryPhysics and Astronomy

Scopus Citation Rank (SJR)Q2

0.667

Weighted prestige citation metric per document indexed in the Scopus database.

Quartile: Scopus Q2

Citations / Doc (2 years)

2.77

Average citations received per document published in the 2-year window.

2-Year Citation Window

Estimated Publication Fee (APC)

$3,179 USD

Estimated Article Processing Charge for Open Access publication.

Estimated cost / article

Scopus 3-Year Publication & Citation Window

3-Year Citations7,258

3-Year Documents2,557

Citable Documents2,549

Aggregated from Scopus database across the 3-year SJR evaluation window.

Societal Impact & Inclusivity (SCImago)

Policy Citations (Overton)0

Citations in government and international policy documents

Female Author Rate30.4%

Percentage of female authors published in the journal

Real-world societal policy reach and author gender diversity tracked by SCImago.

Scopus Subject Categories

Chemistry (miscellaneous)Q2

Condensed Matter PhysicsQ2

Academic Metric Intelligence

Journal Metrics & Citation Visualizations

Total Cites vs Self-Cites

Evaluation of scholarly independence and citation reach

Total citations steady growth

Self-citation: 10.3%

Citations per Document

Citation metric windows across 2, 3, and 4 years

Cites / Doc (4 years)Cites / Doc (3 years)Cites / Doc (2 years)

Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Classification

Major / minor zone classification and CAS Early Warning List history

Major Category (Broad Field):

3区 (Zone 3)Chemistry

Minor Category (Specific Field):

3区CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL

CAS Early Warning List History:

Updated annually: 2020 – 2024

2020

Not warned

2021

Not warned

2022

Not warned

2023

Not warned

2024

Not warned

Academic Intelligence Overview & Context

ImpaQ Analysis

Soft Matter (acronym: sm, abbr: Soft Matter, ISSN: 1744-683X) is a peer-reviewed international scholarly journal in the field of Engineering & Technology, published by Royal Society of Chemistry in England since 2005. The periodical holds a Journal Impact Factor (JIF) of 2.90, ranking in quartile Q3 of Web of Science (SCIE), a Scopus SJR indicator of 0.667 (Q2), an H-index of 217.

The journal enforces rigorous peer evaluation with a publication frequency of Monthly, an annual output of approximately 1,058 scientific articles. In terms of accessibility and author fees, it operates under the Hybrid model with an estimated APC of $3,179 USD. It serves as a benchmark publication platform for academics, researchers, and doctoral candidates seeking global research visibility.