Direct comparison
CiteScore vs. SJR: Journal Metrics Compared
CiteScore and SJR both use Scopus data but differ: CiteScore is a flat 4-year citation average; SJR weights citations by journal prestige. Compared.
Side-by-side comparison
| Dimension | CiteScore | SJR (SCImago Journal Rank) |
|---|---|---|
| Produced by | Elsevier (Scopus) | SCImago Research Group (CSIC + University of Granada) — not Elsevier |
| Introduced | December 2016 | Portal launched 2007 (scimagojr.com) |
| Underlying data | Scopus | Scopus (licensed by SCImago) |
| Citation window | 4 years (Y, Y-1, Y-2, Y-3) | 3 years (Y-1, Y-2, Y-3) |
| Weighting logic | Every citation counts equally | Citations weighted by source journal's own prestige (PageRank-like, iterative) |
| Self-citation handling | Included, no special cap | Capped at 33% of total references |
| Field-normalized | No | No (SNIP is the Scopus metric built for this) |
| Where published | scopus.com/sources (free) | scimagojr.com (free) |
| Best used for | Closest free substitute for a Journal Impact Factor-style citation average | Prestige/influence ranking within a subject category |
Common questions
FAQ
Are CiteScore and SJR both based on Scopus data?+
Yes. Both draw their underlying citation data from Scopus, but are calculated by different organizations (Elsevier for CiteScore, the independent SCImago Research Group for SJR) using different methods.
Which one is field-normalized?+
Neither corrects fully for cross-field citation-rate differences. SNIP, a third Scopus-based metric from Leiden University's CWTS, is built specifically for cross-field comparison.
Can a journal's CiteScore and SJR disagree?+
Yes, often. Because SJR weights citations by the citing journal's prestige and CiteScore does not, the two can rank the same journal quite differently.
