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Frontiers in Physiology is an open-access journal from the publisher Frontiers Media SA that covers the physiology of living systems, from molecules to whole organisms. This guide summarises what the journal’s own pages say about its scope, peer review, fees and indexing, as read on 2026-11-08, so you can decide whether to submit or how to weigh a paper you are citing.
What Frontiers in Physiology is
Frontiers in Physiology is a peer-reviewed journal published by Frontiers Media SA. Its Field Chief Editor, as listed on the journal’s About page, is John D Imig of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Articles are published under a CC-BY licence, authors keep copyright, and authors may deposit their paper in any repository.
Who runs it and what it covers
The journal states its scope as the physiology of living systems at every level, from molecular to whole-organism, in human and animal studies, together with technologies for studying function. The About page also names three kinds of manuscript that fall outside the scope:
- purely clinical manuscripts;
- purely computational manuscripts with no physiological context;
- certain cancer-focused manuscripts.
The journal is organised into 31 specialty sections, for example Cardiac Electrophysiology, Exercise Physiology, Renal Physiology and Pathophysiology, Vascular Physiology and Physio-logging. A submission must be made to a specific section, so choose the section before you start.
Peer review model
The About page lists single-anonymized peer review: reviewers are hidden from authors. For Frontiers’ interactive review process at journals that use it, see the Frontiers collaborative peer review entry.
Indexing and metrics
The journal lists indexing in Scopus, Web of Science (SCIE), PubMed Central, PubMed, DOAJ, Embase and Dimensions, among others. It also displays an Impact Factor of 4.3 and a CiteScore of 8. The page does not state the year those figures refer to, so treat them as the values shown on the journal page on 2026-11-08 and check the current Journal Citation Reports or Scopus release before you rely on them. For how Frontiers journal-level figures are reported, see Frontiersin impact factor.
How to find and use it
These are the interface elements visible on the journal’s official pages.
- Go to the journal home page at frontiersin.org/journals/physiology.
- Use the Submit manuscript button at the top of the page to start a submission. The page has no separate sign-in link, so any account sign-in happens inside that submission flow.
- Open For authors to see the list of article types.
- Open About for scope, indexing and the specialty sections list.
- Open the publishing fees page (linked from the journal) for the article-processing charge (APC) table below.
Article-processing charges by article type
The journal’s publishing-fees page states that APCs apply to articles accepted for publication and gives these amounts in Swiss francs (read 2026-11-08):
| Tier | Article types | APC |
|---|---|---|
| A | Original Research, Systematic Review, Methods, Review, Policy and Practice Reviews, Hypothesis and Theory, Clinical Trial, Technology and Code, Study Protocol | CHF 3,150 |
| B | Mini Review, Perspective, Case Report, Community Case Study, Conceptual Analysis, Data Report, Policy Brief, Brief Research Report, General Commentary, Opinion | CHF 2,500 |
| C | Correction, Editorial, Retraction | CHF 0 |
The same page says institutional partnerships may provide full or partial APC support, and that authors from countries the World Bank classes as low or lower-middle income can apply for fee support through a fee support form. Your library or research office can tell you whether your institution has such an agreement. For how sibling Frontiers journals are described, see Frontiers in Medicine and Frontiers in Microbiology.
Strengths and limits
What the journal’s own pages support
- Open licence: CC-BY with author-retained copyright and free choice of repository.
- Broad physiological scope: 31 specialty sections spanning organ systems, exercise and technology.
- Wide indexing: the listed databases include PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science (SCIE).
Limits to plan for
- Scope exclusions: purely clinical and purely computational work, and some cancer-focused work, is out of scope.
- A fee is charged on acceptance: the article type decides the tier, so a Brief Research Report and an Original Research article are priced differently.
- Section choice is mandatory: a paper that fits no listed section is a poor fit.
- Metrics are undated on the page: cite the figures only with the date you read them.
Alternatives
Other journals in the same field include The Journal of Physiology, run by The Physiological Society, and the American Journal of Physiology family, published by the American Physiological Society. Compare any candidate with the same checklist used above: stated scope and exclusions, review model, licence and APC (or subscription) terms, and the indexing list on the journal’s own page. Frontiers in Neuroscience is another Frontiers title covered on CASRAI.
FAQ
Who publishes Frontiers in Physiology?
Frontiers Media SA publishes it, with John D Imig listed as Field Chief Editor on the journal’s About page (read 2026-11-08).
Is Frontiers in Physiology open access?
Yes. Articles are published under CC-BY, authors keep copyright, and the APC applies to accepted articles.
How much does it cost to publish?
CHF 3,150 for tier A types such as Original Research and Review, CHF 2,500 for tier B types such as Mini Review and Brief Research Report, and CHF 0 for Corrections, Editorials and Retractions, per the publishing-fees page read on 2026-11-08. Partnership and fee-support options are listed on that page.
How is peer review done?
The journal lists single-anonymized review, in which reviewers are not identified to authors.
Which databases index it?
The journal lists Scopus, Web of Science (SCIE), PubMed Central, PubMed, DOAJ, Embase and Dimensions, among others.
What is its Impact Factor?
The journal page shows an Impact Factor of 4.3 and a CiteScore of 8 without a year. Confirm the current value in the indexer’s own release.
Sources
- Frontiers in Physiology, About: frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/about (read 2026-11-08)
- Frontiers in Physiology, journal home: frontiersin.org/journals/physiology (read 2026-11-08)
- Frontiers in Physiology, publishing fees: frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/for-authors/publishing-fees (read 2026-11-08)
