Medical Journals Acceptance Rates - The 2025 Guide
Choosing the right medical journal depends on more than the impact factor. Acceptance rates vary widely across the field, and understanding these differences can help authors target the most appropriate publication pathway. The lists below group leading medical journals into high, medium, and low acceptance categories, and include key details such as impact factor, publisher, and focus area.
Medical Journals with High Acceptance Rates
For researchers seeking easier pathways to publication, these high-acceptance medical journals offer reputable peer-review, broad readership, and clear scope areas that support faster submission decisions.
BMJ Open
Acceptance rate: ~31%
Impact factor: 2.9
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: General medicine, clinical research, public health (open access)
BMJ Open Gastroenterology
Acceptance rate: ~24%
Impact factor: 3.2
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Gastroenterology, hepatology, digestive disorders
Acceptance rate: ~30%
Impact factor: 2.0
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Ophthalmology, vision science, eye disorders
BMJ Open Quality
Acceptance rate: ~61%
Impact factor: 2.7
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Healthcare quality, safety, improvement science
BMJ Open Respiratory Research
Acceptance rate: ~29%
Impact factor: 4.5
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Respiratory medicine, critical care, sleep medicine
BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine
Acceptance rate: ~39%
Impact factor: 4.7
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Sports medicine, musculoskeletal medicine, rehabilitation
Cureus
Acceptance rate: ~52%
Impact factor: 0.9*
Publisher: Cureus, Inc.
Publishing focus: Broad clinical medicine, case reports, general research
Heliyon
Acceptance rate: ~29%
Impact factor: 4.0
Publisher: Elsevier (Cell Press)
Publishing focus: Multidisciplinary science, including medicine
International Medical Case Reports Journal
Acceptance rate: ~42%
Impact factor: 1.7*
Publisher: Dove Medical Press
Publishing focus: Medical case reports, clinical observations, rare cases
Journal of Clinical Images and Medical Case Reports
Acceptance rate: ~55%*
Impact factor: ~1.2*
Publisher: JCIMCR Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Clinical images, case reports across specialties
Medicine
Acceptance rate: ~53.2%
Impact factor: 1.8
Publisher: Wolters Kluwer (LWW)
Publishing focus: General medicine; broad clinical disciplines; open access
Open Heart
Acceptance rate: ~31%
Impact factor: 3.6
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Cardiovascular medicine, cardiac research
PeerJ
Acceptance rate: ~28–40%
Impact factor: 2.9
Publisher: PeerJ Publishing
Publishing focus: Biological and medical sciences (open access)
PLOS ONE
Acceptance rate: ~48–49%
Impact factor: 2.7
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLOS)
Publishing focus: Multidisciplinary science, medicine, public health
Scientific Reports
Acceptance rate: ~48%
Impact factor: 4.6
Publisher: Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature)
Publishing focus: Multidisciplinary science, including biomedical and clinical research
Medium Acceptance Rate Medical Journals
Journals in the 10 to 20 percent acceptance range balance selectivity with accessibility. They maintain high editorial standards, attract a broad readership, and give well-prepared manuscripts a competitive but attainable chance of acceptance.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 7.0
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publishing focus: Human nutrition, dietary studies, metabolic health
American Journal of Psychiatry
Acceptance rate: ~12%*
Impact factor: 16.9
Publisher: American Psychiatric Association
Publishing focus: Psychiatric disorders, clinical psychiatry, neuroscience
Anesthesiology
Acceptance rate: ~15%*
Impact factor: 7.9
Publisher: American Society of Anesthesiologists / Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Publishing focus: Anesthesiology, perioperative medicine, pain medicine
Annals of Surgery
Acceptance rate: ~13–22%*
Impact factor: 6.4
Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Publishing focus: General and specialty surgery, surgical outcomes and innovation
Arthritis & Rheumatology
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 11.0
Publisher: Wiley
Publishing focus: Rheumatology, autoimmune musculoskeletal disease
Chest
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 10.3
Publisher: American College of Chest Physicians / Elsevier
Publishing focus: Pulmonary medicine, critical care, sleep disorders
Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 12.0
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: Gastroenterology, liver disease, GI-focused clinical research
Clinical Infectious Diseases
Acceptance rate: ~12%*
Impact factor: 4.5
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publishing focus: Infectious diseases, antimicrobial therapy, epidemiology
Diabetes Care
Acceptance rate: ~10%
Impact factor: 16.6
Publisher: American Diabetes Association
Publishing focus: Diabetes management, metabolic disease, endocrinology
Gastroenterology
Acceptance rate: ~11–13%
Impact factor: 25.1
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: Digestive diseases, GI cancer, IBD, hepatology
Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Acceptance rate: ~12%*
Impact factor: 13.2
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: Allergy, asthma, immunology, immune-mediated disease
Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS)
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 4.6
Publisher: The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery Inc
Publishing focus: Orthopedics, musculoskeletal medicine and surgery
Journal of Infectious Diseases
Acceptance rate: ~14–25%
Impact factor: 6.3
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publishing focus: Infectious disease mechanisms, immunology, antivirals, vaccines
Journal of Immunology
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 3.3
Publisher: American Association of Immunologists
Publishing focus: Immunology, innate and adaptive immune responses
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology
Acceptance rate: ~12%*
Impact factor: 10.1
Publisher: American Society of Nephrology
Publishing focus: Kidney disease, nephrology research and clinical practice
Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 5.2
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: Cardiothoracic surgery, vascular disease, heart and lung research
Ophthalmology
Acceptance rate: ~12%*
Impact factor: 9.5
Publisher: American Academy of Ophthalmology
Publishing focus: Vision science, retina, glaucoma, cornea, ophthalmic surgery
Radiology
Acceptance rate: ~9–15%
Impact factor: 15.0
Publisher: Radiological Society of North America
Publishing focus: Imaging science, diagnostic radiology, AI in imaging
Thorax
Acceptance rate: ~15%*
Impact factor: 7.7
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Pulmonology, critical care, asthma, COPD, lung cancer
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism
Acceptance rate: ~18%*
Impact factor: 5.9
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publishing focus: Endocrinology, metabolism, hormones, endocrine disease
Low-Acceptance Rate Medical Journals
Low-acceptance medical journals represent the most competitive publication venues in medicine. The list below includes leading titles with very high selectivity, along with their impact factors, publishers, and primary focus areas to support authors evaluating top-tier submission options.
Annals of Internal Medicine
Acceptance rate: ~6–8%
Impact factor: 15.3
Publisher: American College of Physicians
Publishing focus: Internal medicine, clinical evidence, complex medical care
BMJ
Acceptance rate: <7% (original research)
Impact factor: 93.6
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: General medicine, clinical research, global health, policy
Circulation
Acceptance rate: ~9%*
Impact factor: 38.8
Publisher: American Heart Association
Publishing focus: Cardiovascular medicine, cardiology research, heart disease
European Heart Journal
Acceptance rate: ~6–8%
Impact factor: 35.5
Publisher: Oxford University Press / European Society of Cardiology
Publishing focus: Cardiology, cardiovascular research, interventional and heart failure research
JAMA
Acceptance rate: ~11% (overall) / <10% research
Impact factor: 56.272
Publisher: American Medical Association
Publishing focus: General medicine, clinical trials, public health, epidemiology
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry (JNNP)
Acceptance rate: ~9–10%*
Impact factor: 7.5
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
Publishing focus: Neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry, neurodegenerative disease
Lancet
Acceptance rate: ~5%*
Impact factor: 88.5
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: General medicine, clinical research, global health & policy
Lancet Oncology
Acceptance rate: ~6%*
Impact factor: 35.9
Publisher: Elsevier
Publishing focus: Oncology, cancer biology, clinical oncology trials
Nature Medicine
Acceptance rate: ~5–10%*
Impact factor: 53.3
Publisher: Nature Portfolio
Publishing focus: Translational medicine, high-impact biomedical research
New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
Acceptance rate: ~5%*
Impact factor: 78.5
Publisher: Massachusetts Medical Society
Publishing focus: Landmark clinical trials, evidence-based medicine, major public-health research
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