Surgery · 382 journals ranked · top 40 listed

Best open-access journals for Surgery

The top 40 of 382 Surgery journals, open-access only, ranked by Scimago quartile, then by how central Surgery is to each journal, then OpenAlex cites/paper (2-year window), drawn from a 17,500-venue index. Predatory venues are excluded; the FAQ below gives the exact ranking rule. These are field-wide rankings — for a shortlist matched to your specific paper, paste your title and abstract into the Journal Finder (a free account starts with 25 welcome credits).

Data as of — the date our venue index was last rebuilt from OpenAlex and Scimago.

  1. 1
    Journal of Orthopaedic Translation
    7.4 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  2. 2
    World Journal of Emergency Surgery
    6.7 cites/paper · Q1 · BioMed Central
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  3. 3
    Knee Surgery and Related Research
    6.1 cites/paper · Q1 · BioMed Central
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  4. 4
    Neurospine
    5.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Spinal Neurosurgery Society
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  5. 5
    Drug Design Development and Therapy
    4.6 cites/paper · Q1 · Dove Medical Press
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  6. 6
    Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research
    4.2 cites/paper · Q1 · BioMed Central
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  7. 7
    BJS Open
    4.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Wiley
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  8. 8
    Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology
    4.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Springer Nature
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  9. 9
    Transplant International
    3.8 cites/paper · Q1 · Springer Science+Business Media
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  10. 10
    Cell Transplantation
    3.7 cites/paper · Q1 · SAGE Publishing
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  11. 11
    Bone and Joint Research
    3.5 cites/paper · Q1 · Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  12. 12
    Acta Orthopaedica
    3.3 cites/paper · Q1 · Taylor & Francis
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  13. 13
    Bone & Joint Open
    3.2 cites/paper · Q1 · British Editorial Society of Bone & Joint Surgery
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  14. 14
    Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis
    3.2 cites/paper · Q1 · Japan Atherosclerosis Society
    Open AccessScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  15. 15
    The Korean journal of pain
    3.1 cites/paper · Q1 · The Korean Pain Society
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  16. 16
    Korean Journal of Anesthesiology
    3.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Society of Anesthesiologists
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  17. 17
    Gut and Liver
    3.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Association for the Study of the Liver
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  18. 18
    Annals of Rehabilitation Medicine
    3.0 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Academy of Rehabilitation Medicine
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  19. 19
    Orthopaedic Surgery
    2.9 cites/paper · Q1 · Wiley
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  20. 20
    Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics
    2.7 cites/paper · Q1 · Springer Nature
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  21. 21
    Clinics in Orthopedic Surgery
    2.6 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Orthopaedic Association
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  22. 22
    Arthroscopy Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation
    2.5 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusPubMed
  23. 23
    Clinical and Translational Gastroenterology
    2.5 cites/paper · Q1 · Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  24. 24
    International Wound Journal
    2.4 cites/paper · Q1 · Wiley
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  25. 25
    Global Spine Journal
    2.4 cites/paper · Q1 · SAGE Publishing
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  26. 26
    Asian Spine Journal
    2.4 cites/paper · Q1 · Korean Spine Society
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  27. 27
    Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
    2.3 cites/paper · Q1
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  28. 28
    Annals of Gastroenterological Surgery
    2.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Wiley
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  29. 29
    Arthroplasty Today
    2.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  30. 30
    Journal of ISAKOS Joint Disorders & Orthopaedic Sports Medicine
    1.7 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  31. 31
    Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
    1.6 cites/paper · Q1 · Yeungnam University College of Medicine
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  32. 32
    The International Journal of Spine Surgery
    1.5 cites/paper · Q1 · CIG Media Group
    Open AccessScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  33. 33
    Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
    1.4 cites/paper · Q1 · SAGE Publishing
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  34. 34
    Journal of Spine Surgery
    1.4 cites/paper · Q1 · AME Publishing Company
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  35. 35
    JAAOS Global Research and Reviews
    1.2 cites/paper · Q1 · Wolters Kluwer
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  36. 36
    Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Global Open
    1.2 cites/paper · Q1 · Wolters Kluwer
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  37. 37
    Digestive and Liver Disease
    1.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  38. 38
    JSES International
    1.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  39. 39
    Journal of Vascular Surgery Venous and Lymphatic Disorders
    1.1 cites/paper · Q1 · Elsevier BV
    Open AccessDOAJScopusWeb of SciencePubMed
  40. 40
    Circulation Journal
    3.3 cites/paper · Q1 · Japanese Circulation Society
    Open AccessScopusWeb of SciencePubMed

“Cites/paper” is the OpenAlex 2-year citation rate — a transparent signal, not a licensed Impact Factor. Many regional and open-access journals are strong but aren’t covered by Scimago, so they show “no Scimago quartile”; that’s a coverage gap, not a quality judgement.

Best journals in other disciplines

Frequently asked

Journal of Orthopaedic Translation, World Journal of Emergency Surgery, Knee Surgery and Related Research, Neurospine, Drug Design Development and Therapy lead this list, drawn from a 17,500-venue index. The top 40 of 382 ranked venues are listed on this page; all 40 are Scimago Q1. By Scimago quartile first (Q1 → Q4, then venues without one). Within a quartile, venues whose main OpenAlex subfield is Surgery come before those that list it second or third, and ties go to OpenAlex cites/paper over a 2-year window. A venue whose main subfield is unrelated to Surgery — fewer than a quarter of the venues filed under that subfield (or fewer than five) are also filed under Surgery — is listed after all the others. Only open-access venues are included. Cites/paper is a transparent citation rate, not a licensed Impact Factor, and journals flagged as predatory are excluded. For a match to your specific paper use the Journal Finder (15 credits; free account starts with 25).

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