Q: Is it normal for a PLOS ONE manuscript to remain at “Editor Invited” for more than three weeks?

Dear Author,

Yes, it is normal for the status to remain at “Editor Invited” for 3 weeks or longer for most journals in general, including PLOS ONE. There can be various reasons: finding a suitable subject expert can take time, initial invitations can be declined by the invited editor/s, or, depending on when the manuscript was submitted, response times can slow down during very busy periods or during holiday season.

That said, since you have mentioned that your manuscript has remained at this stage since 17 June 2026, if you have not heard back then it has been over 3 months. This is unusual for a journal like PLOS ONE. I believe, given the time that has passed, it would be appropriate to follow up on your initial inquiry after 2-3 weeks. In addition to inquiring about the status of your manuscript, ask if they require additional subject-area keywords or any other information from you to help move the paper forward. If you still do not hear back after that, and if you need to ensure that your manuscript is published within a certain timeframe, then the practical thing to do would be to withdraw your paper and submit it to a different journal.

To do this, log into your PLOS ONE account and submit a request for withdrawal of your paper. Once you receive written confirmation of the withdrawal, you can then submit it to a different journal. I hope that it does not come to this and that you are able to successfully publish your paper in the journal of your choice; I wish you the best.