Q: What is the publication fee?

It’s not clear what you wish to know, whether what publication fee means for a journal or how much the publication fee is for a journal. So, here are brief responses to both points.

The publication fee, or article processing charge/s (APC), is the cost of processing and publishing an article in an open access (OA) journal. Unlike with subscribed or paywalled journals, where the cost of accessing an article is borne by the reader, with an OA article/journal, the cost of publishing the article is borne by the author. Typical APCs are in the range of USD1500-3000, though they could be higher based on the journal.

Your affiliated institute should have a provision for bearing a part of the cost, and at times, may even have a tie-up with the publisher, which helps keep the publishing cost reasonable, especially for early career researchers (ECRs). Additionally, depending on your geography, some journals may allow a waiver. In special cases, they may allow a waiver on a per-case basis.

Hope that helps. For more information on APCs and OA, you may refer to the following resources:

• Can I ask the journal to give me a discount on the APC?
• Do I have to pay the APC even if my paper gets rejected?
• Misconception about APCs deters an author from publishing open access: A case study

As you are possibly considering submission, you may find this handbook helpful: How to create a winning pre-submission package

All the best!