Q: Will my paper be indexed in SCIE if the journal is upgraded from the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) to the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE)?

Dear Author,

It depends on timing and backfile indexing, and it is not automatic. If your article is published while the journal is still listed in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), it will remain indexed in ESCI within the Web of Science Core Collection. When a journal is promoted to the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), that change applies from the date of upgrade onward, not retroactively. “ESCI journals that gain impact move to SCIE, SSCI or AHCI,” but this transition affects future content (and does not essentially involve reclassification of earlier issues. (Source: Clarivate, Journal Evaluation Process and Selection Criteria)

In some cases, Clarivate may choose to “backfill” earlier issues when promoting a journal, but this is not automatic. As Clarivate notes, “indexing is begun with the available issues of the current year… [and] back issues are added only if available to complete three years of data” (Source: Clarivate, Journal Citation Reports: Impact Factor in First Year of Coverage). Therefore, unless Clarivate explicitly backfills those volumes, your paper will remain indexed under ESCI, even though it continues to be visible, citable, and included in Web of Science metrics and tools like InCites (Source: Clarivate, Mapping the Path to Future Changes in the Journal Citation Reports; LetPub, Clarifying the Differences Between ESCI and SCIE Journal Indices).

That said, articles in ESCI journals are fully indexed and discoverable in Web of Science; they include citation counts, author information, and contribute to an author’s h-index. Since 2023, ESCI journals also receive an official Journal Impact Factor in the Journal Citation Reports, which means their citation performance is now visible and comparable to SCIE journals (Source: Taylor & Francis, Understanding Research Metrics: ESCI).