ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science Impact Factor 2025
The 2025 Journal Citation Reports from Clarivate assigned an Impact Factor of 5.0 to ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science. This value places the journal in the second quartile (Q2) of the Pharmacology & Pharmacy category. The score reflects the journal’s focus on the intersection of basic pharmacology and applied translational medicine.
What the Impact Factor Measures
The Impact Factor is a yearly metric calculated by Clarivate. It represents the average number of citations received in a given year by articles published in the journal during the two preceding years. For the 2025 value, Clarivate counted citations made during 2024 to articles from 2022 and 2023, then divided that total by the number of citable articles published in those two years.
A score of 5.0 means that, on average, each article from 2022–2023 was cited about five times in 2024. Journals in the same Q2 tier typically serve as reliable outlets for studies that bridge laboratory findings and early clinical applications.
Journal Scope and Positioning
ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science is published by the American Chemical Society. It covers research on drug targets, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and translational studies that move compounds from bench to bedside. The journal emphasizes studies with clear therapeutic relevance, including work on small molecules, biologics, and gene therapies.
The journal competes with titles such as Molecular Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics. Its Impact Factor of 5.0 is lower than top-tier pharmacology journals but higher than many specialty journals focused on specific disease areas.
Citation Trends and Article Types
The journal publishes original research articles, reviews, and brief reports. Reviews tend to accumulate more citations than original research, which can lift the overall Impact Factor. However, the journal maintains a mix of both.
One practical example: a 2023 review on GPCR signaling in cancer therapy received over 30 citations by the end of 2024, while a 2023 original research article on a novel antibiotic compound received only two citations in the same period. The review’s high citation count helps offset the lower-cited original research, resulting in the journal’s aggregate Impact Factor of 5.0.
Comparison with Previous Years
The 2025 Impact Factor of 5.0 represents a slight decrease from the 2024 value of 5.2. Year-to-year fluctuations are common and do not necessarily indicate a decline in journal quality. Factors such as changes in citation behavior, the number of published articles, or the timing of influential papers can shift the metric by a few tenths of a point.
Practical Implications for Researchers
When evaluating where to publish, researchers should consider the Impact Factor alongside other metrics like the journal’s acceptance rate, review speed, and readership. ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science has a median time to first decision of about 30 days. Its Impact Factor of 5.0 is strong enough to satisfy many university promotion requirements and grant reporting guidelines.
How to Interpret the Number
An Impact Factor of 5.0 does not guarantee that any single article will receive five citations. The distribution is skewed: a small number of highly cited papers drive the average, while many papers receive fewer citations. Researchers should look at article-level citation data for a fuller picture.
Submission Strategy
If your work fits the journal’s translational focus—meaning it connects mechanistic pharmacology to a specific disease or therapeutic strategy—this journal is a reasonable target. Authors should check recent issues to see if similar studies have been published. The journal does not charge submission fees, but open-access options are available for a fee.
Key Takeaways
- The 2025 Impact Factor for ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science is 5.0, placing it in Q2 of the Pharmacology & Pharmacy category.
- The metric measures average citations per article from the two preceding years and is calculated by Clarivate.
- The journal focuses on translational pharmacology research, including drug targets, pharmacokinetics, and preclinical studies.
- A score of 5.0 is competitive for mid-tier pharmacology journals and stable compared to previous years.
- Researchers should consider the Impact Factor alongside review speed, acceptance rate, and article-level citation data when choosing where to submit.
