Once research has been conducted and analyzed, one of the most crucial steps in the process to reach the widest audience is publication. This will help fortify the scholar’s professional persona, while contributing original content to published knowledge. However, in this step, the researcher has multiple choices and problems. Choosing between open access journals and paid/subscription based journals is one of the more frequently confronted issues. Both publishing systems have their merits and their disadvantages, options and the selection process depend on the researcher’s objectives and the importance of the issues of budget, visibility, readership, and anticipated impact. Therefore the differences of open access vs. paid journals are essential to scholars in the race for impact and recognition of published work.

There have been major disruptions to traditional modes of academic publishing, especially from digital publishing and the accessibility of research. Subscription-based Journals have traditionally been the paid publishers of scholarly communication. Readers and/or institutions have been forced to pay a subscription in order to view the published articles. In contrast, open access journals have published academic work and research articles accessible and free to read. Because there is a huge difference between these two models of publication, journals help create a large readership of academic work. In open-access journals though, researchers must assess their impact and what means best fit their academic goals.

The most noted benefit of open access journals is visibility and accessibility. Because articles are available freely on the internet, practically anyone, anywhere can access the journals even if they do not have a subscription. This lack of restriction means open access journals allow articles to reach more people and be cited more often. Because of increased access, research findings can be published and be accessed more quickly even by the global academic community. Because the articles are accessible to everyone, the open access journals are advantageous to researchers looking to make a large impact, especially in multiple disciplines.

However, subscription journals are in direct competition with open access journals and may be more advantageous to publish in. Subscription journals are often the ones with the well-known names and established academic credibility that most researchers publish in order to help their careers. Some subscription journals have world-wide recognition and credibility in a specific academic field, and may be the most optimal journals to publish in to get promotions, funding, and make academic collaborations. This may be the route to take for researchers looking to publish high-impact articles that would be of interest to their academic peers and colleagues.

Another distinction between publishing in open access vs. subscription journals is cost. Subscription journals charge publishing fees. Because open access journals want to remain accessible, they usually charge authors article processing charge (APC) fees after the review process to help with publishing and editing costs. Depending on the journal, these fees can be thousands of dollars, and are often a concern for researchers with a small publishing budget. To combat this issue, many institutions and universities now offer grants specifically for open access publishing to cover the cost of APC fees. Additionally, some journals offer fee waivers to researchers from developing nations.

On the other hand, subscription-based journals usually do not charge publication fees, but do have some exceptions. Costs are paid by institutions and readers who subscribe, so authors incur lower costs in terms of publication fees. Subscription journals are ideal for authors on a budget, but readership and citation potential are limited due to readership constraints caused by subscription-based costs.

Research impact and citation potential affect publication models as well. Fast-growing fields are often correlated with faster and more global citation potential. Subfields that are highly interdisciplinary and that use open-access formats are often associated with increased citations due to their easy accessibility. In order to be found and cited, research needs to be good, but journals and audiences should also be relevant to the research focus.

Most paid journals maintain rigorous peer review and acceptance standards. Articles published in paid journals are recognized for their editorial and academic quality. Subscription journals often attract the best reviewers and readership. For researchers who are early in their academic career and are concerned with developing their academic and research credentials, publishing in a prestigious paid journal provides the best opportunity to develop in their careers.

Evaluation of seeking publication includes the consideration of the quality and standards of peer review. There are both paid and open access journals that demonstrate rigorous peer review standards, and there are journals in both categories that do not. Sensitive selection of open access journals is needed since a predatory publisher may consider the open access model as an opportunity to charge authors to publish their work without providing editorial or peer review. Such predatory journals will often promise speedy processes and lack transparency of their operations and therefore are unlikely to meet peer review standards of scholarship. The publication of work in such journals is a disservice to the scholarship undertaken and the research and work will lose its value. The criteria of the indexing status of the journals, the quality and expertise of the editorial board, the transparency of the peer review process, and the publisher’s standing should be verified before deciding to publish work in a journal.

The intended readership and the purpose of the research also play a critical role in selection of a journal. If the purpose of the research is to target the readership in public and global policy, practice and advocacy, and integration of the research into the practice and teaching of different disciplines, then open access journals may serve that purpose. Since the research published in open access journals is freely available to the public, it is accessible to policymakers, practitioners, and the communities of practice. Therefore, researchers addressing socially relevant or global issues may derive significant value from open access publishing.

If the research is intended for a targeted audience of an academic discipline, then a subscription-based journal may serve that purpose. The most respected publishing journals in most of the academic disciplines are subscription-based journals and they will have readerships among the experts and practitioners of that field. Research published in those journals will be likely to reach informed and influential members of those disciplines. If the purpose of research is to be recognized in a specialized field of research, a subscription-based journal may serve that purpose.

The speed of publication is important under the model described above. For journals that take less time to review and publish, researchers may find this model attractive when competing with time-sensitive deadlines, such as graduation, funding, or promotion deadlines. While the speed of publication is certainly important, the quality of the journal is still of concern despite the speed. Researchers should not publish in the journals that value time more than academic rigor, integrity, and/or the quality of the peer review.

Choice of journals may also be informed by the growth of technology and electronic indexing. From either publishing model, open access or otherwise, the major databases may include journals that are reviewed in the major databases, such as Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Researchers should choose journals that are included in the main databases and are peer-reviewed, as this increases visibility, and ultimately, the citations and the impact of the article.

Choice of journal also varies from one phase of a researcher’s career to the next. For early-career researchers and graduate students, open access journals that are relatively visible are an attractive option, as it helps them build their academic presence. For senior researchers who are seeking promotion or tenure, or competitive funding, open access journals are not as attractive as previously published journals, as they have a greater recognition. The goals of researchers, from a disciplinary perspective and from an academic point, should determine their choice of journals.

Open versus traditional journals should also be taken into account. For open access journals, the cost of publication is still the author’s responsibility. For traditional journals, this is not the case, and choosing either model is left to the author.

In summary, evaluating whether to publish research in an open access versus a paid journal is a multifaceted strategic decision. Open access journals provide an opportunity for greater visibility, access, and citations. Paid journals provide value in prestige, recognition, and credibility within a discipline. Publication costs, audience, peer review, indexing, research, and career, along with other goals and values must be evaluated in order to make an informed decision. Publication success is reliant upon topic selection and the selection of an appropriate venue for research dissemination. Choosing between open access and paid journals provides the opportunity to maximize research visibility and impact, along with success in the field and fulfillment of scholarly goals.