For the second consecutive year, Springer Nature’s journals ranked as the three most cited globally, according to Clarivate’s Journal Citation Reports. Nature Communications, Scientific Reports, and Nature each surpassed one million citations in 2025.
Nature Communications recorded more than 1.1 million citations, marking a 28% increase from the previous year and positioning it as the most highly cited journal worldwide. Scientific Reports and Nature also exceeded one million citations, with growth rates of 27% and 9% respectively.
Across Springer Nature’s portfolio, published content received 18.6 million citations in 2025, up from 16 million in 2024. Research in the Discover journals was cited nearly 25,000 times.
The inclusion of both Nature Communications and Scientific Reports among the most cited journals underscores the role of open access publishing in broadening the reach of research. Clarivate’s data further indicated that more than 60% of Springer Nature journals saw an increase in their Impact Factor, while 44 journals received their first Impact Factors.
Harsh Jegadeesan, Chief Publishing Officer at Springer Nature, noted that researchers continue to select the publisher’s journals to share their work, which is widely read and cited. He emphasized that outcomes such as over 5 billion downloads in 2025 and rising citation counts reflect the journals’ global visibility and contribution to scientific progress.
Jegadeesan also highlighted that these results are supported by rigorous peer review, editorial standards, and investment in publishing platforms. He pointed out that with approximately 3 million submissions annually, acceptance rates of 16–17%, and 87% of authors reporting positive experiences, the publisher aims to deliver value by ensuring research is widely accessible and impactful.
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