Journal code policies. Check before you submit.
This tracker summarizes what selected journals ask authors to do with research code. It started as a crowd-sourced list in 2018 and has been rebuilt by the editors. Each entry is a short, conservative summary with a link to the journal. It is a starting point, not a substitute for the journal's own instructions.
24journals tracked
10require an open license
6require a code deposit
6require a statement
Showing 24 of 24. Journal policies change, and many vary by article type. Always read the current author guidelines of the journal before you submit. If you spot an outdated entry, report a policy change and we will review it.
Journal
Field
Policy level
What it asks of code
Statistics, statistical computing
Required: open license
Publishes software alongside articles. Code and replication materials are submitted with the paper and reviewed, and software is expected to be under an open source license.
Research software, all fields
Required: open license
Publishes software metapapers. The software must be deposited in a suitable repository under an open license.
Research software, all fields
Required: open license
Short papers describing research software. Submissions need an OSI-approved license, and the code itself is reviewed openly on GitHub.
Computational replications, all fields
Required: open license
Publishes replications of computational studies. Replication code is reviewed openly and released under an open license.
Educational software and materials
Required: open license
Sister journal to JOSS for open educational software and learning materials, which must be openly licensed.
Machine learning software
Required: open license
The machine learning open source software track requires software released under an open source license. Policy applies to that track, not to all JMLR papers.
Image processing, computer vision
Required: open license
Articles are published with their source code, which is reviewed together with the text and distributed under a free software license.
Research software, all fields
Required: open license
Software papers must point to a public code repository and state an open source license.
Life sciences, large-scale data
Required: open license
Expects software and code to be available in a public repository under an open source license, with data and code archived to support reproducibility.
Life sciences, multidisciplinary
Required: open license
Software tool articles require source code in a public repository and archived, under an open license. Other article types follow the general data policy.
Geoscience modeling
Required: code deposit
Model code must be made available, typically as an archived version with a persistent identifier, and described in a code availability section.
Computational biology
Required: code deposit
Requires authors to share code underlying the findings, with limited exceptions that must be explained.
Life sciences, biomedicine
Required: code deposit
Expects custom code used in the study to be made available, usually through a public repository, and described in the article.
Multidisciplinary
Required: code deposit
Editorial policies expect code needed to understand and reproduce the conclusions to be available, typically through a public repository. Check current guidance on exceptions.
Multidisciplinary
Required: code deposit
Royal Society policy expects data and code supporting the article to be made available, with details in the article.
Aquatic sciences
Required: code deposit
Was among the journals listed in the original 2018 tracker for strong data and code expectations. Code supporting the findings is expected in a public repository. Confirm details in the current guidelines.
Multidisciplinary
Statement required
Nature Portfolio policy requires a code availability statement when custom code is central to the conclusions, and code may be requested for peer review.
Methods, life sciences
Statement required
Follows the Nature Portfolio code policy. Custom code central to the paper is expected to be available to editors and reviewers and described in a code availability statement.
Multidisciplinary
Statement required
Follows the Nature Portfolio code policy, including a code availability statement for custom code central to the conclusions.
Data descriptors, all fields
Statement required
Data descriptors include a code availability section stating whether and where custom code used to produce or process the data can be accessed.
Earth system data
Statement required
Data must be openly available in a repository. As with other Copernicus journals, articles include code and data availability sections.
Bioinformatics, computational biology
Statement required
Papers include an availability and implementation section. Software is expected to be freely available, at least for academic use.
Biostatistics
Encouraged
Known for an optional reproducibility review: authors who submit code and data can have results checked and receive a reproducibility mark on the article.
Computer science
Under review
PeerJ journals have data and materials sharing expectations. We have not yet verified current requirements for code. Check the author guidelines.
No journal matches. Suggest it to the editors
Five policy levels. From encouraged to required.
Required: open license
Code must be released under an open source license, usually as a condition of publication or review.
Required: code deposit
Code supporting the results must be made available in a public repository or archive, but a specific open license is not necessarily required.
Statement required
Authors must include a code availability statement. Sharing is expected or encouraged, and terms may vary.
Encouraged
Sharing or reviewing code is encouraged or rewarded, but not required.
Under review
We have not yet verified the current policy. Check the journal's guidelines directly.