Guides: Open Access: Legitimate Journals vs OA Journals vs Predatory Journals

Legitimate Journals vs Open Access Journals vs Predatory Journals

Because virtually all predatory journals operates as open-access journals, some researchers may have the wrong impression that all open-access journals are predatory journals. Below please find a table showing summaries the key differences for legitimate journals, open-access journals and predatory journals in terms of the reputation, fees, index and impact factor and peer review, etc. based on various studies:

	Legitimate Journals	Open-Access Journals	Predatory Journals
Reputation	Often associated with reputable publishers or academic institutions	Often associated with reputable publishers or academic institutions	Often not associated with reputable publishers or academic institutions
Peer Review	Rigorous peer review process	Process varies but generally involves rigorous peer-review process	Low standards for quality of the article; sometimes may not provide proper peer review process at all
Journal Scope	Clear and well-defined scope	Clear and well-defined scope	Vague, broad, or poorly defined scope
Editorial Board	High quality editorial board with expertise in the field	Varies, some have renowned experts	Often unknown or fake names
Publication Fees	Often charged	Most will charge authors for Article Processing Charges(APC) but the fee is transparent and reasonable	High and unjustified without providing transparent information
Indexing and Impact Factor	Indexed in recognized databases; may have impact factor	Varies, some indexed in reputable databases and directories, may have impact factor	Falsely claim to be indexed or included in reputable databases, or may falsely claim to have impact factor
Acceptance to Publication	Peer review usually takes from a few weeks to a few months; once accepted, publication time often takes months to years	Peer review usually takes weeks; once accepted, takes a few weeks for publication	Once accepted, immediate publication
Access to Articles	Subscription based, limited access	Free, unrestricted access	Free, unrestricted access
Copyright	Author may retain or assign to publisher	Author may retain or assign to publisher	Publisher bypasses process

More references:

University of Pittsburgh Library: Illegitimate & Predatory Publishing: Legitimate vs Illegitimate Publishers: A guide to assist in the identification of illegitimate and predatory publishing. (See section on “Open Access Does Not Mean Predatory”)
Masten YB, Ashcraft AS. (2016) The Dark Side of Dissemination: Traditional and Open Access Versus Predatory Journals. Nursing Education Perspectives, 37(5):275-277.
EIFL (Electronic Information for Libraries). How to Identify Credible Open Access Journals and Avoid Predatory Ones . (Webinar recording | PPT )
Shrestha, J. (202). Authors beware! Publishing in predatory journals is harmful. Journal of Agriculture and Natural Resources, 3(2), 1-8.

Evaluating Scholarly Journals

Tools / Sources for evaluating a journal:

Think, Check, Submit - Tools and practical resources, aiming to educate researchers, promote integrity, and build trust in credible research and publications.
Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing -These Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing by COPE, DOAJ, OASPA and WAME.
Journals found from these sources are unlikely predatory journals: Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) , Incites Journal Citations Reports ,SCImago Journal & Country Rank , Scopus and Web of Science.