International Journal of Forecasting: Scopus, Scope & Submission Guide

Quick Answer: What Is the International Journal of Forecasting?

The International Journal of Forecasting is a quarterly Elsevier journal and the official research journal of the International Institute of Forecasters. It publishes refereed work across forecasting methods, applications, evaluation, implementation and the organizational or behavioural dimensions of forecasting.

Elsevier lists the journal in Scopus and the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), and its journal insights page lists Business and International Management, Decision Sciences, and Economics/Econometrics/Finance among its subject areas. The journal supports both subscription publishing and optional gold open access.

Researchers should consider IJF when forecasting is central to the manuscript rather than merely a supporting technique. Before submitting, compare the paper with recent IJF articles, verify the current Guide for Authors, confirm the latest metrics and fees, and ensure the manuscript is anonymized for double-anonymized review.

Key Takeaways

• Publisher and society: Elsevier publishes IJF for the International Institute of Forecasters.
• Scopus: The journal is listed in Scopus; supplied Source ID: 22706.
• ISSNs: Print 0169-2070; online 1872-8200.
• Scope: Forecasting theory, methods, applications, implementation, evaluation, uncertainty and decision relevance across many domains.
• Peer review: Double anonymized; suitable papers are typically reviewed by at least two independent experts.
• Publishing model: Hybrid; subscription publication has no publication fee, while Elsevier currently lists a USD 2,800 open-access APC excluding taxes.
• Current metrics: Elsevier pages show a 7.1 Impact Factor; CiteScore has recently changed in indexed snapshots, so verify the live value before reporting it.
• Author fit: Strong topic fit, forecasting relevance, replicability, appropriate evaluation and clear practical or theoretical contribution matter more than generic journal prestige.

International Journal of Forecasting at a Glance

What This Page Covers

• Journal identity, publisher, society affiliation and publication model
• Aims, scope and subject areas relevant to manuscript fit
• Scopus and other indexing information
• Current metrics that can be verified and values that should be rechecked
• Article types, manuscript structure, abstract, keywords and references
• Double-anonymized review and submission workflow
• Open-access options, APCs and subscription publication
• Ethics, disclosure, data and reproducibility expectations
• A practical journal-fit and pre-submission checklist
• Ethical Contentxprtz publication-readiness support

Methodology and Sources

This guide prioritizes authoritative information from the official Elsevier/ScienceDirect journal page, the journal insights page, the official Guide for Authors, and the International Institute of Forecasters. The supplied journal record provides Scopus Source ID 22706.

Metrics, editorial appointments, fees, indexing and publishing timelines can change between reporting cycles. This page therefore distinguishes stable journal facts from values that need a live check. It does not infer an acceptance rate, quartile, SJR or SNIP where a current authoritative numeric value was not reliably available.

Aims and Scope: What Kind of Forecasting Research Does IJF Publish?

IJF describes its purpose as covering all aspects of forecasting while helping unify a field that spans statistics, economics, management, operations, psychology, computation and public decision making. A central theme is the bridge between theory and practice: the journal values methodological advances, but it also emphasizes empirical studies, evaluation, implementation and work that improves forecasting practice.

The official scope names economic and econometric forecasting, marketing and new-product forecasting, financial and production forecasting, technological forecasting, government and military applications, demographics, energy, climate, crime, seasonal adjustment, time series, legal and political aspects, judgmental and psychological forecasting, uncertainty and decision making, organizational forecasting, sport, machine learning, election forecasting and big-data forecasting.

What this means for manuscript fit

A paper can be technically sophisticated and still be a weak fit if forecasting is incidental. For example, a machine-learning study that mainly optimizes classification with only a minor predictive component may be better suited elsewhere. In contrast, a machine-learning paper that compares forecast accuracy, calibration, uncertainty, robustness, decision value or implementation across realistic forecasting settings is much closer to IJF’s stated mission.

Similarly, an economics manuscript should do more than use a forecast as one output. It should contribute to forecasting knowledge: perhaps through model comparison, forecast combinations, density or probabilistic forecasting, structural breaks, uncertainty, real-time data, decision consequences or new evaluation methods.

Article Types and Research Formats

Elsevier’s journal page identifies research papers, research notes, discussion articles, book reviews, editorials and letters among IJF’s features. The journal also explicitly encourages replication studies, particularly for influential work. This makes reproducibility part of the journal’s research culture rather than a purely administrative requirement.

For a standard research article, authors should expect the paper to present a clear forecasting question, relevant literature, reproducible methods, appropriate data and evaluation, results that are interpreted rather than merely tabulated, and a conclusion that explains both scientific and practical implications. Shorter contributions may be appropriate when the contribution itself is narrow—for example, a successful replication that confirms an existing result can be concise.

Indexing, Visibility and Journal Metrics

Elsevier lists Scopus and the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) among the journal’s indexing services. For scholars whose universities or doctoral regulations require Scopus coverage, the supplied source record identifies IJF as Source ID 22706. Authors should use the live Scopus source page for formal reporting because database coverage and status can change.

Metric interpretation needs equal care. The Elsevier pages used for this guide display an Impact Factor of 7.1. Search-index snapshots from official ScienceDirect pages show CiteScore moving from 17.1 in older crawls to 15.7 in a more recent 2026 crawl. That is a useful reminder that citation metrics are reporting-year values rather than permanent journal attributes. The safest practice is to record both the value and the year shown in the live database on the date you need it.

A current numeric SJR, SNIP and quartile were not reliably established from the authoritative pages available for this guide. Do not substitute a third-party SEO metric page simply to fill a table. If your institution specifically needs a Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4 classification, check the current subject category and year in the database it recognizes.

Peer Review and Editorial Process

IJF uses double-anonymized peer review: reviewers do not know the authors’ identities, and authors do not know the reviewers’ identities. The editor first assesses whether a submission is suitable for the journal. Papers judged suitable are typically sent to at least two independent expert reviewers, and the editor makes the final publication decision.

To support anonymization, authors should upload a title page containing names, affiliations, acknowledgements and relevant declarations separately from the main manuscript. The anonymized manuscript should avoid author names, affiliations and other identifying information. The Guide for Authors also invites authors to suggest four to six qualified referees from outside their institution; the journal may use one of those suggestions.

Elsevier’s journal insights currently display 7 days from submission to first decision, 98 days from submission to decision after review and 296 days from submission to acceptance. These are aggregate journal indicators, not a promise. A manuscript requiring several review rounds, specialist reviewers or extensive revision can take longer.

Manuscript Preparation Requirements Authors Should Know

The journal accepts Word and LaTeX submissions. Elsevier recommends its elsarticle class for LaTeX. Word manuscripts should use a simple single-column layout. The guide advises short numbered headings, double spacing and wide margins.

Title page and authorship details

The separate title page should include a concise title, author names, affiliations, corresponding-author contact details and any present/permanent address information where relevant. Because review is double anonymized, those details should not be duplicated in the review manuscript.

Abstract and keywords

The required abstract length is 100–150 words. It should state the principal findings, how they were obtained, and why they matter to researchers and practitioners. References, jargon and mathematical notation should be avoided. The journal requires at least five keywords.

Methods, data and replication

Authors are normally expected to provide a complete electronic set of data used or instructions for obtaining the data, subject to handling-editor discretion. Methods and data should be described sufficiently for replication. Code is encouraged, although the guide does not state that code is mandatory in every case. This expectation is especially important for empirical forecasting papers because reproducibility helps readers evaluate model comparisons and claimed accuracy gains.

References

IJF uses an author–date system. The reference list is alphabetical by first-author surname, and the guide asks for a strict one-to-one match between in-text citations and the final reference list. References should be relevant rather than inflated to increase bibliography length or citation counts. Data sets may also be cited as formal data references.

Open Access, Publication Fees and Copyright

International Journal of Forecasting is a hybrid journal. Authors can choose gold open access or publish through the subscription route. Elsevier currently lists the gold open-access APC as USD 2,800 excluding taxes, with the possibility of reductions depending on agreements or eligibility. Authors should confirm the price during submission because institutional agreements and publisher pricing can change.

For the subscription route, Elsevier states that no publication fee is charged to authors. This distinction matters: “supports open access” does not mean every author must pay an APC. The fee applies when an author chooses the journal’s gold open-access option, subject to current policy.

Publication Ethics, Disclosure and Responsible Research

The Guide for Authors requires authors to follow Elsevier’s ethics policies, disclose competing interests and identify funding sources. It also requires disclosure of related papers using similar data or methods so editors can understand how the new submission differs. Submitting a manuscript also implies that the work is original and not simultaneously under consideration elsewhere.

Elsevier’s current guidance requires authors to declare substantive use of generative AI or AI-assisted technologies in manuscript preparation, while basic spelling, grammar and reference-checking tools do not require the same declaration. Authors remain responsible for accuracy, source verification, originality, confidentiality and the final content. AI tools cannot be listed as authors.

As a practical publication-readiness step, researchers should also check permissions for third-party figures or text, ensure every table and figure is cited, provide a competing-interest statement, and verify that funding and contribution statements are consistent across the manuscript and submission system.

How to Decide Whether Your Manuscript Fits IJF

Before submission, read several recent IJF papers that use methods or applications closest to yours. Compare not only topics but also contribution statements, benchmark design, error metrics, uncertainty treatment, robustness checks and the level of practical interpretation. This is general journal-selection guidance rather than an official acceptance criterion, but it is one of the best ways to assess real editorial fit.

Common Reasons a Forecasting Manuscript May Be Unsuitable

• The research question is predictive but not meaningfully connected to forecasting science or practice.
• The claimed improvement is tested against weak, outdated or inappropriate benchmarks.
• Forecast accuracy is reported without uncertainty, robustness or adequate evaluation design where those are important.
• The paper applies an existing machine-learning architecture to a new data set without a convincing forecasting contribution.
• Methods or data are described too loosely for replication.
• The manuscript does not explain why a statistically better forecast matters for decisions, operations, policy or scientific understanding.
• The literature review misses core IJF or forecasting literature.
• The submission is not anonymized correctly for double-anonymized review.

Submission Workflow: From Draft to Editorial Manager

1. Confirm scope. Compare your research question and contribution with IJF’s aims and recent papers.
2. Review the live Guide for Authors. Recheck abstract, keywords, data, references, declarations and file requirements.
3. Prepare separate files. Create the title page with author details and an anonymized main manuscript.
4. Complete integrity checks. Verify citations, permissions, competing interests, funding, author contributions and related-paper disclosures.
5. Check reproducibility. Organize data, code where available, and documentation so editors and reviewers can understand how results were generated.
6. Submit through Editorial Manager. Follow the link on the official Elsevier guide and complete all metadata accurately.
7. Respond to peer review systematically. If revision is invited, prepare a point-by-point response showing exactly where each issue was addressed or respectfully explaining why a change was not made.

Pre-Submission Checklist for International Journal of Forecasting

• Forecasting is central to the manuscript’s question and contribution.
• The title, abstract and keywords accurately describe the forecasting problem.
• The abstract is 100–150 words and at least five keywords are supplied.
• The title page is separate from the anonymized manuscript.
• Author names, affiliations and self-identifying text have been removed from the review file.
• Benchmarks and forecast-evaluation methods are defensible and clearly reported.
• Methods and data are described sufficiently for replication.
• Figures and tables are readable, numbered and cited in the text.
• Every in-text citation has a matching reference and vice versa.
• Competing interests, funding and author contributions are prepared.
• Any generative-AI use is disclosed according to current Elsevier policy.
• The latest APC, metrics, indexing status and editorial details have been reconfirmed on official pages.

How Contentxprtz Can Support Publication Readiness

Contentxprtz can support researchers who already own and understand their research but need help presenting it clearly and consistently. For an IJF-targeted manuscript, ethical support may include academic editing, language polishing, journal-format review, reference and citation consistency, anonymization checks, cover-letter editing, reviewer-response editing and a pre-submission manuscript assessment.

That support should strengthen communication without fabricating evidence, inventing citations, changing results to create significance or guaranteeing publication. Journal selection and editorial decisions remain independent. Researchers retain responsibility for the study, data, methods, interpretation, authorship, disclosures and final submission.

Final Perspective

International Journal of Forecasting is most relevant to authors whose work makes forecasting itself the intellectual center of the paper—through better methods, stronger evaluation, more useful implementation, improved understanding of uncertainty or clearer links between forecasts and decisions. Its Scopus coverage, society affiliation and established editorial process can make it attractive to researchers in economics, business, statistics, decision science, energy, climate, machine learning and related areas, but those credentials do not substitute for manuscript fit.

Before submission, confirm the current Elsevier Guide for Authors, live metrics, indexing and open-access fee; then focus on the elements editors and reviewers can actually evaluate: contribution, evidence, reproducibility, clarity and relevance. Professional editing can improve presentation and readiness, but no editing service can guarantee acceptance or publication.