What publishers actually charge

A publisher does not have a price

Charges are set per journal, not per publisher. Elsevier's own range spans USD 150 to 9,900 — a sixty-six-fold difference inside one portfolio. Quoting a publisher average tells an author almost nothing about the journal they are actually considering.

Hybrid usually costs more than fully open access

The pattern is consistent across the figures here: the most expensive charges sit on hybrid titles in high-prestige portfolios, while fully open access journals cluster lower. Paying more does not buy open access sooner; it buys it in a more selective venue.

Tax is usually excluded

Quoted charges are normally before VAT or GST. BMJ Open states its charge exclusive of VAT for UK and EU authors and GST for Australian and Indian authors. The final invoice can be materially higher than the advertised figure.

Publishers contradict themselves

Elsevier's pricing policy page gives a range of USD 150 to 9,900; its author support page gives USD 500 to 5,000. Springer Nature lists two different figures for BMC Medicine across its own sites. Where that happens we record both rather than choosing one.

Country-tiered pricing changes the list price itself

On journals inside Springer Nature's pilot, the price you see is already adjusted to your location and the waiver scheme does not apply on top. Elsevier runs a similar pilot across 143 fully open access journals. The advertised figure is therefore not always the figure you would pay.

Currency is not converted at market rate

Publishers set separate figures in USD, GBP and EUR rather than converting one into the others. The cheapest currency to be billed in is not always the one nearest your own.