What does Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4 mean for academic journals?

Quartiles divide journals in a subject category into four equal groups based on their citation rate or SJR score. Q1 contains the top 25% (highest impact), Q2 the next 25%, Q3 the third quartile, and Q4 the bottom 25%.

Is a Q1 journal always better than a Q2 journal?

Q1 journals have higher citation rates within their subject category, but 'better' depends on your research scope, audience, and field norms. Some specialized Q2 journals are more appropriate venues than broad Q1 journals.

How are these rankings calculated?

Rankings are derived from the latest citation rate data for each journal in our database. When official quartile data is available we use it directly; otherwise quartiles are computed by ranking journals within the selected subject category.

Journal Rankings 2026 — Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4

Browse 26 ranked journals grouped into quartiles by citation rate. Use the subject filter below to narrow down by research field.

Data last refreshed: Aug 02, 2026

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All Subjects Diverse Scientific and Economic Studies Human auditory perception and evaluation Plant and animal studies Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques Geology and Paleoclimatology Research Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies Climate variability and models RNA modifications and cancer earthquake and tectonic studies Geological and Geochemical Analysis Immune Cell Function and Interaction Medicine Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Cancer-related molecular mechanisms research Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development Conducting polymers and applications Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies Analytical Chemistry and Chromatography RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms Advancements in Battery Materials Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment MicroRNA in disease regulation Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet Catalytic Processes in Materials Science Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth Meat and Animal Product Quality Neural dynamics and brain function Species Distribution and Climate Change

Q1 — Top 25%

7 journals

Journal	IF
Ecological Indicators Elsevier BV	7.88
Global Change Biology Wiley	7.34
Trends in Ecology & Evolution Elsevier BV	6.60
Ecology Letters Wiley	5.43
Scientific Data Nature Portfolio	4.76
BioScience Oxford University Press	4.14
Ecography Wiley	3.87

Q2 — 50th-75th Percentile

6 journals

Journal	IF
Journal of Applied Ecology Wiley	3.86
Biological Conservation Elsevier BV	3.52
Conservation Biology Wiley	3.08
Ecology Wiley	2.90
Ecological Applications Wiley	2.88
Biology Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute	2.85

Q3 — 25th-50th Percentile

7 journals

Journal	IF
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution Frontiers Media	2.84
Biodiversity and Conservation Springer Science+Business Media	2.70
PeerJ PeerJ, Inc.	2.67
Ecological Modelling Elsevier BV	2.59
Ecosphere Wiley	2.50
Journal of Vegetation Science Wiley	2.32
Biological Invasions Springer Science+Business Media	2.10

Q4 — Bottom 25%

6 journals

Journal	IF
Ecology and Evolution Wiley	2.08
Journal of Biogeography Wiley	1.99
Diversity Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute	1.79
Biotropica Wiley	1.41
Climate Change Ecology Elsevier	1.32
Climate Change Responses Springer Nature	—

Understanding Journal Quartile Rankings

Quartile rankings (Q1-Q4) are a standard way to categorize academic journals within a subject. They're calculated by ordering all journals in a category by their citation rate (or SJR score) and dividing them into four equal groups.

Q1 — Top 25%, highest impact in the field
Q2 — 50th to 75th percentile
Q3 — 25th to 50th percentile
Q4 — Bottom 25%

Note: When official Scopus/JCR quartile data is available we use it. Otherwise quartiles are approximated by ranking journals within the selected subject by their latest citation rate.