Scientific Data is an open access journal dedicated to data, publishing descriptions of research datasets and articles on research data sharing from all areas of natural sciences, medicine, engineering and social sciences. It aims to advance the sharing and reuse of scientific data, promote wider data sharing and reuse, and to credit those that share.

Scientific Data is a peer-reviewed open-access journal for descriptions of datasets and research that advances the sharing and reuse of research data. Our primary content-type, the Data Descriptor, combines traditional narrative content with structured descriptions of data to provide a framework for data-sharing to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery. These principles are designed to align with and support the FAIR Principles for scientific data management and stewardship, which declare that research data should be Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable.

Scientific Data primarily publishes Data Descriptors. These provide detailed descriptions of research datasets, including the methods used to collect the data and technical analyses supporting the quality of the measurements. Data Descriptors focus on helping others reuse data, rather than testing hypotheses, or presenting new interpretations, methods or in-depth analyses.

Scientific Data also welcomes submissions describing analyses or meta-analyses of existing data, and original articles on systems, technologies and techniques that advance data sharing and reuse to support reproducible research.

Scientific Data uses a thorough peer-review process that evaluates the rigour and quality of the experiments used to generate the data and the completeness of the description of the data. The actual data are stored in one or more public, community-recognized repositories, and release of the data is verified as a condition of publication.

Data Descriptors may describe data from new or published studies, and can be published alongside traditional research works. Data Descriptors that describe previously published datasets should provide new content sufficient to merit further publication: for example, updates to important datasets, fuller release of a dataset, or additional information that aids reuse. Please see our policies on complementary and prior publication.

Costs

Scientific Data is an open-access publication. To publish in Scientific Data authors are required to pay an article-processing charge (APC). Please see information on our current APC rates and licensing options, as well as our free open access funding support service.

Format of Data Descriptors

Scientific Data publishes descriptions of datasets under its primary article-type, the Data Descriptor. Please see our submission guidelines to learn how to draft and format your Data Descriptor, and to download a manuscript template. The main elements of a Data Descriptor manuscript are:

Other content types

An ‘Analysis’ paper re-analyses or re-assesess existing open data, rather than sharing a new dataset. This format may be used to highlight examples of data reuse or present new findings and conclusions derived from published data. Analysis submissions are not required to use data previously published at Scientific Data. If the analysis relies on data that were not previously published, the authors may be invited to submit a Data Descriptor. Analysis submissions should exemplify reproducible research by clearly describing all steps in the analysis, providing supporting source code, and explaining how and where others may access all data underlying the analysis.

The ‘Article’ format can be used to present original reports on systems and techniques related to data sharing and reproducible research. Common topics include data policies, repositories, standards, ontologies, workflows or another other areas related to the mechanics or culture of data sharing. 

Analyses and Articles should include an Introduction followed by sections headed Results, Discussion, Methods. All Analysis and Article submissions should include code and data availability statements. Guidance on writing a data availability statement can be found here. The Methods should be followed by References, Acknowledgements and a Competing interests statement.

‘Comment’ is a flexible format used to publish short commentaries or opinions on research data policy, workflows or infrastructure that don't need to report a specific technology or finding. Comments are generally 1-5 pages in length. They may include one figure, table or box, and up to 25 references, however these formats are flexible. Comments should begin with a bolded “standfirst” of one or two sentences that reads smoothly with the rest of the piece. They may not include supplementary information, and generally do not have separate abstracts or author contributions statement. They are required to include a competing interests statement. An acknowledgements section is optional.

All article types are peer-reviewed.

Submission policies

Submission to Scientific Data is taken to imply that the submitted manuscript has not been published elsewhere. Authors may not submit elsewhere while the manuscript is under consideration at Scientific Data. Authors may submit Data Descriptors describing data that have already been publicly released or even analysed in previous research articles, when a new publication would substantially extend the reuse value of these data, but any previous publications related to the dataset must be clearly cited in the Data Descriptor manuscript and discussed in the submission cover letter.

The primary affiliation for each author should be the institution where the majority of the work was done. If an author has subsequently moved, the current address may also be stated. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

If the manuscript includes personal communications, please provide a written statement of permission from any person who is quoted. E-mail permission messages are acceptable.

The corresponding author will be sent proofs, and will be able to correct major scientific errors or inaccuracies in the title or author list, but Scientific Data reserves the right to limit the scope of changes.

Scientific Data reserves the right to reject a Data Descriptor even after it has been accepted if it becomes apparent that there are serious problems with the scientific content or violations of our publishing policies. For information relating to competing financial interests; pre-publication publicity; deposition of data as a condition of publication; availability of data and reagents after publication; human participants and animal subjects; digital image integrity; biosecurity; corrections and retractions; duplicate publication; confidentiality; and plagiarism, please see the Editorial and publishing policies of Scientific Data.

For information on our editorial process and criteria for publication please see our Guide to referees.

Transfer service

Scientific Data is editorially independent, and the Editors and Editorial Board Members make decisions independently from other Nature Publishing Group journals. It is for authors alone to decide where to submit their manuscripts. For manuscripts that could satisfy the scope of more than one Nature Publishing Group journal, the choice of which journal to submit to first lies with the authors.

Authors may wish to transfer works to Scientific Data after rejection at other journals, especially when the article describes valuable datasets. Our unique format means that, in most cases, the article will have to be revised before peer review. If a manuscript is rejected from a Nature Publishing Group journal, the authors can use an automated manuscript transfer service to submit the manuscript to Scientific Data.