Few chemistry journals carry the weight of the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Better known as JACS, and cited as J. Am. Chem. Soc., it is the flagship journal of the American Chemical Society (ACS) and one of the most widely read chemistry journals in the world. This guide explains what JACS publishes, how to cite and access it, and how it compares with other ACS titles.
JACS at a glance
| Publisher | American Chemical Society (ACS) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1879 |
| Frequency | Weekly |
| Scope | All fields of chemistry |
| Standard abbreviation | J. Am. Chem. Soc. |
| Editor-in-chief | Erick M. Carreira (ETH Zurich), since 2021 |
The many ways people search for it, including JACS chemistry journal, journal american chem soc, j am chem soc and am chem soc, all point to the same publication.
What JACS publishes
JACS covers the whole of chemistry: organic and inorganic synthesis, catalysis, physical and theoretical chemistry, materials, chemical biology, analytical methods and more. It publishes two main formats:
- Articles: full research papers with complete experimental detail.
- Communications: shorter reports of especially important or urgent results.
Most papers have Supporting Information: separate files with experimental procedures, characterisation data, spectra and computational details. For anyone trying to reproduce work in the lab, that file is often more useful than the paper itself.
JACS among other ACS journals
The American Chemical Society publishes dozens of journals. JACS is the broad flagship; others are more specialised.
- Chemical Reviews: comprehensive review articles.
- Accounts of Chemical Research: concise reviews of a research group’s own work. See our guide to Accounts and I&EC Research.
- Organic Letters, Inorganic Chemistry, ACS Catalysis and others: specialist journals.
- ACS Central Science: the society’s open access, broad-scope journal.
How to cite JACS
The ACS style uses the abbreviated journal name in italics, followed by year in bold, volume in italics and page or article numbers:
Author, A. B.; Author, C. D. Title of Article. J. Am. Chem. Soc. Year, Volume, pages. DOI.
Always include the DOI. It is the most reliable way for readers to find the paper.
How to access JACS
- Institutional subscription: most universities and many companies subscribe; sign in through your library.
- Open access papers: a growing share of JACS articles are free to read.
- Author manuscripts: accepted versions are often posted in institutional repositories.
- Library services and single-article purchase for occasional needs.
Getting the most from JACS
- Set up table-of-contents or keyword alerts for your field.
- Read the Supporting Information before trying to reproduce a procedure.
- Look up compounds by CAS Registry Number to avoid naming confusion. Our CAS numbers guide explains how.
- Match reagent grades to those used in the paper. See reagent chemical grades.
Frequently asked questions
What does JACS stand for?
Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Is JACS peer reviewed?
Yes. All research articles and communications go through peer review.
Is the “American Journal of Chemical Society” the same thing?
That name is a common mix-up. The correct title is Journal of the American Chemical Society.
