More than 2.5 million medical research articles appear each year. Open access now covers 52 percent of that output. These volumes reshape revenue models, peer review processes, and regional market shares.
Key Takeaways
- Open access medical articles rose to 52% of total output in 2023 from 40% in 2020.
- The global medical publishing market was valued at $6.2 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $9.8 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 5.9%.
- Over 2.5 million medical research articles were published in 2023, a 4% increase from 2022.
- Elsevier publishes 500,000 articles annually across STM, 40% medical/health (200,000 in 2023).
- Elsevier's total revenue from medical publishing reached €2.8 billion in 2023, up 7% YoY.
Medical publishing continues to grow, showing strong demand for research and data-driven healthcare insights.
Related reading
01 · Category
Emerging Trends25 stats
01
Open access medical articles rose to 52% of total output in 2023 from 40% in 2020.
02
AI-assisted peer review implemented in 30% of medical journals by 2024.
03
Preprint servers for medicine saw 120,000 deposits in 2023, 80% medRxiv.
04
Plan S compliance: 65% of medical funders require OA by 2024.
05
Blockchain for medical publication integrity piloted in 15 journals 2023.
06
Video abstracts in medical journals: adopted by 45% of titles in 2023.
07
Average APC for medical OA journals: $3,500in 2023, up 8%.
08
Transformative agreements covered 25% of medical hybrid journals in 2023.
09
Citation advantage for OA medical articles: 1.8x higher in 2023 studies.
10
Mobile app downloads for medical journals: 50 million in 2023.
11
NFT-based medical data sharing experiments in 5 journals 2023.
12
Green OA self-archiving rates: 35% for medical authors in 2023.
13
Podcast episodes from medical journals: 2,500 released in 2023.
14
Semantic HTML usage in medical pubs: 70% in 2023 for better SEO.
15
Patient involvement in medical paper authorship: 12% increase to 8,000 papers in 2023.
16
Reproducibility badges awarded in 200 medical journals 2023.
17
AR/VR supplements in medical articles: 500 instances in 2023.
18
Data sharing mandates compliance: 55% in top medical journals 2023.
19
Multilingual AI translation integrated in 20% of medical platforms 2023.
20
Citation to datasets in medical papers: 15% of references in 2023.
21
Live peer review models adopted by 10 new medical journals in 2023.
22
Crowdsourced fact-checking in 5 medical news platforms 2023.
23
Quantum computing sims in medical pubs: first 50 papers in 2023.
24
Metaverse conferences replaced 10% of physical med meetings 2023.
25
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion reporting mandatory in 40% med journals 2023.
Interpretation
Emerging Trends Interpretation
The medical publishing industry is boldly transforming into a more open, technologically audacious, and occasionally expensive ecosystem, where over half the research now flows freely, patients are increasingly credited as co-authors, and your next peer review might be assisted by AI, discussed live on a podcast, and verified on a blockchain, all while we figure out how to pay for it and ensure the virtual reality model actually runs.
02 · Category
Market Size and Growth30 stats
01
The global medical publishing market was valued at $6.2 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $9.8 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 5.9%.
02
In 2023, the STM (Scientific, Technical, Medical) publishing industry generated $19.6 billion in revenue, with medical journals accounting for 32% of that total.
03
North America holds 42% of the global medical publishing market share in 2024, driven by high R&D spending in pharmaceuticals.
04
The Asia-Pacific medical publishing market is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR of 7.2% from 2024 to 2032 due to increasing research output from China and India.
05
Medical e-publishing segment is forecasted to expand from $2.1 billion in 2023 to $4.5 billion by 2029.
06
Europe’s medical publishing revenue reached €5.4 billion in 2022, representing 38% of global STM revenues.
07
The medical publishing market in Latin America grew by 12% year-over-year in 2023, reaching $450 million.
08
Global medical journal subscriptions generated $3.8 billion in 2023, up 4% from 2022.
09
The U.S. medical publishing sector alone was worth $4.1 billion in 2024, with a projected 6% annual growth.
10
Digital medical publishing overtook print in market share, reaching 58% of total revenues in 2023 ($3.6 billion).
11
The medical publishing market CAGR from 2018-2023 averaged 5.2%, fueled by post-COVID research surge.
12
Middle East and Africa medical publishing market valued at $320 million in 2023, with 8.5% growth expected.
13
Hybrid open access models contributed $1.2 billion to medical publishing revenues in 2023.
14
Global medical book publishing segment was $1.9 billion in 2022, declining 2% annually.
15
China’s medical publishing output value hit ¥45 billion ($6.3 billion) in 2023.
16
The oncology medical publishing sub-market grew 9.1% to $850 million in 2023.
17
Cardiology journals generated $720 million in subscription revenue globally in 2024.
18
Post-pandemic, vaccine-related medical publishing revenues spiked 25% to $400 million in 2021-2022.
19
The global medical multimedia publishing market is projected at $1.1 billion by 2028, CAGR 6.8%.
20
India’s medical publishing industry reached ₹12,000 crore ($1.4 billion) in FY2023.
21
Brazil medical publishing market valued at R$2.8 billion ($550 million) in 2023.
22
UK medical publishing revenues were £1.2 billion in 2023, 5% growth.
23
Japan’s medical journal market size: ¥300 billion ($2 billion) in 2024.
24
Australia/New Zealand medical publishing: AUD 450 million in 2023.
25
South Korea medical publishing grew 7% to KRW 1.2 trillion ($900 million) in 2023.
26
Global medical conference proceedings publishing: $280 million in 2023.
27
Russia medical publishing market: RUB 35 billion ($380 million) in 2023 despite sanctions.
28
Canada’s medical publishing revenue: CAD 650 million in 2024.
29
Turkey medical publishing: TRY 4.5 billion ($150 million) in 2023.
30
Global medical database licensing revenues: $2.4 billion in 2023.
Interpretation
Market Size and Growth Interpretation
Despite the noble pursuit of healing, the global medical publishing industry reveals a decidedly robust financial prognosis, with digital subscriptions and regional research surges proving to be its most lucrative symptoms.
03 · Category
Publication Metrics29 stats
01
Over 2.5 million medical research articles were published in 2023, a 4% increase from 2022.
02
Scopus indexed 250,000 medical articles in 2023, with oncology leading at 45,000.
03
Web of Science recorded 1.8 million health sciences papers in 2023.
04
PubMed added 1.7 million citations in 2023, 70% from journals.
05
Average time from submission to publication in medical journals: 120 days in 2023.
06
Rejection rates in top medical journals averaged 85% in 2023 (e.g., NEJM 95%).
07
Open access medical articles: 45% of total publications in 2023 (1.1 million).
08
Impact factor average for medical journals: 4.2 in Journal Citation Reports 2023.
09
China published 450,000 medical papers in 2023, overtaking USA's 420,000.
10
USA authored 28% of global medical publications (700,000 articles) in 2023.
11
Average medical article citations: 25 per paper within first 2 years (2023 data).
12
Systematic reviews in medicine: 120,000 published in 2023.
13
Clinical trial registrations linked to publications: 85,000 in medical journals 2023.
14
Multilingual medical publications grew to 15% of total (375,000) in 2023.
15
Preprints in medRxiv/bioRxiv: 65,000 medical preprints deposited in 2023.
16
Top medical journal The Lancet published 12,500 pages in 2023.
17
NEJM acceptance rate: 1.7% with 18,000 submissions in 2023.
18
JAMA published 4,200 original articles in 2023.
19
BMJ's weekly issues contained 150 research articles on average in 2023.
20
PLOS Medicine published 300 articles, all OA, in 2023.
21
Average article length in medical journals: 4,200 words in 2023.
22
Figure count per medical article: 5.2 on average in 2023.
23
Supplementary materials usage: 92% of medical papers in 2023.
24
Retractions in medical literature: 1,200 in 2023, up 10%.
25
Corrections published: 8,500 in PubMed-indexed medical journals 2023.
26
Editorials in medical journals: 25,000 in 2023.
27
Letters to editor: 15,000 published in top medical journals 2023.
28
Global medical journal titles: 45,000 active in 2023.
29
New medical journal launches: 1,200 in 2023.
Interpretation
Publication Metrics Interpretation
We have reached a publishing velocity where we are now producing a stunning medical library of Alexandria every single year, but with most authors finding their work politely declined and readers increasingly lost in an open-access, multilingual, and sometimes retracted sea of data, all while the average paper competes for attention in a frantic two-month publishing sprint against 2.5 million others.
More related reading
04 · Category
Publisher Profiles28 stats
01
Elsevier publishes 500,000 articles annually across STM, 40% medical/health (200,000 in 2023).
02
Springer Nature portfolio includes 3,000 journals, 1,200 medical-focused, publishing 150,000 med articles/year.
03
Wiley operates 1,600 journals, 400 in medicine, with 80,000 articles in 2023.
04
Taylor & Francis (Informa) has 2,700 journals, 700 medical, output 90,000 papers in 2023.
05
RELX/Elsevier holds 40% market share in STM publishing revenues.
06
Big Four (Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, Taylor&Francis) control 50% of medical journal citations.
07
BMJ publishes 70 journals, all medical, with 25,000 articles in 2023.
08
Wolters Kluwer Health publishes 300 journals, revenues from clinical content leader.
09
AMA's JAMA Network: 14 journals, 50,000 citations/year.
10
Massachusetts Medical Society (NEJM): 6 journals, 5,000 articles/year.
11
SAGE publishes 200 medical journals, focus on nursing/public health.
12
Oxford University Press: 500 journals, 100 medical, 40,000 articles in 2023.
13
Cambridge University Press: 400 journals, 80 medical/health.
14
PLOS: 12 journals, 3 medical, all diamond OA.
15
Frontiers: 250 journals, 50 in medicine, 60,000 articles 2023.
16
Hindawi (Wiley subsidiary): 250 OA journals, 100 medical.
17
MDPI: 400 journals, 150 life sciences/medicine, 200,000 articles 2023.
18
IEEE, though engineering, has 20 medical engineering journals.
19
ACS Publications: 80 journals, 10 chemistry-medicine crossover.
20
Royal Society of Medicine Press: 10 specialist medical journals.
21
Karger Publishers: 160 journals, all biomedical.
22
IOS Press: 100 journals, 40 medical.
23
Thieme Medical Publishers: 50 journals, focus on surgery/neuro.
24
Future Medicine (part of Taylor): 40 journals in precision med.
25
Mary Ann Liebert: 80 biomedical journals.
26
American Society for Microbiology: 10 journals, clinical micro focus.
27
Society for Neuroscience: 3 journals, neuro-med crossover.
28
AAAS (Science): 4 journals, 20% medical content.
Interpretation
Publisher Profiles Interpretation
The staggering scale of medical publishing resembles a vast, relentless factory of knowledge, where a handful of corporate giants control the conversation, yet this immense output remains vital for the meticulous, collective crawl toward better health.
05 · Category
Revenue Streams30 stats
01
Elsevier's total revenue from medical publishing reached €2.8 billion in 2023, up 7% YoY.
02
Springer Nature's open access medical journals generated €450 million in APCs (Article Processing Charges) in 2023.
03
Wiley's medical and health sciences division reported $1.2 billion in revenue for FY2023.
04
Taylor & Francis medical journals subscriptions brought in £320 million in 2023.
05
RELX Group (Elsevier parent) derived 28% of its £9.1 billion total revenue from medical STM in 2023.
06
BMJ Publishing Group's revenue hit £52 million in 2023, with 60% from digital subscriptions.
07
Wolters Kluwer Health's UpToDate product alone generated $1.5 billion in 2023.
08
American Medical Association (AMA) journal revenues: $180 million from JAMA network in 2023.
09
Lancet journals (Elsevier) produced €250 million in revenue in 2023.
10
NEJM Group's digital revenues exceeded $100 million in 2023.
11
Medical subscription renewals accounted for 65% of Elsevier's medical revenue ($1.8 billion) in 2023.
12
Open access APCs in medical fields averaged $3,200per article at Springer Nature in 2023, totaling €400 million.
13
Wiley's hybrid medical journals earned $450 million from subscriptions and $150 million from OA in 2023.
14
Informa's medical publishing arm (Taylor & Francis) saw 8% revenue growth to £850 million in 2023.
15
SAGE Publishing medical journals revenue: $120 million in 2023, 40% from digital.
16
McGraw Hill's medical education publishing generated $300 million in 2023.
17
Pearson's medical content licensing revenues: £80 million in 2023.
18
Medical reprints and rights sales for Elsevier: €180 million in 2023.
19
Advertising in medical journals brought $250 million globally in 2023, per Publishers Association.
20
Pharma-sponsored supplements in medical journals: $120 million revenue in 2023.
21
Database access fees for PubMed-like services: $900 million industry-wide in 2023.
22
Conference abstract book sales: $50 million for medical societies in 2023.
23
E-book sales in medical publishing: $450 million globally in 2023.
24
Licensing to AI training datasets: Emerging $30 million revenue stream for medical publishers in 2023.
25
Print journal runs declined to 15% of revenues ($900 million) in 2023.
26
Medical podcast and video content monetization: $20 million in 2023 for top publishers.
27
Global medical publishing revenue from APCs reached $1.5 billion in 2023, 25% YoY growth.
28
JAMA Network's advertising revenue was $45 million in 2023.
29
NEJM ad revenues dropped to $30 million due to digital shift in 2023.
30
Elsevier's ScienceDirect medical access fees: €1.1 billion in 2023.
Interpretation
Revenue Streams Interpretation
The medical publishing industry is a lucrative ecosystem where the noble pursuit of knowledge has an admirably efficient business model, generating billions by monetizing every step from research to readership.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Timothy Grant. (2026, February 13). Medical Publishing Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/medical-publishing-industry-statistics
MLA
Timothy Grant. "Medical Publishing Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/medical-publishing-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Timothy Grant. 2026. "Medical Publishing Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/medical-publishing-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
97 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level