The American Physical Society (APS) is the definitive society publisher in physics. Founded in 1899, it took over Physical Review - established in 1893 at Cornell University - in 1913, and has built it into the most recognized journal family in the field. Today APS publishes roughly 19 peer-reviewed journals: the flagship letters journal Physical Review Letters (est. 1958), the subject-series Physical Review A through E, the highly selective open-access PRX family (PRX, PRX Quantum, PRX Energy, PRX Life), the broad-scope OA journal Physical Review Research, and Reviews of Modern Physics, the field's premier review journal. Two new titles - PRX Intelligence and APS Open Science - open for submissions in 2026, with APCs waived for manuscripts submitted before 1 September 2026.

As a non-profit society, APS keeps fees comparatively moderate, offers a free subscription-based publication route on most titles, and participates in SCOAP3 so high-energy physicists can publish open access at no cost. This guide covers journal selection, open-access options and APCs, peer review, and how to submit with REVTeX.

APS journals cover physics comprehensively and only physics (plus physics-adjacent work in the PRX topical titles):

• Physical Review Letters - short letters across all of physics; the field's flagship.
• Physical Review A-E - the workhorse subject series covering atomic and optical physics, condensed matter, nuclear physics, particle physics, and statistical physics.
• PRX family - Physical Review X plus PRX Quantum, PRX Energy, PRX Life, and (from 2026) PRX Intelligence; all fully open access and highly selective.
• Physical Review Research - broad-scope Gold OA.
• Specialty titles - Physical Review Applied, Materials, Fluids, Accelerators and Beams, and Physics Education Research.
• Reviews of Modern Physics - comprehensive reviews since 1929.

APS offers four routes. APCs below are indicative 2026 figures - APS revises prices annually, so check the current APC list at journals.aps.org before submission.

Green self-archiving is permitted across the portfolio, and essentially all APS papers also live on arXiv. Waivers are automatic for authors in Research4Life Group A countries, with discounts for other lower-income countries and hardship waivers on request.

• Model: single-anonymized review on most titles, with double-anonymized options on some journals.
• Selectivity: PRL and the PRX family are highly selective (PRX around 10-15% acceptance); PR A-E and Physical Review Research judge primarily on scientific validity within scope.
• Turnaround: varies by journal and subfield; letters journals generally move faster than the subject series. Editors may transfer manuscripts between Physical Review titles with your consent.

1. Pick the journal. Match your paper's significance and scope using the decision table above.
2. Prepare in REVTeX. APS journals use the REVTeX LaTeX class (APS numbered citation style); SciSpace hosts ready-to-use APS templates. Word submissions are also accepted.
3. Post to arXiv (optional but common). For SCOAP3 eligibility, a hep-* primary category is required.
4. Submit via the APS editorial system at journals.aps.org - APS runs its own proprietary submission platform rather than Editorial Manager or ScholarOne.
5. Respond to referees. Revisions and appeals are handled within the same system; transfers between APS titles preserve reviews.*

APS is a member of COPE, OASPA, and STM, and follows COPE guidance on corrections and retractions. Its ethics guidelines cover authorship, plagiarism, data availability, and referee conduct, and the society has published research-integrity standards for physics since long before they were fashionable.