The most popular services of "Scientific Publications" company are "Publishing in Scopus" and "Publishing in Web of Science". Indeed, it is these databases that are the most global and significant. But are there differences between them? Which journal to choose for publication? From the Scopus database or Web of Science? These questions are often asked by our clients. Therefore, today we will determine how Scopus differs from Web of Science, what these databases have in common, and which edition should be chosen for publication.
Publishing an article in Scopus and Web of Science (WoS): main scientific goals
The first thing that our specialists pay attention to when working with a client is their scientific goal (obtaining an academic degree, conferring a title, the possibility of participating in a funding programme, drawing up a report on the development of a grant, and much more). Based on this, it is already possible to determine what minimum requirements a scientific journal must meet for publication. For example, to be characterised by a certain percentile indicator (Scopus), or quartile (Web of Science).
Sometimes the regulatory requirements are very specific and significantly narrow the choice of journal for publication, but often Scopus articles = Web of Science articles (of course, considering certain publication indicators). In such cases, the researcher faces a certain dilemma: which database journals to focus on?
What is better: Scopus or Web of Science?
It is worth immediately pointing out that at the present stage of development of scientometrics there is no unequivocal answer to this question. While these databases are somewhat competitive, their platforms are complementary.
However, researchers should pay attention to several important points to publish an article in Scopus or Web of Science journals:
- Databases are guided by different indicators in terms of content selection: Scopus – SJR, SNIP, CiteScore, Quartile (CiteScore), Percentile (CiteScore); Web of Science – Impact Factor, JCI, JIF Percentile, Quartile.
- The Scopus database covers more modern sources, while the Web of Science has a deeper citation database dating back to 1900.
- Although the journals in the Scopus / Web of Science database focus on a wide range of subject areas, Scopus focuses on more humanities, and WoS focuses on the exact sciences.
- Moreover, when working with databases, it is worth considering the difference in interface and functionality. For example, the SciVal, Mendeley platforms are connected with the Scopus database, and Publons, Endnote, etc. are connected with the Web of Science (тут домовились про перелінковку на кожен сервіс)
- • Although the Web of Science database was founded earlier than Scopus, the latter has a larger volume of indexed data.
Top rated publications: dual indexing (Scopus and WoS)
The most rated publications can be indexed both in Scopus and in Web of Science. It costs a lot of effort for a researcher to publish a scientific article in such journals, but such a publication will have a very positive effect on the credibility and image of a scientist.
Double-indexed publications include the most popular journals Willey, Elseiver, Springer, Oxford University Press.
As you can see, today it is not possible to say for sure which is better – Web of Science or Scopus, these databases are equally authoritative and complement each other. In addition, some of the content is indexed in both of them. When choosing a journal for publication, it is worth considering regulatory requirements, the specifics of the subject area, and the peculiarities of working with different databases. If you need help choosing a journal for publication, please contact "Scientific Publications". We will take into account all your wishes, conduct a free audit of the article to determine the level of necessary improvements, negotiate with the editorial board and representatives of publishing houses, analyse all possible journals for publishing your scientific work, and provide support for the article. Leave a request on the site, and we will contact you during the working day.
It is worth reminding that the material "Update of Web of Science: Journal citation reports (JCR) 2022!" was recently released