(16 Feb 2026) The Royal Society is pleased to confirm that its eight world-class subscription journals will be published as open access in 2026 as libraries support its Subscribe to Open (S2O) strategy.
This means new research published in leading journals like Proceedings of the Royal Society and Philosophical Transactions – the world’s oldest scientific journal – will be free to access for researchers and readers around the world.
Article publishing charges (APCs) for researchers to publish open access will also be removed for the S2O journals. This aligns with open access mandates from research funding bodies.
The Royal Society will repeat its S2O offer in subsequent years while continuing to work with its community of subscribers and consortia to sign so-called Read and Publish agreements. These provide a tailored model of open access, removing charges to read and publish in all the Society’s journals and offer publishers financial sustainability for the long term.
The announcement in full is here.
