How much does Crossref cost?

The cost of Crossref varies based on the type of service required and the total annual revenue or expenses of the member organization. Crossref primarily charges an annual membership fee, with an additional optional annual service fee for its Similarity Check service.

Crossref Annual Membership Fees

All organizations that join Crossref are required to pay an annual membership fee. This fee is structured in tiers, directly proportional to the member organization's total annual revenue or expenses, ensuring that the cost scales with the size of the institution.

For example: An academic publisher with total annual expenses falling between USD 1 million and USD 5 million would pay an annual Crossref membership fee of USD 550. This fee grants access to Crossref's core services, such as registering DOIs and managing metadata.

Similarity Check Annual Service Fees

Organizations looking to enhance their publication integrity can subscribe to Crossref's Similarity Check service. This service, powered by iThenticate, helps members identify potential plagiarism in submitted manuscripts. The annual subscription fee for Similarity Check also follows a tiered structure based on the organization's revenue or expenses.

Consider the same example: If the publisher mentioned above (with revenue between USD 1 million and USD 5 million) also opts for the Similarity Check service, their total annual cost would be the USD 550 membership fee plus an additional USD 110 for Similarity Check, totaling USD 660 per year.

It's important to note that the tiers listed above represent a portion of Crossref's full fee schedule. For a complete understanding of all fee categories, including those for organizations with revenue/expenses exceeding USD 50 million, or details on specific service offerings and member types, it is advisable to consult the official Crossref fees page directly: www.crossref.org/fees.