Preprints are an increasingly popular type of research article. Yet many researchers still don’t know what they are or the benefits of publishing one. A draft or in-progress version of a scholarly article, a preprint gives researchers the opportunity to share research quickly to a global audience via open access and without the need for peer review.
There are lots of benefits to publishing a preprint. But there are also things that authors should be cautious about when considering this publishing route. It’s also important that authors familiarise themselves with preprint posting workflows to ensure that they are aware of specific procedures and guidelines.
What is a preprint?
A preprint is an early version of a research article. This version is hosted on a preprint server, an online platform typically dedicated to making early versions of research outputs permanently available and citable.
First emerging in the 1960s as part of “Information Exchange Groups”, preprints (and the preprint publication process more broadly) are designed to facilitate the release of research. Although popular with biological researchers at the time, the preprint model didn’t immediately translate to the rest of the academic community. Many journals even took an active stance against preprints, viewing them negatively and refusing to publish manuscripts that had been previously published as a preprint.
However, despite these pushbacks, the principle of preprints remained. Many in the academic community still believed that there should be a way to release research at a much faster rate than traditional methods allowed for.
Traditionally, scholarly research is subject to rounds of peer review that validate its scientific integrity and novelty. Peer review can be a long, complex process, however. Preprints bypass these traditional reviewing methods to accelerate the progression of knowledge in certain fields and invite opportunities for early feedback.
Anyone can leave comments on a published preprint, benefiting both author and the research community more broadly. This opens up the reviewing process, which is no longer limited to a few experts as with traditional published papers. Like traditional research articles, however, preprints can be cited and shared online.
Preprint servers
With the launch of arXiv in 1991, one of the earliest and most influential preprint servers, preprints became widely used in the physics community, and play a key role in shaping the modern preprint landscape. In 2013, bioRxiv launched, followed by medRxiv in 2019.
In 2016, Preprints.org was officially established, although the idea behind the platform dates back to 1998, when MDPI registered the domain www.preprints.net and planned a service to collect draft manuscripts. These histories show that the growth of preprints has been steady but not quite straightforward.
But what do these servers do? Well, they permanently host preprints, allowing for public access. Most preprint servers achieve this level of accessibility by publishing research as open access under a creative commons license. Preprints.org publishes its preprints using a CC BY 4.0 license. This license allows the author’s research to be freely downloaded, distributed, and reused, so long as both author and preprint are cited.
It’s common for preprint servers to be discipline-specific. For example, bioRxiv and chemRxiv host biology and chemistry preprints, respectively. In contrast, other servers like Preprints.org are multidisciplinary platforms covering a wide range of topics.
Preprints vs published papers
Preprints are versions of a scholarly manuscript. In contrast, traditionally published papers are the final version of that manuscript. This version is typically referred to as the version of record (VoR).
There are some significant differences between preprints and published papers. The biggest difference is that one undergoes peer review and the other does not. Published papers, or peer-reviewed articles, must undergo a lengthy reviewing process (one which can often take up to 3 months). If the paper must undergo several rounds of review to address issues, this can significantly extend the duration authors have to wait before publication. Other issues such as difficulties finding reviewers can further compound overall waiting times.
Preprints offer authors much faster publication speeds. Turnaround from submission to public availability is typically completed within a few days, depending on the platform.
Preprints vs postprints
A postprint is the version of a research article accepted for publication after peer review but not yet formatted by the journal. Postprints may either be identical to the version of record or differ in terms of formatting, layout, or typesetting. They are commonly known as the author accepted manuscript (AAM).
Both postprints and preprints are not professionally formatted. They are usually written in common processing software such as Word, Google Docs, or LaTeX.
Since postprints are still subject to peer review like the final version of record, preprints are again much faster to process from submission to publication.
Preprint posting workflow
Posting a preprint is designed to be a much smoother, quicker process than that for traditionally peer-reviewed articles. Here is each step of the posting workflow.
Submit
After completing your research article, log in to your MDPI or Preprints.org account, click ‘Submit’ to provide basic details about your paper, and upload your file to make a submission. Authors should familiarise themselves with the Instructions for Authors section before submitting.
Screening
Preprints must undergo a short screening before online publication. The Preprints.org screening process takes less than one business day in most cases.
Screening includes validation of basic scientific content, author background, and compliance with ethical standards. It is carried out by staff with the support of active researchers and the Preprints.org advisory board.
Post online
After passing the screening process, preprints are published online as open access using a CC BY 4.0 license. This provides maximum visibility to authors while ensuring that they are properly recognized for their work. Once online, preprints can be downloaded, shared, commented on, and cited.
Update
Preprints are works-in-progress, not the final version of record. This means that once published online, they can be updated post-publication.
This updating of a preprint is known as ‘versioning’. As work evolves, preprints can be updated to reflect new data or insights. Versioning ensures transparency during research development, helps preserve a complete research record, and enables the community to stay current with any new findings.
Repost online
Preprints that are posted on Preprints.org are assigned a Digital Object Identifier (DOI). A DOI is a unique, permanent string of characters that identifies any digital “object.”
The assigned DOI is for identification and tracking purposes. When a preprint is updated, it is reposted online and assigned a new DOI. This makes it simple for people to distinguish it from any previous versions.
Benefits of posting preprints
Publishing a preprint can bring many benefits to authors (as well as the academic community more broadly). We’ve already touched on some of these previously, but here are the key benefits of posting preprints:
- Establishes priority of discoveries and ideas;
- Quick dissemination of work;
- Increases visibility and citations of academic work;
- Opportunity to receive early feedback;
- Increases flow of scientific information.
These benefits, although markedly unique, highlight the primary purposes of preprints: to facilitate the speed, impact, and progression of research via open access publication. Preprints also aim to improve collaboration and community-driven research by opening up the reviewing process to the entire academic community.
Cautions for authors
Despite the benefits, there are still some areas for caution for authors to consider when publishing a preprint, including the following:
- No peer review;
- Data and methods not yet fully vetted;
- Risk of ‘scooping’;
- Media or public misinterpretation.
Preprints do not undergo peer review. As a result, data and methods are not yet vetted. This means that preprints risk spreading unverified or potentially incorrect information. However, as we’ve already mentioned, all preprints undergo screening carried out by trained editors. This guarantees that they are still upheld to clearly defined quality and ethical standards.
While some researchers may feel that publishing your research early as open access could increase the risk of your research being ‘scooped’, there are established methods in place to significantly reduce plagiarism. All preprints are timestamped, serving as a record of ownership and date of publication.
Finally, preprint findings are susceptible to media or public misinterpretation. Because they are open access and receive high visibility, this increases their impact and thus their chances of being picked up by media and news outlets, if findings resonate with global audiences. However, preprint findings are provisional. Media outlets don’t always state that information is from a preprint, which can be misleading. Additionally, they often report in ways that dramatise and therefore potentially misrepresent certain findings.
Though they are not always responsible for how media outlets respond to their research, authors are advised to reiterate the preliminary nature of their findings should the media choose to report on their findings.
Publishing with Preprints.org
Interested in experiences the benefits of publishing a preprint? At Preprints.org, we empower researchers to freely and instantly share their work with a global audience, helping you gain early feedback, boost visibility, and accelerate discovery. Join over 420,000 researchers advancing open science on our accessible, multidisciplinary platform. Ready to submit? Upload your preprint today and make your work quickly discoverable.
Just exploring? Browse over 120,000 preprints across disciplines and stay ahead of the latest research.
