Open access has revolutionized the publishing landscape, removing barriers to access scholarly research worldwide. And this level of accessibility is crucial in today’s world.
Important scientific advancements are being made every day. Open access facilitates this advancement of research by allowing for the rapid and broad dissemination of findings and data within the scientific community. Preprints are a type of publication that similarly facilitates the spread of important research. But are preprints open access?
Indeed, they are; preprints fully support the principles of open access. Preliminary research made available to researchers and the public in advance of publication, preprints perhaps embody the philosophy of open access more than any other type of publication.
What is open access?
Open access is a publishing model originating in the mid-1990s. The model was an answer to what was known as the serials crisis. Rising journal subscription prices during this period led many libraries to cancel their subscriptions due to insufficient budgets. Research, which is so beneficial, needs to be freely accessible. And so, the open access model was born.
It’s essential to remember that open access isn’t just a publishing model; it’s also a movement with its own aims and principles. Primarily, open access is concerned with ensuring widespread accessibility, facilitating knowledge sharing, and promoting collaboration. Any publication published as open access is free to be downloaded, distributed, and reused, provided the work and author are cited. This applies to Preprints, which are published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license. (For more information, see our FAQ).
By removing financial barriers, such as paywalls and subscription fees, open access ensures the promotion of equality across the publishing landscape. This accessibility levels the playing field, but it also increases research visibility and maximizes citation impact.
Now that we know the basics of open access, let’s look at why preprints are open access and how they complement this type of publishing model.
What are preprints?
Preprints are early or “in-progress” versions of an academic article, made freely available online prior to peer review and publication.
Preprints are uploaded to a dedicated online preprint server, where they are quickly processed and published. Although there are formal guidelines to follow when submitting, the process of uploading a preprint is much smoother than for journal articles.
The point of a preprint is to get your research out into the world as fast as possible. Platforms like Preprint.org ensure the process is as easy as possible for authors. (Consult Preprint.org’s instructions for authors to understand how to publish your preprint with us).
With preprints, authors are able to receive external, though unofficial, feedback on the current state of their research. This opens up the reviewing process, meaning that authors can receive constructive criticism and direction much earlier in the research process.
Preprints are also assigned a digital object identifier (DOI), meaning that they can be indexed in online databases for maximum visibility.
In recent years, the importance and popularity of preprints have only increased, especially in the context of open access. But why are preprints open access in the first place?
Why preprints are open access
Preprints and open access have a shared history. They can both be seen as arising out of the needs of academic publishing as it has grown within the digital era. And preprints have been positively impacted by open access.
As of 2025, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has adopted a new policy on open access. The policy states that the Foundation will no longer be supporting the payment of article processing charges. Instead, grantees will be encouraged to publish their research as a preprint.
This policy change emphasizes the growing place of preprints in our society in recent years, especially post-pandemic. It’s hoped that such changes will save money and speed up the advancement of scientific research.
It’s this kind of societal and cultural context that has emphasised the importance of accessible research. Furthermore, preprints are open access for a myriad of reasons. Here are some of the benefits that come with publishing preprints as open access:
- Facilitate the speedy dissemination of important research
- Help establish research priority
- Early feedback for authors and more opportunities for collaboration
- Free to post and access, supporting equitable participation in science for both authors and readers
Let’s look at these benefits a bit more closely.
Speedy dissemination
By bypassing traditional publishing delays commonly associated with peer review, preprints can be shared online quickly. Indeed, the screening process generally takes around 24 hours. Once a preprint has been screened, it’s then posted online as open access. This facilitation of research dissemination helps advance the global scientific knowledge base.
Free to publish and access
Preprints are also free to access for other researchers, who can easily cite, share, and seek knowledge from the work. And it doesn’t cost the author to upload a preprint either. This no-cost model significantly supports equality and accessibility in academic publishing.
Early feedback
Attractive to researchers is the early feedback that can be gained from publishing a preprint. Not inhibited by traditional peer review, preprints open up the reviewing process. They invite researchers and readers to leave feedback on the current state of the research. This means that researchers, instead of committing their work to external consultants, can receive constructive criticism from various sources. Furthermore, they are free to integrate this feedback into their work whenever they wish.
Establish research priority
Finally, preprints help authors establish research priority. The accelerated dissemination of research and collaboration enabled by open access and preprints leads to research gaps and priority topics being identified much faster.
Learn more about Preprints.org
Ready to share your research with the world? At Preprints.org, we empower researchers to freely and instantly share their work with a global audience. This helps you gain early feedback, boost visibility, and accelerate discovery. Utilized effectively, preprints can become tools that you can use to improve your research and advance your career. Join over 350,000 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 100,000 preprints across disciplines and stay ahead of the latest research.
Just exploring? Browse over 100,000 preprints across disciplines and stay ahead of the latest research.
