ACM to Introduce Article Processing Charges as It Transitions to Full Open Access in 2026
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The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), one of the most influential publishers in the computing field, has announced a major shift in its publishing model. Beginning January 1, 2026, all conference papers and journal articles published under ACM will be subject to Article Processing Charges (APCs). This marks ACM’s full transition to a complete Open Access (OA) publishing model.
A Significant Move Toward Full Open Access
Starting in 2026, ACM will operate entirely as a Full Open Access publisher, making 100% of its journals and conference proceedings freely accessible to readers worldwide. ACM states that this shift reflects its commitment to building a sustainable open research ecosystem that benefits the global computing community.
According to usage statistics from the ACM Digital Library, open-access articles enjoy substantial advantages:
- 2–3× higher download rates compared with subscription-based content
- 70% more citations than articles behind paywalls
- Inclusion in both standard and premium versions of the Digital Library
- Immediate compliance with the open-access mandates of most global funding agencies
These metrics highlight the visibility, influence, and reach that OA publication can provide authors.
APC Waivers and Eligibility
Once the transition is complete, some authors will still be able to publish without paying APCs. Waivers apply under the following conditions:
- The corresponding author's institution participates in ACM Open, ACM’s transformative agreement program
- The corresponding author's country is classified by the World Bank as a low-income economy
More than 1,800 institutions already participate in ACM Open, and the number is expected to continue growing. This means that for a large portion of ACM authors, APCs will remain fully waived.
Institutions participating in ACM Open can be found on ACM’s official website:
https://libraries.acm.org/acmopen/open-participantsAPC Pricing Structure for 2026
For authors who do not qualify for a waiver, APCs will apply beginning January 1, 2026. To ease the transition and encourage broader institutional participation, ACM will provide a temporary subsidy for all articles processed through its eRights system in 2026.
2026 APC Fees (after ACM’s temporary subsidy)
Article Type Non-ACM/SIG Member At Least One ACM/SIG Member Journal Article $1450 $950 Journal Article (Low/Lower-Middle Income Regions) $725 $475 Conference Paper $350 $250 Conference Paper (Low/Lower-Middle Income Regions) $175 $125 Note: Mainland China is not considered a low- or lower-middle-income region.
ACM Journals Relevant to Artificial Intelligence
Below is a selection of ACM journals frequently referenced in AI research:
- ACM Transactions on AI for Science (TAIS)
- ACM Transactions on AI Security and Privacy (TAISAP)
- ACM Transactions on Algorithms (TALG)
- ACM Transactions on Asian and Low-Resource Language Information Processing (TALLIP)
- ACM Transactions on Interactive Intelligent Systems (TIIS)
- ACM Transactions on Intelligent Systems and Technology (TIST)
- ACM Transactions on Knowledge Discovery from Data (TKDD)
- ACM Transactions on Multimedia Computing, Communications, and Applications (TOMM)
- ACM Computing Surveys (CSUR)
- Journal of the ACM (JACM)
As ACM shifts fully into Open Access, authors are encouraged to review the most recent policies, waiver conditions, and APC details before submitting manuscripts. Planning ahead will help ensure a smooth transition under the new publishing framework.
