To get your paper correctly formatted as per the specifications of your target journal, the best options are Editage, Taylor & Francis Editing Services, Wiley Editing Services, Sage Author Services, American Journal Experts, and Pubrica. We’ll discuss each of these manuscript formatting services in this article and highlight what sets them apart.
Editage
Formatting services at Editage cover every aspect of your journal’s specifications: from the title page to supplementary data for a standard package. Formatting experts at Editage can follow all major style guidelines like APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE, AMA, etc. Editage also has a popular Multi-Round Formatting option, where you get unlimited rounds of formatting for multiple journals for 365 days. This is particularly useful if you’re in a highly competitive field where authors often get rejected and have to resubmit to another journal several times before getting even peer-reviewed. Labs and departments can also opt for an annual manuscript formatting package to drive costs down even further.
- Best for: All STEM research, especially papers intended for top-tier journals or journals with high-quality standards
- Price: USD 60 onwards
- Turnaround time: 1 day onwards
Taylor & Francis Editing Services
Taylor & Francis Editing Services verifies that your manuscript meets your target journal’s guidelines, with special emphasis on the abstract, tables, figures, and references. Their formatting team has deep experience in APA, MLA, ACS, and AMA styles, among others. Their formatting team will also indicate to you if your title, abstract, etc., exceeds your journal’s limit. The service also accepts theses and dissertations if your institution has its own style guide or formatting guidelines.
- Best for: Researchers and students on tight budgets who want a professionally structured manuscript
- Price: USD 99
- Turnaround time: 3 days
Wiley Editing Services
Wiley Editing Services meticulously applies all journal guidelines to your paper, including a template if the journal asks you to follow one. The service will both cross-check and update any references that have missing information, as well as convert footnotes to endnotes and vice versa as required. Your cited references are also checked for accuracy. However, the company does not format equations or Bluebook-style legal references. Wiley Editing Services also offers unlimited rounds of formatting for one journal for 365 days.
- Best for: Humanities, medicine, and life sciences authors looking to save time and work more efficiently
- Price: USD 99-150
- Turnaround time: 1 day onwards
Sage Author Services
Realising that 66% of authors find journal guidelines unclear or incomplete, Sage Author Services aims to free you of the tedious hassle of manuscript formatting by adjusting your page layout, spacing, reference style, etc. to meet journal guidelines. All formatting is done in MS Word, using Track Changes for easy visibility. Sage Author Services also accepts theses and dissertations for formatting.
- Best for: Students and researchers unfamiliar with style guidelines and those new to international scholarly publishing
- Price: ~USD 125
- Turnaround time: 3 business days
American Journal Experts (AJE)
AJE’s manuscript formatting service will handle page layout, image placement, title page formatting, etc., in both MS Word and LaTeX. The service includes an accuracy check of your reference list. You will be informed if you need to reduce the word count in any section of the paper to meet journal guidelines. Formatting is also available as part of a suite of services, including English editing.
- Best for: Scientists, especially in the physical sciences, who want to outsource mundane formatting to focus on high-value tasks
- Price: USD 75 onwards
- Turnaround time: 3 business days
Pubrica
Pubrica’s formatting service ensures your manuscript is aligned with your target journal’s style, including tables and figures. Reference formatting is included in their Standard Package but accuracy checks are done only under the more expensive packages. Under their high-end Premium formatting package, you can also get light copyediting to fix basic language errors in your paper.
- Best for: Authors confident about the quality of their writing and who just want to avoid spending hours on formatting details
- Price: USD 149 per manuscript
- Turnaround time: 2-7 days
Enago
Enago offers a formatting service that addresses page layout, citation and reference style, etc. The service also includes artwork editing to ensure that your images meet the journal’s guidelines for resolution, file format, etc.
- Best for: Academic researchers with flexible budgets who want to save time and avoid common submission errors
- Price: USD 119-340 (depending on manuscript length)
- Turnaround time: 2-10 business days
Frequently Asked Questions
Does formatting include word reduction?
Most of the companies listed here don’t do word reduction under the formatting-alone service, because word reduction requires making changes to the text beyond just consistency and style. But Editage, for example, offers free manuscript formatting with various editing services, and under these, you’ll also get word reduction done for you.
Do I need reformatting if my paper is rejected from one journal and I submit it to another?
Yes, you will likely need reformatting when you are changing journals. If you’re in a super-competitive field where rejection is common, opt for a formatting service that allows you multiple rounds of formatting for different journals, like Editage.
Are tables and figures included in a manuscript formatting service?
Most manuscript formatting services will also check your tables and figures for adherence to journal guidelines. In case these are embedded images and not editable, the formatting expert will leave detailed comments for you about what changes you need to make.
