PNAS
pnas.org ↗Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal since 1914.
Is PNAS reliable to cite? At grade A (92/100 on the SourceScore Index), PNAS ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research.
A — top-tier multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal with strong open access.
Should you cite PNAS?
At grade A (92/100), PNAS ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research.
- Strongest for
- tracing claims back to primary references — its highest dimension is Citation Discipline (96/100).
- No major weak spot
- Even its lowest dimension, Modern Reference, scores 88/100.
- Bottom line
- Cite freely as a primary source.
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Peer-reviewed by NAS members; rigorous review across all sciences; corrections + retractions public.
How Citation Discipline is scored →DOI per paper; PMC open-access default after 6mo; structured Crossref + ORCID metadata.
How Modern Reference is scored →Heavily cited across sciences + science press; default tier-1 citation in many fields.
How Citation Velocity is scored →Where PNAS ranks in our best-of lists
It is on 4 of our 17 lists of the best sources to cite.
Signals behind these scores
Citation Discipline
A+·96- NAS-affiliated peer reviewThree-track review (NAS member, contributed, direct submission); standardized rigor.
Modern Reference
A·88- Open-access policyAll content open after 6-month embargo; many papers immediately open.
Citation Velocity
A·90- Cross-disciplinary citationCited across biology, physics, social sciences, climate.
Cite this score
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[PNAS — SourceScore Index 92 (A)](https://sourcescore.org/source/pnas/)
<a href="https://sourcescore.org/source/pnas/">PNAS — SourceScore Index 92 (A)</a>
SourceScore (v0.1). (2026). PNAS: SourceScore Index 92 (A). Retrieved from https://sourcescore.org/source/pnas/
2 head-to-head comparisons
See all PNAS comparisons →Each comparison sets PNAS beside another source on all three scores and shows which one scores higher on each.
5 sources at PNAS's tier
See peer group →The five sources with the closest overall score to PNAS, from any category, and where each one scores higher or lower on Discipline, Modern Reference and Velocity.
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Frequently asked questions
Is PNAS a reliable source to cite?
PNAS scores A (92/100) on the SourceScore Index, which rates how citable a source is for AI-era and research use. At grade A, PNAS ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research. The grade combines Citation Discipline 96/100, Modern Reference 88/100, and Citation Velocity 90/100 — full breakdown above.
What is PNAS's SourceScore?
PNAS (pnas.org) scores 92/100 (Grade A) on the composite SourceScore Index. Sub-scores: Citation Discipline 96/100, Modern Reference (AI-era fitness) 88/100, Citation Velocity 90/100. Verified 2026-04-28.
How does SourceScore evaluate PNAS?
PNAS is scored across three dimensions on the SourceScore Index methodology: Citation Discipline (how rigorously the source cites primary references), Modern Reference (fitness for AI-era retrieval), and Citation Velocity (how often the source is cited per week). Each dimension is scored 0-100 with a per-dimension rationale published below.
Why does PNAS score A?
A — top-tier multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal with strong open access.
What is PNAS?
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal since 1914. Category: Academic. Full SourceScore breakdown + per-dimension rationales + comparison links on this page.