Quick Answer
You get a DOI for your journal by registering with Crossref, the official DOI registration agency for scholarly publishing, either as a direct member or through an authorized Crossref sponsor. Your journal needs a valid ISSN and a working website with published content first. Direct membership costs $275/year plus $1 per DOI and takes 2-4 weeks to set up. Working through a sponsor such as GetDOI/SRND removes the annual fee and cuts setup to about 3-5 days, because the sponsor handles the Crossref account, metadata deposits, and technical configuration for you.
Two Ways to Register
Crossref does not sell DOIs directly to individual journals in a checkout-style process. Every DOI your journal assigns has to pass through a Crossref membership account, and there are exactly two routes to one:
| Route | Annual Fee | Setup Time | Who Handles Metadata |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct Crossref membership | $275/year + $1 per DOI | 2-4 weeks | Your team |
| Sponsored membership (e.g. GetDOI/SRND) | ₹0 | 3-5 days | The sponsor |
1. Direct Crossref Membership
You apply to Crossref as an independent member organization. Once approved, Crossref assigns your journal a unique DOI prefix, and you become responsible for submitting XML metadata for every article, keeping that metadata current, and troubleshooting any deposit errors yourself. This suits publishers with technical staff and enough volume to make the flat annual fee worthwhile.
2. Sponsored Membership (Most Common for Independent Journals)
A Crossref-authorized sponsor - an organization already a Crossref member - registers DOIs on your behalf under its own membership umbrella. You get a dedicated prefix for your journal, but the sponsor handles account setup, metadata formatting, and submission. This is the route most small and mid-sized journals take because it avoids the $275/year fee and the learning curve of Crossref's deposit systems.
What Your Journal Needs Before Applying
- A valid ISSN (print or online) - Crossref requires this to identify your journal.
- A functioning website with at least one published issue or article.
- A defined editorial board and contact information.
- A documented peer-review policy.
If you don't have an ISSN yet, get that first - see ISSN Requirements for DOI Registration - since Crossref (and most sponsors) won't proceed without one.
Step-by-Step: Getting a DOI Through a Sponsor
- Contact a sponsor and share your ISSN, journal website, and publication history.
- Requirements check - the sponsor confirms your journal is ready for registration.
- Prefix assignment - your unique Crossref DOI prefix is issued.
- Metadata preparation - article titles, authors, and abstracts are formatted to Crossref's schema.
- Deposit and verification - DOIs are registered and tested to confirm they resolve correctly.
Common Reasons Applications Get Delayed
After Your DOI Prefix Is Active
Once your prefix is live, new articles get a DOI as you publish them, and you can also register DOIs retroactively for previously published issues (backfile registration). See can I register DOIs for articles I already published? for that process.