- Demo journal live
- Migration included
- Daily backups
- Current stable OJS
01The honest question
OJS is free software. So what are you paying for?
Open Journal Systems is released under the GPL, and you can absolutely run it yourself. Many journals do, and do it well. What we sell is the operations work around it — not the software.
If your team already has a sysadmin who enjoys PHP upgrades, self-hosting is a perfectly good answer and we would rather you kept doing it. If it does not, that work still has to happen. It just happens at 11pm, the night before a deadline, by whoever is least able to refuse.
| Self-hosted OJS | With us | |
|---|---|---|
| Software licence | Free (GPL) | Free (GPL) |
| Version upgrades | Your team, every release | We test and run them |
| Server, PHP, database | You maintain | We maintain |
| Backups and restore | You configure | Daily, automated |
| Email deliverability | You configure SPF/DKIM | Configured and monitored |
| DOI / Crossref setup | You research it | We set it up |
| Security patches | You track them | Applied for you |
| Your data | Yours | Yours — export any time |
You keep your GPL rights either way. Nothing here is locked to us: request a full export of your files and database whenever you want, in a format you can run yourself.
02What is included
What “managed” actually means here
In every plan. We do not charge add-on pricing for the things that keep a journal alive.
- 01
Managed version upgrades
We test each OJS release against a copy of your journal, fix theme and plugin breakage, then migrate you. Never during an open review round.
- 02
Automated backups
Daily snapshots of files and database, retained and restorable. Ask for a restore point at any time.
- 03
Custom domain + SSL
Your journal runs on your own domain, with certificates issued and renewed automatically.
- 04
Email deliverability
SMTP configured with SPF, DKIM and DMARC, so reviewer invitations land in inboxes instead of spam folders.
- 05
DOI & Crossref
Crossref membership setup, deposit configuration and metadata checks, so your DOIs actually resolve.
- 06
DOAJ & indexing
The technical requirements handled — metadata, OAI-PMH, machine-readable licensing — plus guidance through the application.
- 07
ISSN support
Help applying through your national ISSN centre and registering it correctly inside OJS.
- 08
Plagiarism screening
Integration with the similarity checking tool your editorial board already uses.
- 09
Migration included
We move your existing journal, its archives and its users off your current host. No separate fee.
- 10
Isolated infrastructure
Your journal runs in its own container with its own database. No shared tenancy with other journals.
The real cost of self-hosting
The upgrade you keep postponing
Every OJS major release brings the same week: a staging copy that will not build, a theme that breaks, plugins with no maintainer left, a PHP version your server does not have, and a submission queue that cannot pause while you debug it.
So most editorial teams solve it by not upgrading — and quietly fall years behind on security patches.
That week is our job, not yours. We test each release against a copy of your journal, fix what breaks, and move you across without interrupting an open review round.
03Migration
Moving in is our work, not yours
Coming from another host, a university server, or an OJS version several releases behind — the process is the same.
- 1
You send access
Read-only credentials to your current install, or simply a database dump and a files archive.
- 2
We build a copy
We stand your journal up on a staging URL, upgrade it if needed, and fix whatever breaks. Your live journal is never touched.
- 3
You approve, we switch
You review the staging copy at your own pace. When you sign off, we point your domain across. Submissions keep working throughout.
Included in every plan. If we cannot migrate your journal, you do not pay.
04Pricing
Published prices, because you should not need a sales call
Every plan includes managed upgrades, backups, migration and support. The tiers differ in scale, not in whether we look after you.
Journal
A single active journal, fully looked after.
€250/year
- 1 journal
- Current stable OJS, installed & configured
- Managed OJS upgrades
- Migration included — free transfer
- Daily backups
- 25 GB storage
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Custom domain + SSL (Let's Encrypt)
- Email deliverability (SPF · DKIM · DMARC)
- Journal email accounts
- DOI / Crossref setup
- DOAJ & indexing guidance
- ISSN support
- Plagiarism tool integration
- Dedicated MySQL database
- Malware & exploit scanning
- Brute-force protection
- 2h onboarding & editor training
- Priority support, under 24h
Press
A small press or faculty with a few journals.
€699/year
- Up to 3 journals
- Everything in Journal, for every journal
- Unlimited storage
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Multi-journal administration
- Cross-journal user & role management
- Staging site for safe upgrade testing
- Comprehensive priority support
- 5h onboarding & editor training
- Extended backup retention
- Web control panel access
- A named contact who knows your setup
Enterprise
A large press or institution with many journals.
Custom
- 4+ journals or a full press
- Everything in Press
- Custom SLA & uptime terms
- Dedicated, isolated infrastructure
- Single sign-on (SSO) options
- Custom integrations & API access
- Invoicing & procurement support
- Dedicated account manager
Prices in EUR, billed annually. Charged through Polar, our merchant of record — VAT is calculated and handled at checkout. Cancel any time from your customer portal.
05FAQ
The questions editors actually ask
Can you migrate our existing journal?
Yes, and it is included in every plan. We take read-only access or a dump of your current install, rebuild it on a staging URL, upgrade it if it is behind, and switch your domain once you approve. If we cannot migrate it, you do not pay.
Do we keep our DOIs?
Yes. DOIs belong to your Crossref membership, not to your host. We reconfigure deposits so they resolve to your new URLs, and every existing DOI keeps working.
Will you get us into DOAJ?
We handle the technical requirements — metadata quality, OAI-PMH, machine-readable licensing — and guide you through the application. We cannot promise acceptance: that is DOAJ's editorial decision, and anyone who promises otherwise is selling you something.
We do not have an ISSN yet.
We help you apply through your national ISSN centre and register it correctly inside OJS.
Which OJS version do you run?
Current stable. We test each new release against a copy of your journal before moving you, so you are never left sitting on an unsupported version.
Who owns the data?
You do. Request a full export of your files and database at any time, in a format you can run yourself. OJS is GPL software — you can take the whole thing and self-host it, and we will help you leave cleanly.
What happens if a payment fails?
Nothing sudden. A failed payment starts a warning period, then your journal becomes read-only — published content stays public and readable — before access is paused. We do not cut off a journal in the middle of a review round.
Can we cancel?
Any time, from your customer portal. Your journal stays available through the end of the period you paid for, and you leave with a full export.
Stop scheduling the upgrade week
Move your journal across, or start a fresh one. Either way the operations stop being your problem.