How to check a scientific figure before journal submission

1. Decide the likely publication width first

A figure cannot be evaluated properly without an output size. The same raster file can be adequate at one-column width and inadequate when enlarged across two columns. Text and line weights behave the opposite way: they may look comfortable on screen but become too small after reduction.

2. Separate raster content from vector artwork

Photographs and microscopy images are raster content and need enough pixels for the intended output size. Graphs, diagrams, text, and line art are often better kept as vector elements when the journal accepts a vector format.

3. Calculate effective resolution

For raster artwork, divide the pixel width by the intended output width in inches. That gives the effective pixels per inch at publication size. Publishers often describe this operationally as DPI.

4. Inspect the reduced figure, not the editing canvas

• Can every axis label and legend entry be read without zooming?
• Do thin lines, error bars, marker edges, and annotation leaders remain visible?
• Are panel labels easy to locate and consistent?
• Does the visual hierarchy still make the intended reading order obvious?

5. Test accessibility separately from aesthetics

Check whether categories remain distinguishable under common colour-vision deficiencies and in grayscale. Where colour carries meaning, add a redundant cue such as marker shape, line style, direct label, or pattern.

6. Check standalone structure and manuscript consistency

Make sure axes, units, legends, panel labels, and scale bars are present where needed. Then compare the figure against the rest of the manuscript: typography, terminology, colours, panel conventions, and file preparation should not drift from one figure to the next.

7. Finish with the journal’s current instructions

Publisher-wide guidance is a useful baseline, but the selected journal and submission stage are authoritative. Some journals accept flexible files for peer review and request stricter production artwork only after acceptance.

Source note

Publisher specifications are not universal and can change by journal, artwork type, and submission stage. The target journal’s current instructions remain authoritative.

• Nature — final submission figure guidance
• IEEE — graphics resolution and size
• Frontiers — image size, resolution, and accessibility