Open Access APC Waivers and Discounts

ACM Sponsored Conferences

ACM offers Geographic Article Processing Charge (APC) waivers and discounts for APC-eligible ACM Sponsored Conference articles that are not covered by ACM Open institutional licenses in several specific categories, as follows:

• Authors based in low income countries, as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 100% waiver
• Authors based in lower middle income countries , as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 50% discount off applicable APCs
• Authors from countries covered by ACM’s agreements with EIFL and Research4Life: 100% waiver

To ease the transition for conference authors to full Open Access in 2026, ACM is providing a significant temporary APC subsidy for 2026 conferences for those articles that are not covered by ACM Open Institutional Agreements. For articles where one of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $250/article (down from the list price of $700), and for articles where none of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $350/article (down from the list price of $1,000). For articles eligible for 50% geographic discounts, the discount will be applied to the applicable subsidized rate.

As a result of the 2026 subsidized APC pricing, no discretionary waivers will be offered for ACM Sponsored Conference articles.

Proceedings of the ACM (PACM) Journal / Conference Series

ACM offers Geographic Article Processing Charge (APC) waivers and discounts for APC-eligible Proceedings of the ACM (PACM) articles that are not covered by ACM Open institutional licenses in several specific categories, as follows:

• Authors based in low income countries, as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 100% waiver
• Authors based in lower middle income countries , as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 50% discount off applicable APCs
• Authors from countries covered by ACM’s agreements with EIFL and Research4Life: 100% waiver

To ease the transition for PACM authors to full Open Access in 2026, ACM is providing a significant temporary APC subsidy for 2026 PACM articles that are not covered by ACM Open Institutional Agreements. For articles where one of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $250/article (down from the list price $700), and for articles where none of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $350/article (down from the list price of $1,000). For articles eligible for 50% geographic discounts, the discount will be applied to the applicable subsidized rate.

As a result of the 2026 subsidized APC pricing, no discretionary waivers will be offered for PACM articles directly affiliated with ACM Sponsored Conferences.

International Conference Proceedings Series (ICPS)

ACM offers Geographic Article Processing Charge (APC) waivers and discounts for all APC-eligible ICPS Published Articles that are not covered by ACM Open institutional licenses in several specific categories, as follows:

• Authors based in low income countries, as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 100% waiver
• Authors based in lower middle income countries , as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 50% discount off applicable APCs
• Authors from countries covered by ACM’s agreements with EIFL and Research4Life: 100% waiver

To ease the transition for conference authors to full Open Access in 2025 & 2026, ACM is providing a significant temporary APC subsidy for ICPS articles that are not covered by ACM Open Institutional Agreements. For articles where one of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $250/article (down from the list price $700), and for articles where none of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $350/article (down from the list price of $1,000). For articles eligible for 50% geographic discounts, the discount will be applied to the applicable subsidized rate.

As a result of the 2026 subsidized APC pricing, no discretionary waivers will be offered for ICPS articles.

ACM Journals

ACM offers Geographic Article Processing Charge (APC) waivers and discounts for all APC-eligible ACM Journal articles that are not covered by ACM Open institutional licenses in several specific categories, as follows:

• Authors based in low income countries, as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 100% waiver
• Authors based in lower middle income countries , as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 50% discount off applicable APCs
• Authors from countries covered by ACM’s agreements with EIFL and Research4Life: 100% waiver

To ease the transition for ACM Journal authors to full Open Access in 2026, ACM is providing a significant temporary APC subsidy for 2026 ACM Journal articles that are not covered by ACM Open Institutional Agreements. For articles where one of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $950/article (down from the list price $1,300), and for articles where none of the named co-authors is an ACM or SIG Member, the subsidized rate is $1,450/article (down from the list price of $1,800). For articles eligible for 50% geographic discounts, the discount will be applied to the applicable subsidized rate.

ACM Journal authors not covered by these automatic waivers and discounts may apply for a discretionary waiver from ACM, based on financial need.

To request a discretionary APC waiver for an ACM Journal Article, please write to [email protected] and include the following information:

• Article Title
• Author Names and Institutional Affiliations for all listed co-authors, including all authors' departmental affiliations
• Publication Title (i.e., Journal Title, Conference Title, Magazine Title, etc.)
• Submission Date
• Acceptance Date (i.e., if already accepted)
• The name of the Research Funder underwriting the research
• A detailed explanation of the reason for the waiver request

* Please note that only applications that demonstrate a genuine financial need will be considered. Papers with multiple co-authors from computer science or engineering departments in developed countries where there is a reasonable expectation that the authors' institutions should be ACM Open participants are unlikely to receive discretionary waivers. Discretionary waivers will not be granted for Hybrid Open Access publications in 2025, as these publications may still publish without an APC requirement.

As from January 1, 2026 all ACM Journals will be considered Gold Open Access and will require participation in ACM Open, a waiver, or the payment of an APC. Please note that all accepted ACM Journal articles where the eRights process has been completed on or after 12:00am Eastern Time on January 1, 2026 shall be subject to the new Open Access requirements.

ACM Magazines

ACM offers Geographic Article Processing Charge (APC) waivers and discounts for all APC-eligible Magazine articles that are not covered by ACM Open institutional licenses in several specific categories, as follows:

• Authors based in low income countries, as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 100% waiver
• Authors based in lower middle income countries , as identified in the World Bank List of Economies: 50% discount off applicable APCs
• Authors from countries covered by ACM’s agreements with EIFL and Research4Life: 100% waiver

To ease the transition for ACM Magazine authors to full Open Access in 2026 and because most ACM Magazine articles are not APC-eligible and are invited by ACM to submit to ACM Magazines, ACM is providing a 100% subsidy for 2026 articles that are not covered by ACM Open Institutional Agreements. For 2026, this subsidy will cover 100% of the applicable APC cost.

As a result of the 2026 subsidized APC pricing for ACM Magazine articles, no discretionary waivers will be offered for ACM Magazine articles.

This policy statement is consistent with the Research4Life Best Practices for APC Waivers.