How to Get DOIs for Your Journal Through Crossref

Most journals get their DOIs by joining Crossref, the registration agency for scholarly publishing. You get your own DOI prefix, register a DOI for each article, and pay a yearly fee plus a small fee per DOI. Here’s the whole process.

What you need first

• A journal website where every article has its own stable page (OJS gives you this).
• An ISSN is strongly recommended, so your journal’s DOIs carry it.
• Someone who’ll keep the metadata accurate: titles, authors, dates and references.
• A way to pay a yearly invoice in US dollars, unless you join through a sponsor.

Step 1: Choose direct or sponsored membership

	Direct member	Through a sponsor
Who you deal with	Crossref	A sponsor organisation that joins on your behalf
Billing	Crossref invoices you in USD	The sponsor pays Crossref and bills you
Support	Crossref’s team	Often local, sometimes in your language
Extra charges	None	Sponsors may charge for their services: ask first

Crossref also has a fee-free programme, GEM, for publishers in eligible countries. Both your mailing and billing addresses must be in an eligible country, and the list is reviewed every year.

Step 2: Understand the fees

There are two parts: a yearly membership fee based on your publishing revenue or expenses, and a one-time fee for each DOI you register. Small publishers are in the lowest tiers, and older content costs less to register than new content. Crossref has also announced lower registration fees from 2027. Check the current amounts on Crossref’s fees page.

Step 3: Apply

Apply on Crossref’s membership page (or with your sponsor). Crossref checks your application, then sends your DOI prefix and login details.

Step 4: Set up DOIs in OJS

1. In OJS 3.4 or 3.5, open Settings → Distribution → DOIs, switch DOIs on and choose what gets them (articles, and optionally issues and galleys).
2. Enter your prefix and choose a suffix pattern, for example journal initials, year and article number.
3. Under registration, choose Crossref and enter your depositor details and Crossref login.
4. Assign DOIs and deposit them from the DOIs page in the left menu, one by one or in bulk, or let OJS deposit automatically.

More detail: DOI options in OJS.

Step 5: Check and display

• Look your DOIs up on Crossref Search and click one to check it lands on the right article.
• Show the full link (https://doi.org/…) on each article page and in its citation.
• Keep the metadata up to date if a page moves or a correction is published.

Register references along with your articles. Crossref uses them for reference linking and Cited-by, which is how your journal sees who cites it.

This guide is independent and isn’t endorsed by Crossref, DataCite, Zenodo or the DOI Foundation. Fees, rules and screens are theirs to change: the details here were checked in October 2026, so confirm them on the official site before you budget or apply.

Want this set up for you? Our OJS support covers Crossref setup and deposits in OJS.

Questions

How much does a Crossref DOI cost?

There’s a yearly membership fee (lowest for small publishers) and a one-time fee per DOI, which is lower for back content. Exact amounts are on crossref.org/fees; eligible countries pay nothing under the GEM programme.

How long does Crossref membership take?

Crossref reviews each application before issuing a prefix. Apply well before the issue you want DOIs for.

Do I need an ISSN to get DOIs?

It’s strongly recommended. Crossref deposits for journals include the ISSN, and indexes expect it.

Can I add DOIs to articles already published?

Yes. Register them as back content; it costs less than current content.