Where can I publish a book open access without (necessarily) paying a fee? A list of Diamond open access options

Many publishers utilise various business models that enable them to publish some (or all) of their books open access without charging authors a fee, often called a Book Processing Charge (BPC).  

While the opportunities for authors to participate in these models grow, there have not been many attempts to collate these into a comprehensive list for interested authors.  

The list linked here (below) aims to provide this resource as a starting point for authors looking into their options for publishing open access books without a fee.  

For authors:  

It is important to note that there is virtually no 100% Diamond open access press – always contact a press you are interested in early on to discuss this option. Please note also that even many fully Diamond OA presses would prefer to receive a BPC if one is available to you at your institution, to help them to focus their support on authors who are unaffiliated or who do not have access to institutional funds such as many early career researchers.

This type of open access is not ‘free’, but rather free at the point of use by both readers and authors. Publishers still need to cover the costs associated with publishing. If your publisher is able to receive funds (for example if they are a member of the Open Book Collective or another funding scheme) please encourage your library to support them, and this publishing ecosystem, where possible. 

Caveats and restrictions:  

These models are often referred to as ‘Diamond’ open access, to differentiate it from open access models in which fees are paid by authors. While there have been some recent moves, such as by the Diamond Discovery Hub, to change the definition of Diamond to exclude some publisher types, this list does not make this distinction and includes publishers of all type and size.  

It has been collated from my own knowledge gained during my time on the Copim Project, working on the Opening the Future Diamond OA funding model, and relies on details from public-facing publisher and funding scheme websites. It has been partially supplemented by the addition of a small number of European Diamond OA publishers from the Diamond Open Access Book Publishers List published in September 2025 by Lena Ryzhová and Benedetta Siviero of the Diamond OA Expertise Center. 

There are some university presses who participate in collective funding schemes such as JSTOR’s Path to Open or De Gruyter’s UPLOpen who have not been listed here as it is unclear from their websites how authors benefit from this funding. In the case of JSTOR, I have also largely excluded it because titles published under that scheme are subject to a three-year embargo which can make it non-compliant with many funder/institutional requirements.  

I have not included publishers who require institutional affiliation to participate (e.g. The University of Groningen Press does not charge authors, but authors must be based at the University of Groningen) as this arrangement falls outside the purpose of this list. All authors who have an institutional press should contact them directly about options. I have made an exception to this where only one author needs to be affiliated to the institution, with cross-institutional collaboration supported with regards to the rest of the author list. These presses are listed on a second tab of the sheet. 

If you think your press belongs on this list and is currently missing, please get in touch at K.Hopkins1@lse.ac.uk. Alternatively, if your press is listed and I have gotten the details wrong, please contact me and I will correct them.