This is an updated and revised version of our checklist to support editors and publishers of open access journals who use Open Journals Systems (OJS) software. OJS is created by the Public Knowledge Project (PKP), which is a multi-university initiative developing free and open source software to improve the quality and reach of scholarly publishing.

The Checklist includes an overview of the latest release of OJS 3 (OJS 3.5.0-3 released December 2025) and tips on software plugins, journal procedures and policies, system security and content preservation, usage statistics, and suggestions for improving content accessibility, visibility and discoverability. It also includes a section about indexing journals in DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals) and Google Scholar, and best practice recommendations on OA journal publishing. 

This is the fourth version of the Checklist. If you have any comments and suggestions regarding the Checklist, please email them to EIFL Open Access Programme Manager Iryna Kuchma, iryna.kuchma@eifl.net.

Cite this Checklist as: Kuchma, I., & Ševkušić, M. (2026). Checklist of good practices in using Open Journal Systems software (OJS) for journal editing and publishing (4.0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18630612