Frequently Asked Questions

You can purchase any of our subscriptions here.

Digital

The Scientific American Digital subscription includes new digital monthly issues for one year (with a combined July/August issue), as well access to all subscription issues going back to 1845 in our archive online, podcasts, videos, online articles, and access to all app issues in both Android and Apple devices.

Print & Digital

The Print & Digital subscription includes new print and digital monthly issues for one year (with a combined July/August issue), as well access to all subscription issues going back to 1845 in our archive online, podcasts, videos,online articles, and access to all app issues in both Android and Apple devices.

Unlimited

The Unlimited subscription includes new print and digital monthly issues for one year (with a combined July/August issue), as well access to all subscription issues going back to 1845 in our archive online, podcasts, videos, online articles, and access to all app issues in both Android and Apple devices.

Unlimited subscribers also receive an exclusive monthly newsletter from our Editor in Chief, Laura Helmuth, access to all Special Editions online, a free digital gift subscription to give, a reprint of the first Scientific American published in 1845, and a Scientific American tote bag.

Most changes and updates to your subscriptions can be done by signing in to My Account.  Print subscribers can also use this account management page to:

• Update your mailing address
• Change your payment method
• Cancel your subscription
• Renew your subscription
• Manage gift subscriptions
• Change the email address associated with your subscription(s)

For assistance, please email us.

Issue delivery will depend on your location.

If you're a subscriber located in the United States, you can expect to receive your first issue 4-6 weeks from the order date. 

If you're a subscriber located in Canada, you can expect to receive your first issue 6-7 weeks from the order date. 

If you're a subscriber located outside of the United States or Canada, you can expect to receive your first issue 7-8 weeks from the order date.

Each issue should arrive before the first day of the named cover month. For example, you should receive your November issue by November 1. For Scientific American’s double July/August issue, the first month is the named cover month.

If you have a print or a digital subscription and never activated your digital access, go here.

And please email us if you need help.

You can purchase a gift subscription by going here.

When you purchase a gift subscription from scientificamerican.com, a gift voucher is sent to your recipient.  Your recipient then enters their own preferred mailing address into the voucher, and the subscription is then activated when the voucher is redeemed.

When a gift subscription is purchased, an email to the gift recipient is sent out with the information needed to activate the subscription. If you didn't receive a gift subscription email, please email us for help.  

Print subscribers can find their account numbers on the address label of their issues, highlighted below. It is numeric only, five to eight digits long, and does not include any letters, symbols, or leading zeroes. Therefore, if your mailing label shows SCA00012345678/0#, your account number is 12345678.  Account number highlighted in sample label below.



If you do not have an issue handy, or if you are a digital-only subscriber, you can always email us for further assistance.

Of course you can!  Just call us at 800-333-1199 to purchase a subscription for yourself or as a gift.  International customers can call 001-1-515-248-7684.

Email us if you have any questions!

You can cancel your subscription at any time by logging in to My Account. You can also email us.

Customers can cancel free trial subscriptions at any time by signing into their account and disabling the auto-renew button in My Account/Library.

Yes!  Scientific American delivers to most countries. Select a print subscription from here to see the pricing for a print subscription delivered to your home. 

We have several partners that republish our content in other languages.  They are published and sold independently of Scientific American, so subscriptions and issues must be purchased through our partners directly.  Please click here to see the list of international editions, with links to their websites.

You can update your mailing address by signing in here.  If you don’t have your account number handy, you can sign in with your email and postal code or your name and address.

You can update your mailing address by signing in here.  If you don’t have your account number handy, you can sign in with your email and postal code or your name and address.

Scientific American magazines are sold at Walmart, Barnes & Noble, Hudson News, Books A Million, and other leading magazine retailers in the United States and Canada.

The English language version of Scientific American is available at news agents around the world, particularly at news agents located at airports and other transportation terminals.

For a directory of stores and news agents that sell Scientific American in the United Kingdom, click here.

You can also call us at 800-333-1199 to order by phone. Please note, print editions are available only as supplies last, and supplies are limited.

Scientific American’s “Special Collector’s Edition” series are published two to four times per year and are sold at newsstands, bookstores, airport and transportation shops, as well as leading supermarkets and pharmacies. Each Special Edition contains articles previously published in Scientific American subscription issues, as well as online and supplementary articles.

Special Editions are only available digitally as part of the Unlimited subscription.

If you're interested in purchasing a print copy of a Special Edition, please call 800-333-1199 (or 001-1-515-248-7684 international).  Print edition inventory of Special Editions is very limited.

For institutional print subscription pricing and purchases, missing issue requests and general print subscription customer service, please call us at 800-333-1199 (+001 1 515 248 7684 international) or email us for institutional print pricing. Institutional print subscriptions do not include online access.

The subscriptions offered for sale on scientificamerican.com are intended for individual subscribers only, and do not support institutional use. 

Scientific American does not offer back-started subscriptions. Print back issues are purchased separately, and supplies are limited. Please use the contact information above for all print customer service inquiries, including back issue sales.

Institutional digital Licenses are available from Springer Nature.  Please visit the Springer Nature page for librarians, or this FAQ for more information about the Institutional License. 

ScientificAmerican.com no longer offers single digital issues for purchase. For customers who have purchased a single digital issue in the past, and no longer have access to the download, please contact help@sciam.com for a copy of your purchase.

No problem! Email us anytime if you need more information.