Skip to main content

How to publish

In principle, research data can be published as:

  • an independent publication in a repository
  • a classic data supplement to complement a text publication
  • a data paper in a data journal

Where to publish?

In the Registry of Research Data Repositories re3data you will find various repositories for the publication of your research data. A number of publishers also allow research data to be submitted as data supplements to complement the text publication. In addition, certain journals focus on the description and review of datasets. An overview of data journals can be found here.

Note that uploading research data to a repository does not necessarily mean that the data will be published. For example, you can specify a period (embargo) during which a data package is not yet accessible, but the metadata is already visible. In the event of publication, access and editing rights can be regulated in contracts or through licences.

Please also take into account the respective requirements of research funders and publishers as well as data protection regulations. The publication of research data is not always possible, for example, due to legal restrictions, an embargo or confidentiality agreements in the case of contract research.

The assignment of persistent identifiers (PID) makes research data permanently retrievable and citable. Common identifiers are DOI (Digital Object Identifiers) and URN (Uniform Resource Names).

You can publish your research data open access and regulate its subsequent use by issuing licences. The choice of free licences facilitates the subsequent use of the data and thus increases its visibility and dissemination. The following licences are most commonly used:

  • Creative Commons licence (CC)
  • GNU General Public License (GPL) / designed for software
  • Open Data Commons (ODC) / designed for data collections

CC licences are suitable for research data from version 4.0. Choose a licence that suits your subject area and the type of research data. However, in line with the FAIR principles, a CC-BY licence is recommended. Further details on CC licences can be found here.