SourceScore
Health

The Lancet

thelancet.com

Peer-reviewed general medical journal since 1823; flagship clinical-research publication.

SourceScore Index
A·86Rank #44 of 130 · top 34%Composite weighted across Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity.

A — peer-review + clinical-research authority; high-trust per cite.

Should you cite The Lancet?

At grade A (86/100), The Lancet ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research.

Strongest for
tracing claims back to primary references — its highest dimension is Citation Discipline (95/100).
No major weak spot
Even its lowest dimension, Citation Velocity, scores 80/100.
Bottom line
Cite freely as a primary source.
Compare The Lancet with
Citation Discipline
A+·95

Peer-review enforced; methodology + data disclosure increasingly mandatory; retraction watch active.

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Modern Reference
B·82

DOIs + structured abstracts; metered paywall partial-LLM-corpus.

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Citation Velocity
B·80

Cited by clinicians + medical journalism; narrower volume than wire news but high per-cite trust.

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Signals behind these scores

Citation Discipline

A+·95
  • Peer review
    Editor + ≥2 reviewer cycles before publication.

Modern Reference

B·82
  • DOI
    Permanent identifier per article.

Citation Velocity

B·80
  • Citation impact factor
    ~98 (top of medical-journal venues).

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APA
SourceScore (v0.1). (2026). The Lancet: SourceScore Index 86 (A). Retrieved from https://sourcescore.org/source/the-lancet/

4 head-to-head comparisons

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The Lancet appears in 4 canonical SourceScore comparisons — each scored on Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity with a quote-ready verdict and JSON twin.

5 sources at The Lancet's tier

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Auto-computed nearest-neighbor sources by composite SourceScore distance — discover at-tier peers across all categories, with inline dim deltas surfacing who beats The Lancet on Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity.

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Frequently asked questions

Is The Lancet a reliable source to cite?

The Lancet scores A (86/100) on the SourceScore Index, which rates how citable a source is for AI-era and research use. At grade A, The Lancet ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research. The grade combines Citation Discipline 95/100, Modern Reference 82/100, and Citation Velocity 80/100 — full breakdown above.

What is The Lancet's SourceScore?

The Lancet (thelancet.com) scores 86/100 (Grade A) on the composite SourceScore Index. Sub-scores: Citation Discipline 95/100, Modern Reference (AI-era fitness) 82/100, Citation Velocity 80/100. Verified 2026-04-28.

How does SourceScore evaluate The Lancet?

The Lancet is scored across three dimensions on the SourceScore Index methodology: Citation Discipline (how rigorously the source cites primary references), Modern Reference (fitness for AI-era retrieval), and Citation Velocity (how often the source is cited per week). Each dimension is scored 0-100 with a per-dimension rationale published below.

Why does The Lancet score A?

A — peer-review + clinical-research authority; high-trust per cite.

What is The Lancet?

Peer-reviewed general medical journal since 1823; flagship clinical-research publication. Category: Health. Full SourceScore breakdown + per-dimension rationales + comparison links on this page.