What Edanz does

Edanz is a Fukuoka-headquartered (with a US Edanz Inc. entity) provider of scientific editing and research support services, founded in 1995 and operating as a subsidiary of Japanese internet healthcare conglomerate M3 Group. The company delivers manuscript editing, manuscript development, systematic reviews and meta-analyses, peer review response support, resubmission assistance, and content/media creation to academic researchers, pharmaceutical companies, and healthcare providers across Japanese, English, and Chinese markets. Its core differentiator is a curated network of 23+ PhD-level Editorial Partners — including former editors of Nature series, Nature Reviews Endocrinology, and Drug Safety, plus CMPP-certified medical writers — who deliver domain-specialized, dialogue-based editing (two-way expert communication) rather than commodity proofreading.

The platform pairs human expertise with AI-aware workflows: its "AI-compatible manuscript editing" service reviews structure, claims, and logical flow of AI-generated manuscripts, while a newer "Manuscript Status Diagnosis" tool provides upstream diagnostic advisory. Go-to-market is sales-led via dedicated regional websites (jp.edanz.com, scribendi.com, liwenbianji.cn), phone/email consultation, and a separate pharmaceutical enterprise portal (jp-evidence.edanz.com). Pricing is primarily per-word (12 yen/word, ~$0.08, with a 6,325 yen minimum) for standard English editing, supplemented by package bundles (e.g., editing + reformatting + cover letter at 20% off), first-time customer discounts (20% off), and custom project-based proposals for larger research support engagements.

The business is private with no disclosed funding rounds, no reported revenue, and ownership sitting within M3 Group. The most significant recent strategic event was the April 12, 2023 acquisition of Canadian editing firm Scribendi, creating a combined global scientific editing and language services platform with multi-jurisdiction reach across Japan, North America, and China.

Name

Edanz

Legal name

Edanz Inc.

Website

https://edanz.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Edanz provides scientific editing, manuscript development, systematic reviews, and research support services to academic researchers, pharmaceutical companies, and healthcare providers across Japan, English-speaking markets, and China, delivered by a network of PhD-level editorial partners and parented by M3 Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Fukuoka

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. English Editing and Proofreading Services: Per-word pricing model for English editing and proofreading. Services include standard editing, AI manuscript editing, and revision support. Revenue generated through direct customer orders via quote widget and contact forms.
2. Research Support Services: Custom project-based services including manuscript development, systematic reviews, review article creation, research planning, and post-acceptance support. Billed based on project scope and custom proposals.
3. Package Deals: Bundled offerings combining multiple services (e.g., English editing + reformatting + cover letter creation) at discounted rates, encouraging higher-value purchases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Edanz provides scientific manuscript editing and research support services to academic researchers and pharmaceutical clients, including English language editing, manuscript development, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, peer review response support, and journal selection guidance. Services are delivered by a network of PhD-holding Editorial Partners with prior journal editor and peer reviewer credentials through per-word, bundled, and custom project pricing across Japanese, English, and Chinese websites.

Product overview

Edanz is a comprehensive academic research support platform offering a suite of integrated services for researchers and academics. The core portfolio includes English editing/proofreading (英文校正), manuscript development and rewriting (論文作成, 論文カスタムサポート), systematic reviews and meta-analysis (システマティックレビュー), resubmission support (再投稿サポート), and review article development (レビュー論文作成サポート). Additional services include content/media creation, manuscript status diagnosis tools, journal selection assistance, peer review countermeasures, and post-review support. The platform is powered by a network of Editorial Partners including PhD-holding experts and former journal editors who provide expert guidance throughout the research and publication process. Edanz operates as a full-service research support ecosystem with both individual service modules and custom comprehensive support packages.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• English Editing (英文校正) Professional English editing and proofreading service for academic papers, targeting researchers and academics to improve language quality for journal submissions.
• Resubmission Support (再投稿サポート) Support service for researchers whose manuscripts have been rejected, providing assistance with revisions and resubmission to journals.
• Manuscript Custom Support / Rewriting (論文カスタムサポート) Custom rewriting and manuscript development service to help researchers restructure and improve their academic papers.
• Manuscript Development (論文作成) Comprehensive manuscript creation service supporting researchers from initial planning through to publication-ready documents.
• Review Article Development (レビュー論文作成サポート) Specialized service for creating review articles, helping researchers synthesize and analyze existing literature in their field.
• Systematic Reviews / Meta-analysis (システマティックレビュー) Systematic review and meta-analysis support service following rigorous research methodology standards.
• Content & Media Creation (コンテンツ＆メディア作成) Content and media creation services for research dissemination beyond traditional academic papers.
• Manuscript Status Diagnosis (論文ステータス診断) Diagnostic service to evaluate manuscript status and provide recommendations for improvement.
• Research Support Services (研究支援サービス) Comprehensive research support from planning to post-acceptance, including peer review countermeasures and post-review assistance.
• Peer Review Countermeasures (査読対策) Preparation and strategy services to help researchers effectively respond to peer review comments.
• Expert Scientific Review Expert scientific review providing strategic peer review response support for researchers preparing manuscript revisions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 23+ years of experience in research publication support
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ScribendicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 April 2023Edanz acquired Canadian online editing and proofreading company Scribendi on April 12, 2023. The merger aims to create a global leader in scientific editing and language services, expanding global reach, enhancing customer experience, and driving innovation in author and researcher services.
• M3 GroupcoreOthersM3 Group is the parent company of Edanz, as evidenced by the M3 Group logo appearing in the footer of Edanz's Japanese website. M3 is a Japanese internet healthcare company.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Elsevier Author Services: Elsevier bundles editing, translation, and figure preparation services into its broader publishing portfolio. Represents the publisher-side incumbent that could internalize editing services and compete with Edanz at scale.
• Taylor & Francis Editing Services: Academic publisher offering English editing, translation, and manuscript preparation as part of its wider portfolio. Comparable in serving the same author community with bundled editing and publishing services.
• Springer Nature Author Services: Major academic publisher offering editing, translation, and illustration services to authors alongside its journal and book publishing portfolio. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping editing services targeting the same researcher customer base.

Direct peers

• Editage (Cactus Communications): India-headquartered global scientific editing and research communication services firm serving researchers with English editing, manuscript development, and publication support. Directly comparable in service portfolio, customer base (academic researchers, especially non-native English speakers), and premium expert positioning.
• Scribendi: Canadian online editing and proofreading company acquired by Edanz in April 2023. Provides general and academic editing services globally; serves as a strong direct comparable for English-language editing unit economics and customer profile.
• Wordvice: Korea-based academic editing and proofreading service targeting researchers and graduate students with English editing, admission essay review, and scientific manuscript services. Comparable in language market focus (non-native English researchers) and tiered service offerings.
• Enago (Crimson Interactive): Global scientific editing, translation, and publication support company serving researchers, universities, and publishers. Overlaps with Edanz in manuscript editing, journal selection, and translation services for non-native English authors, especially across Asia.
• American Journal Experts (AJE, Research Square): Scientific editing and research services firm offering English editing, manuscript formatting, figure preparation, and translation to academic authors. Direct competitor in the premium researcher-editing space with similar domain-expert positioning.

Emerging players

• Research Square: Preprint server and author services platform (parent of AJE) that combines AI-assisted editing with human review for academic manuscripts. Comparable as a tech-enabled emerging competitor in the researcher-services space.

Regional players

• LetPub: China-based scientific editing and writing services firm primarily serving Chinese researchers submitting to international journals. Comparable in language-service focus on medical and life science manuscripts and regional concentration in Asia.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/edanzscience
• Facebookfacebook.com/EdanzScience

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Edanz