[3] The journal was established in 1948 as Acta Endocrinologica by a group of Scandinavian endocrinologists.

The journal was originally sponsored by the national endocrine societies of Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

[5] In January 2023 the Journal moved publishing houses from Bioscientifica to Oxford University Press.

Having had a broad scope covering both basic and clinical endocrine research since its foundation in 1948, the journal's editorial board announced in 2008 that it would no longer publish basic research but focus on translational and clinical endocrinology.

In addition, authors can pay an article processing charge upon acceptance to have their article made freely available online immediately upon publication (hybrid open access).