It publishes fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction quarterly.

With its open submission policy, The Missouri Review receives 12,000 manuscripts each year and is known for printing previously unpublished and emerging authors.

Each year, The Missouri Review hosts the Jeffrey E. Smith Editors' Prize contest with $15,000 in prize money for entries in fiction, essays, and poetry.

The Missouri Review also publishes "found text" projects, usually previously unpublished work by past literary figures.

This series highlights diaries and journals of everyday citizens, giving perspective and insight into our past as a nation and people.