<p><strong>Background:</strong> Understanding the publication trends in the <em>African Vision and Eye Health</em> (AVEH) journal can help to better understand optometry research in South Africa and the continent.<br /><strong>Aim:</strong> To explore and describe the trends of publication in the AVEH journal over a period of two decades (2005–2024).<br /><strong>Setting:</strong> Bibliometric analysis of journal archives available from the AVEH journal website.<br /><strong>Methods:</strong> An electronic search for publication data on the journal website was conducted for the period 2005 to 2024, captured using Google Forms and Microsoft Excel and analysed with SPSS (v30) using descriptive and inferential statistics.<br /><strong>Results:</strong> A steady increase in growth rate of publications, particularly research articles, during the 3 years post the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was noted. The total number of citations per year showed a slight decline. Two-thirds of the publications (64.6%) were research-related, with 82% employing a quantitative design. A university setting and a public health focus were most common. The majority of publications (69.2%) were multi-authored, with single-authored papers more likely to be submitted by males (χ<sup>2</sup> = 75.3, <em>P</em> < 0.001). Although collaborations between South African and international authors were noted in less than 10% of publications, an increase in the degree of collaboration over the study period was noted.<br /><strong>Conclusion:</strong> The AVEH journal has demonstrated a steady increase in the growth rate of publications and collaboration over the two decades.<br /><strong>Contribution:</strong> These findings contribute to the growing field of bibliometric studies in optometry and ophthalmology, particularly in Africa, which is now attracting increasing attention.</p>