Citation Ethics and Citation Managers: Choosing a Citation Manager
What are citation managers?
Citation managers are research project time-savers!
Avoid manually typing and organizing your references in your papers with these great software options! They allow you to build your own database of citations to sources for your research projects. They provide tools to automate in-text citation and bibliography creation for research documents, such as research papers, grant proposals, and article manuscripts. They may also include options to share all or parts of your citation database with others - for collaborative research projects.
Included in this library guide is information about some top citation managers, and contact information for citation manager support at VT University Libraries. Each tab above offers a description of a citation manager and links to an overview or tour, plus further information such as video tutorials and documentation. We encourage you to explore and try out these and other citation managers to find out if one or more will support your research practices!
Citation Manger Comparison Chart
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| Get & Signup | Download from VT Software | mendeley.com | zotero.org |
| Cost | Free Desktop* & Online | Free for everyone | Free for everyone |
| Access | Desktop* and Browser | Desktop & Browser | Desktop & Browser |
| Operating Systems | Windows, Mac | Windows, Mac, Linux | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Mobile Devices | iOS app only | None | iOS, Android apps |
| Browser extension? | yes | yes | yes |
| Cloud Storage? | 2 GB free & paid upgrades | 2 GB free personal space, 100 MB free shared & paid upgrades | 300 MB free & paid upgrades |
| Works with: | |||
| MS Word? | yes | yes | yes |
| Word Online? | no | yes | no |
| Google Docs? | EndNote 21 with web account only | no | yes, in Google Chrome |
| LaTeX or Overleaf? | .bib export only | Sync library with Overleaf* | Sync library with Overleaf*, Better BibTeX Plug-in |
| Organization features? | multiple libraries, folders, research notes | folders, tags, notes | folders, tags, notes |
| Attach & Annotate PDFs? | yes | yes | yes |
| Direct links with databases? | Web of Science* | Scopus and other Elsevier databases* | Use browser extension or export/import manually |
| Shared groups for projects? | yes | yes | yes |
| Strengths & Special Features | Best for 1000+ records management, high customization & multiple libraries | Lots of collaboration featuers, includes researcher networking & data repository linkages | Advanced browser extension with website capture, has most features for LaTeX users |
| Get more help & learn outside this guide | EndNote Guide | Mendeley Help Guides | Zotero Documentation & Help |
*Only while at Virginia Tech, paid options otherwise
Where can I get help?
Newman Services Desk - 540-231-6340
EndNote - endnote-support-g@vt.edu
Mendeley - mendeley-support-g@vt.edu
Zotero - zotero-support-g@vt.edu
NVC Resource Center contacts
- Debbie Cash - dcash@vt.edu
- Kris Sorensen - ksorense@vt.edu