# Citation Management Software ### What is citation management software? > A reference manager supports researchers in performing three basic research steps: **searching, storing, and writing** \[...\]. It helps researchers find relevant literature, allows them to store papers and their bibliographic metadata in a personal database for later retrieval, and allows researchers to insert citations and references in a chosen citation style when writing a text.1 Citation managers can save researchers a lot of time, help reduce mistakes, and help avoid plagiarism. For those reasons, they are highly recommended. [Click here for a comparison of different citation managers.](https://libguides.berlin-international.de/link/23) --- 1[Fenner, Martin, Kaja Scheliga, and Sönke Bartling. ‘Reference Management’. In *Opening Science*, edited by Sönke Bartling and Sascha Friesike, 125–37. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-00026-8\_8.](https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/28008/1001989.pdf?sequence=1#page=129) ### Comparison of citation management software
[![Zotero_icon.png](https://libguides.berlin-international.de/uploads/images/gallery/2022-03/scaled-1680-/zotero-icon.png)](https://libguides.berlin-international.de/uploads/images/gallery/2022-03/zotero-icon.png) [Zotero](https://www.zotero.org) is a popular free and open-source option among researchers that offers many features as well as extensions.
[![1080px-Mendeley_Logo_Vertical.png](https://libguides.berlin-international.de/uploads/images/gallery/2022-03/scaled-1680-/1080px-mendeley-logo-vertical.png)](https://libguides.berlin-international.de/uploads/images/gallery/2022-03/1080px-mendeley-logo-vertical.png) [Mendeley](http://proxy.bau.edu.tr:2048/login?url=https://www.mendeley.com/?interaction_required=true) is a proprietary option from Elsevier. BI faculty and staff have free access via our partnership with BAU.
Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software) (retrieved 04 Mar 2022)
SoftwareDeveloperFirst public releaseLatest stable release dateLatest stable versionCost (USD)[Free software](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software "Free software")LicenseNotes
[Bebop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bebop_(software) "Bebop (software)")[ALaRI Institute](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Learning_and_Research_Institute "Advanced Learning and Research Institute")2007-11-082009-11-101.1FreeYes[BSD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BSD_licenses "BSD licenses")web-based BibTeX front-end (Apache, PHP, MySQL)
[BibBase](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibBase "BibBase")Christian Fritz20052013-07v3FreeNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")centrally hosted website, intended for publication pages
[BibDesk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibDesk "BibDesk")BibDesk developers2002-042021-08-151.8.3FreeYes[BSD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BSD_licenses "BSD licenses")[BibTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibTeX "BibTeX") front-end + repository; [Cocoa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocoa_(API) "Cocoa (API)")-based; integration with [Spotlight](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spotlight_(software) "Spotlight (software)")
[Biblioscape](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblioscape "Biblioscape")CG Information19972015-06-2210.0.3.6[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")79-299[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-MSRP-1)No[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")[ODBC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ODBC "ODBC"); web access in Pro ed; optional client/server; discontinued?
[BibSonomy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibSonomy "BibSonomy")[University of Kassel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Kassel "University of Kassel")2006-012019-12-113.9.2FreeYes[AGPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Affero_General_Public_License "GNU Affero General Public License"), [GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License"), [LGPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Lesser_General_Public_License "GNU Lesser General Public License")[\[2\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-2)centrally hosted website
[Bibus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibus "Bibus")Bibus developers2004-06-032013-05-231.5.1FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")discontinued?
[Bookends](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bookends_(software) "Bookends (software)")Sonny Software1988 (Mac) / 1983 (Apple II+)2021-01-2313.5.1[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-3)[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")59.99[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-MSRP-1)No[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")Desktop & iOS synced via iCloud, integrated web search, PDF download, auto-completion, Word plugin, BibTex support, PDF annotations stored as notes
[Citavi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citavi "Citavi")QSR International[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-4)2006-02-132022-01-056.11.0.0[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")89-1947[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-5)No[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")data can be saved locally on the computer, or, for team access, in the Citavi Cloud or an intranet [Microsoft SQL Server](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_SQL_Server "Microsoft SQL Server");[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-6) search databases from interface[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-7)
[CiteULike](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CiteULike "CiteULike")Oversity Limited2004-11Shut down in 2019-03-30[\[8\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-8) FreeNo[proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")[\[9\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-9)centrally hosted website
[colwiz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colwiz "Colwiz")colwiz Ltd20112016-05-09 Free / Online storage free up to 3 GB / Additional storage space availableNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")Now combined with wizdom.ai
[EndNote](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EndNote "EndNote")[Clarivate Analytics](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarivate_Analytics "Clarivate Analytics")19882021-11-3020.2.1[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")299.95[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-MSRP-1)No[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")The web version [EndNote basic](https://endnote.com/basic) (formerly, EndNote Web) is free of charge
[JabRef](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JabRef "JabRef")JabRef developers2003-11-292021-07-055.3FreeYes[MIT license](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT_license "MIT license")[Java](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Java_(programming_language) "Java (programming language)") [BibTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibTeX "BibTeX") and [BibLaTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibLaTeX "BibLaTeX") manager
[KBibTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KBibTeX "KBibTeX")KBibTeX developers2005-082020-04-260.9.2FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")[BibTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibTeX "BibTeX") front-end, using the [KDE Software Compilation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KDE_Software_Compilation "KDE Software Compilation")
[Mendeley](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendeley "Mendeley")[Elsevier](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsevier "Elsevier")2008-0820201.19.8Free / Online storage free up to 2 GB / Additional storage space availableNo[proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software") (OS API clients exist)Account required, Desktop & Web components, Windows, Linux, macOS (not macOS 11 Big Sur)
[Paperpile](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paperpile "Paperpile")Stefan Washietl, Gregorgy Jordan, Andreas Gruber2013Continually updated online [US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")2.99/month for academics, 9.99/month otherwiseNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")web-application, integrates with Google Docs, collaboration & sharing features, currently only on Google Chrome
[Pybliographer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pybliographer "Pybliographer")pybliographer developers1998-10-30 (0.2)2018-04-031.4.0FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")[Python](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Python_(programming_language) "Python (programming language)")/[GTK2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GTK2 "GTK2")
[Qiqqa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qiqqa "Qiqqa")Qiqqa2010-042020-10-04v80FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")From end 2020, Open Source
[ReadCube Papers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReadCube "ReadCube") (now [Papers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papers_(software) "Papers (software)"))ReadCube2011-102021-03-09v.4.23.3[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$") 3/month for students, 5/month academicsNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")Web-app, Desktop (MacOS, Windows), Mobile (iOS and Android). Microsoft Word and Google Docs add-in. Browser extension (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari)
[refbase](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refbase "Refbase")refbase developers2003-06-032014-02-280.9.6FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")web-based for [institutional repositories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institutional_repository "Institutional repository")/[self-archiving](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-archiving "Self-archiving")[\[10\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-10)
[RefDB](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RefDB "RefDB")refdb developers2001-04-252007-11-050.9.9FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")network-transparent; [XML](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XML "XML")/[SGML](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SGML "SGML") bibliographies
[Reference Manager](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reference_Manager "Reference Manager")[Thomson Reuters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomson_Reuters "Thomson Reuters")1984201012.0.3Not for sale anymore, sales ceased December 31, 2015No[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")network version; built-in web publishing tool; discontinued
[Referencer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Referencer "Referencer")Referencer developers2008-03-152014-02-271.2.2FreeYes[GNU GPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License "GNU General Public License")[BibTeX](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibTeX "BibTeX") front-end
[RefME](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RefME "RefME")RefME2014Shut down in 2017 FreeNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")Web, iOS and Android; Chrome and Safari Extensions available; discontinued
[RefWorks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RefWorks "RefWorks")Ex Libris / ProQuest200120183Institutional subscriptionNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")web-based, browser-accessed, Word & Google Docs
[SciRef](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SciRef "SciRef")Scientific Programs20122020-07-301.6.2[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")38.90 / Free trial versionNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")
[Sente](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sente_(software) "Sente (software)")Third Street Software, Inc.2004Shut down in 20176.7.9[US$](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US%24 "US$")60–80[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-MSRP-1) / Free for libraries up to 100 refsNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")Desktop and iPad, centralized backup/synching; discontinued
[Wikindx](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikindx "Wikindx")Mark Grimshaw2004-022021-07-076.4.10FreeYes[ISC license](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISC_license "ISC license")web-based
[WizFolio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WizFolio "WizFolio")WizPatent2008-06Shut down in 2017AvataraUS$25 / Free Basic versionNo[Proprietary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_software "Proprietary software")centrally hosted website; discontinued
[Zotero](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zotero "Zotero")[Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Rosenzweig_Center_for_History_and_New_Media "Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media") at [GMU](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Mason_University "George Mason University")20062021-01-115.0.95 [\[11\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software#cite_note-11)Free / Online storage free up to 300 MB / Additional storage space availableYes[AGPL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affero_General_Public_License "Affero General Public License")Multi-platform desktop version with connectors for [Firefox](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla_Firefox "Mozilla Firefox"), [Chrome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Chrome "Google Chrome") and [Safari](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safari_(web_browser) "Safari (web browser)"). Web-based access to reference library also available through Zotero.org or through a personal cloud-based database folder on a user's computer (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.).