The Best Zotero AlternativesTop Research Managers and other similar apps like Zotero

Zotero is described as 'Free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, share research and cite your research sources directly in your favourite word processor, with 300 MB free online storage' and is a very popular research manager in the news & books category. There are more than 50 alternatives to Zotero for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Mac, Windows, Linux and iPhone apps. The best Zotero alternative is Mendeley, which is free. Other great apps like Zotero are Qiqqa, JabRef, EndNote and Paperwork.

filter to find the best alternatives

Zotero alternatives are mainly Research Managers, but if you're looking for Document Managers or Academic Research Tools you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Mac, Open Source, Research Manager and Free. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Zotero.
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Alternatives list

  1. Mendeley icon

    Mendeley

     293 likes

    Mendeley helps manage and share academic knowledge: Mendeley Desktop is free academic software (Windows, Mac, Linux) for organizing and sharing research papers and generating bibliographies with 1GB of free online storage to automatically back up and synchronize your library...

    82 Mendeley alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    Generate Bibliographies in Word and OpenOffice
     
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    2
    Mendeley vs Zotero Comments
    John Fastman
    Positive
    26

    Mendeley differs from Zotero like this: 1) It is not open source, but it's still free (as in beer); 2) it has better features for annotating pdf files; 3) It emphasizes connections between academics working in similar areas, which helps in discovery of references. Zotero doesn't do that. However, Zotero is better at extracting meta data from pdf files and has the superior browser plugin.

    Nick Scientist
    Positive
    2

    Mendeley is not open-source. After the migration to the Mendeley Reference Manager which has been a disaster in performance for the desktop apps, exhibit buggy behavior, are much more taxing to computers. Web plugin much better in Zotero too.

    • Mendeley is Freemium and ProprietaryZotero is Freemium and Open Source
  2. Qiqqa icon

    Qiqqa

     422 likes

    Qiqqa is a free research and reference manager. Search for, read and annotate your PDFs. Then review your work, write up and create bibliographies instantly.

    61 Qiqqa alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Qiqqa screenshot 1
     
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    4
    Qiqqa vs Zotero Comments
    phytographer
    Negative
    3

    Qiqqa does not have:

    1. Chrome connector for gathering citations
    2. Google Docs integration
    3. LibreOffice Integration
    Alternative User929
    Negative
    0

    Not like Zotero or Mendeley.

    Guest
    Positive
    1

    They both manage PDFs and allow you to do reference management and bilbiographies.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 4 comments
    • Qiqqa is Freemium and Open SourceZotero is also Freemium and Open Source
  4. JabRef icon

    JabRef

     104 likes

    Bibliography reference manager. The native file format used by JabRef is BibTeX, the standard LaTeX bibliography format.

    51 JabRef alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Vivaldi
    • Google Chrome
    • Mozilla Firefox
    JabRef screenshot 1
     
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    2
    JabRef vs Zotero Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    3

    Open source, clean, robust. Works best with BibTex/Latex environment.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Screen clear with all important informations easily readible. Avoid import of existing records and efficient merge compared to zotero !!! So no duplicate. We can create many librairies and we are not limited to one big with every records in, so quicker when you have a lot of references.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • JabRef is Free and Open SourceZotero is Freemium and Open Source
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  6. EndNote icon

    EndNote

     44 likes

    A reference management software, used for searching online publication databases, & managing publications / bibliographies, with the ability to insert the references into a word processor.

    47 EndNote alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    EndNote screenshot 1
     
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    2
    EndNote vs Zotero Comments
    John Fastman
    Positive
    6

    Unfortunately, in terms of sheer functionality and completeness as a reference manager, EndNote is probably the best. Unfortunately, because it's very expensive, it's not open source and it doesn't work on Linux. But the level of customization over citation styles, and the integration with MS Word make it a default for many. In my estimation, 90%+ of researchers would find enough in Zotero not to have to pay for End Note.

    Guest
    Positive
    0

    this is the program that the journals ask to make references using it

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • EndNote is Paid and ProprietaryZotero is Freemium and Open Source
  7. Paperwork icon

    Paperwork

     41 likes

    Paperwork is a personal document manager for scanned documents (and PDFs).

    33 Paperwork alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Paperwork screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Paperwork vs Zotero Comments
    Guest
    Negative
    1

    Paperwork is for personal documents, Zotero is for research

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • Paperwork is Free and Open SourceZotero is Freemium and Open Source
  8. BibSonomy icon

    BibSonomy

     45 likes

    BibSonomy is a system for sharing bookmarks and lists of literature (BibTex format).

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    BibSonomy screenshot 1
     
  10. Paperpile icon

    Paperpile

     57 likes

    Organize your research papers in a Gmail-like web app, sync your PDFs to Google Drive and cite your references in Google Docs.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Google Chrome
    • Microsoft Office Word
    • Google Drive
    • Google Drive - Docs
    • Google Scholar
    Paperpile screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Paperpile vs Zotero Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    It is an amazing software and has many great features when compared to Zotero

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • Paperpile is Paid and ProprietaryZotero is Freemium and Open Source
  11. Citavi icon

    Citavi

     52 likes

    Reference management and knowledge organization with integrated task planner. Solution for work groups with data sharing in intranet available.

    39 Citavi alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Simple Navigation on the left, the editing pane in the middle, preview on the right (for PDF and text documents, images, Web pages, etc.). All You Need You can add ratings, quotations, comments, thoughts, tasks, locations, and links to other references and files. Citavi is your complete toolbox for academic writing.
     
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    1
    Citavi vs Zotero Comments
    altenativeto
    Negative
    0

    It is sadly unstable software. It has of course more professional functions than zotero but also problems with stability. For Example: when I had my computer in standby, I have to restart the software.

    • Citavi is Freemium and ProprietaryZotero is Freemium and Open Source
  12. WizNote icon

    WizNote

     82 likes

    WizNote is a Note software, which is especially designed for Internet users and mobile Internet users. WizNote focuses more on notes of rapid collection, management, reading and sharing. WizNote is smaller, more stable, and more suitable for computers, phones and mobile devices.

    250 WizNote alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • BSD
    • Windows Phone
    • iPad
    WizNote screenshot 1
     
  13. ReadCube Papers icon

    ReadCube Papers

     71 likes

    Papers helps you collect and curate the research material that you're passionate about. This award-winning reference manager will improve the way you find, organize, read, cite, and share.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Firefox
    ReadCube Papers screenshot 1
     
  14. DocsBoard icon

    DocsBoard

     6 likes

    Solve your documentation problems with a single platform that integrates all document formats, enhances collaboration, and maintains real-time updates.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    DocsBoard screenshot 1
     
  15. MyInfo icon

    MyInfo

     40 likes

    MyInfo is a personal information manager for Windows. It will help you capture, organize, edit and share ideas, documents, tasks, and web pages.

    307 MyInfo alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    MyInfo screenshot 1
     
12 of 80 Zotero alternatives