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

EndNote is described as 'A reference management software, used for searching online publication databases, & managing publications / bibliographies, with the ability to insert the references into a word processor' and is a research manager in the office & productivity category. There are more than 25 alternatives to EndNote for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Mac, Windows, iPhone and iPad apps. The best EndNote alternative is Zotero, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like EndNote are Mendeley, Qiqqa, JabRef and Paperpile.

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Alternatives list

  1. Zotero icon
     470 likes
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    Zotero is a 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.

    78 Zotero alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Microsoft Word
    • Google Docs
    • LibreOffice
    • Mozilla Firefox
     
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    2
    48
    Comments about Zotero as an Alternative to EndNote
    Guest
    Positive
    8

    Consistent research sources management. No hidden fees. Nice UI.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    John Fastman
    Positive
    -1

    Probably the best open source alternative to Endnote, even though it does lack some functionality. Most notably, it lacks the ability to make composite references (ie reference 1 a)... b)... c...). However, from a privacy perspective and the fact that its excellent browser plugins can save information conveniently, it's still highly recommended.

    EndNote Icon
    Zotero icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Zotero is a great EndNote alternative.

    • Zotero is the most popular Windows, Android, Mac & iPhone alternative to EndNote.

    • Zotero is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to EndNote.

    • Zotero is Freemium and Open SourceEndNote is Paid and Proprietary
    • Zotero is Privacy focusedEndNote is not according to our users
  2. Mendeley icon
     293 likes
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    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...

    81 Mendeley alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
     
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    1
    45
    Comments about Mendeley as an Alternative to EndNote
    Guest
    Positive
    4

    Large free online storage. Integrates well with Word. Easy to use. Regular email of like-minded articles.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    EndNote Icon
    Mendeley icon
    • Most users think Mendeley is a great EndNote alternative.

    • Mendeley is the most popular Web-based alternative to EndNote.

    • Mendeley is Freemium and ProprietaryEndNote is Paid and Proprietary
  3. Qiqqa icon
     422 likes
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    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.

    60 Qiqqa alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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    1
    21
    Comments about Qiqqa as an Alternative to EndNote
    Guest
    Positive
    -1

    Much more powerful and flexible

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    EndNote Icon
    Qiqqa icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Qiqqa is a great EndNote alternative.

    • Qiqqa is Freemium and Open SourceEndNote is Paid and Proprietary
  4. JabRef icon
     103 likes
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    Bibliography reference manager. The native file format used by JabRef is BibTeX, the standard LaTeX bibliography format.

    48 JabRef alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Vivaldi
    • Google Chrome
    • Mozilla Firefox
     
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    1
    6
    Comments about JabRef as an Alternative to EndNote
    John Fastman
    Negative
    -1

    JabRef is excellent, free and open source. Unfortunately, EndNote is likely to be attractive to those seeking integration with MS Word; JabRef does not do this as it is oriented more towards LaTeX users. There is a work around to this, but it is tedious (based on exporting the bibliography as a Sources.xml file and importing that to Word.)

    EndNote Icon
    JabRef icon
    • Most users think JabRef is a great EndNote alternative.

    • JabRef is Free and Open SourceEndNote is Paid and Proprietary
  5. Paperpile icon
     57 likes
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    Organize your research papers in a Gmail-like web app, sync your PDFs to Google Drive and cite your references in Google Docs.

    45 Paperpile alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Pay once
    • 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 is the most popular commercial alternative to EndNote.

    • Paperpile is Paid and ProprietaryEndNote is also Paid and Proprietary
  6. Citavi icon
     52 likes
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    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
     
  7. KBibTeX icon
     9 likes
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    KBibTeX is a reference management software primarily for BibTeX which is typically used in conjunction with TeX/LaTeX.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Linux
     
  8. ReadCube Papers icon
     71 likes
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    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.

    42 ReadCube Papers alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Subscription
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Firefox
     
  9. BibDesk icon
     24 likes
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    BibDesk is a bibliographic reference manager for Mac OS X. BibDesk is designed to help organize and use bibliographic databases in BibTeX .bib format.

    34 BibDesk alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
     
  10. RefWorks icon
     11 likes
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    RefWorks - an online research management, writing and collaboration tool - is designed to help researchers easily gather, manage, store and share all types of information, as well as generate citations and bibliographies.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
     
  11. Research icon
     4 likes
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    The Research app is designed to streamline your workflow, offering a minimalist yet powerful platform for collecting, organizing, and analyzing research materials.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
     
  12. wizdom.ai icon
     24 likes
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    wizdom.ai (formerly colwiz) is a free and comprehensive research management software for researchers, academics and students. With the wizdom.ai android app, you can search, add and manage publications in your wizdom.ai library on the go. Sync instantly across wizdom.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
     
12 of 46 EndNote alternatives