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

Mendeley is described as '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' and is a very popular research manager in the education & reference category. There are more than 50 alternatives to Mendeley for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Linux apps. The best Mendeley alternative is Zotero, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Mendeley are Qiqqa, JabRef, EndNote and Paperpile.

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Mendeley alternatives are mainly Research Managers but may also be Note-taking Tools or Todo List Managers.  Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Mendeley.
Mendeley iconMendeley
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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...

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Mendeley alternatives page was last updated Aug 23, 2023
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Alternatives
  1. Zotero icon

    Zotero

     433 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.

    71 Zotero alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Microsoft Word
    • Google Docs
    • LibreOffice
    • Mozilla Firefox
    Zotero screenshot 1

    Top Zotero Features

    1.  Browser integration
    2. LibreOffice icon  LibreOffice Integration
    3. Microsoft 365 Copilot icon  Microsoft Office integration
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  PDF annotation
    6.  Cloud Sync
    7.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    8.  Full-Text Search
    9.  Dark Mode
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  File Tagging
    12.  Built-in viewer

    Zotero VS Mendeley

     
    Comments about Zotero as an Alternative to Mendeley
    Most Recent Comment
    Guest
    Positive •Dec 1, 2018
    9

    Amazing. Full featured; sqlite db, tagging, notes... Hey, knowledge at your fingertips

    Ron Bar-Ad
    •Aug 23, 2023
    1

    Zotero is great for referencing and integrates well with browsers and word processors. It's not the same as Mendeley Reference Manager, which not only holds references but also pdfs, and has annotation and notebook features.

    Guest
    Positive •Jan 29, 2020
    -5

    Open source and made in the U.S.A!

    Mendeley Icon
    Zotero icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Zotero is a great Mendeley alternative.

    • Zotero is the most popular Windows, Mac, iPhone & Linux alternative to Mendeley.

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

    • Zotero is Freemium and Open SourceMendeley is Freemium and Proprietary
  2. Qiqqa icon

    Qiqqa

     416 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.

    55 Qiqqa alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • GB flagUnited Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Qiqqa screenshot 1

    Top Qiqqa Features

    1.  PDF annotation
    2.  Bib Tex Sniffer
    3.  Full-Text Search
    4.  Cross-references
    5.  Tagging
    6.  Citations
    7.  No registration required
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  File Tagging
    10. LaTeX icon  Support for LaTeX
    11.  Real time collaboration
    12.  Portable

    Qiqqa VS Mendeley

     
    Comments about Qiqqa as an Alternative to Mendeley
    Guest
    Positive •Jun 2, 2022
    0

    Has the feature to tag regions of a pdf with a keyword or add a note with a tag and later compile all occurrences of the tagged regions with a particular keyword across the whole library..

    Guest
    Positive •Oct 22, 2020
    0

    Differently from Qiqqa, Mendeley has no annotation report feature, meaning that it is not possible to gather all highlights/annotations on a paper into a single file. This is very useful for large pdf.

    Mendeley Icon
    Qiqqa icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Qiqqa is a great Mendeley alternative.

    • Qiqqa is Freemium and Open SourceMendeley is Freemium and Proprietary
  4. JabRef icon

    JabRef

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

    45 JabRef alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Vivaldi
    • Google Chrome
    • Mozilla Firefox
    JabRef screenshot 1

    JabRef Features

    1.  Export citation
    2.  Tagging
    3.  Ad-free
    4.  Full-Text Search
    5. LaTeX icon  Support for LaTeX
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  Autocompletion
    8.  Browser integration
    9.  Automatic file renaming
    10.  Grouping entries

    JabRef VS Mendeley

     
    Comments about JabRef as an Alternative to Mendeley
    Guest
    Negative •Aug 22, 2019
    1

    JabRef only handles bibtex files.

    Mendeley Icon
    JabRef icon

    • Most users think JabRef is a great Mendeley alternative.

    • JabRef is Free and Open SourceMendeley is Freemium and Proprietary
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    Scite Ai icon
    Scite Ai

    Scite Ai is a platform that aids in discovering and evaluating scientific articles using Smart Citations. These citations show the context and classification of a publication's citation, helping researchers find relevant resu...

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  6. EndNote icon

    EndNote

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

    44 EndNote alternatives

    License model

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    EndNote screenshot 1

    EndNote Features

    1.  PDF annotation
    2.  Real time collaboration
    3.  Personal Information Manager (PIM)
    4. Microsoft 365 Copilot icon  Compatible with Microsoft Office

    EndNote VS Mendeley

     

    • Some users think EndNote is a great Mendeley alternative, some don't.

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

    • EndNote is the most popular commercial alternative to Mendeley.

    • EndNote is Paid and ProprietaryMendeley is Freemium and Proprietary
  7. Paperpile icon

    Paperpile

     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.

    42 Paperpile alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Google Chrome
    • Microsoft Office Word
    • Google Drive
    • Google Drive - Docs
    • Google Scholar
    Paperpile screenshot 1

    Paperpile Features

    1.  Sync with Google Drive

    Paperpile VS Mendeley

     
    Comments about Paperpile as an Alternative to Mendeley
    Guest
    Positive •Feb 28, 2019
    0

    I like that this is web-based and can use it on any laptop, just by signing into my account.

    Mendeley Icon
    Paperpile icon

    • Paperpile is the most popular Android & Android Tablet alternative to Mendeley.

    • Paperpile is Paid and ProprietaryMendeley is Freemium and Proprietary
  8. BibSonomy icon

    BibSonomy

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

    76 BibSonomy alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    BibSonomy screenshot 1

    BibSonomy Features

    1.  Real time collaboration
    2.  Bookmarks
    3.  Knowledge Management
    4.  Tagging
    5.  Data Mining

    BibSonomy VS Mendeley

     
  10. MyInfo icon

    MyInfo

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

    297 MyInfo alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    MyInfo screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Outliner
    2.  Tagging
    3.  Tree structure
    4.  Web Clipper
    5.  Reminders
    6.  Portable
    7.  Full-Text Search
    8.  Hierarchical Structure
    9.  File Tagging
    10.  Built-in viewer
    11.  Ad-free
    12.  No Tracking

    MyInfo VS Mendeley

     
  11. ReadCube Papers icon

    ReadCube Papers

     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

    License model

    Application type

    Platforms

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

    ReadCube Papers Features

    1.  PDF annotation
    2.  Cloud Sync
    3.  Built-in viewer
    4.  Text to Speech
    5.  Citations
    6.  Book Manager
    7.  Integrated Search

    ReadCube Papers VS Mendeley

     
  12. Citavi icon

    Citavi

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

    38 Citavi alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    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.

    Citavi Features

    1.  Works Offline
    2.  Information gathering
    3.  Book Manager
    4.  Knowledge Management
    5.  PDF Preview
    6.  Knowledge base
    7.  Intuitive Nodes

    Citavi VS Mendeley

     
    Comments about Citavi as an Alternative to Mendeley
    Guest
    Positive •Feb 26, 2017
    0

    Great knowledge item management.

    Mendeley Icon
    Citavi icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Citavi is a great Mendeley alternative.

    • Citavi is Freemium and ProprietaryMendeley is also Freemium and Proprietary
  13. MyBib icon

    MyBib

     14 likes
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    A new FREE citation generator. Automatically create bibliographies, references, and citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and over 8000 more styles with a totally free and no-ads citation generator.

    15 MyBib alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Google Chrome
    MyBib screenshot 1

    MyBib Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Citations
    4.  Export citation
    5.  Citation detection
    6.  Importing from webpages
    7.  Data export/import
    8.  Bibliography generator

    MyBib VS Mendeley

     
10 of 77 Mendeley alternatives