Zotero icon
Zotero icon

Zotero

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.

Zotero screenshot 1

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
502likes
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Features

Properties

  1.  Privacy focused

Integrations

  1.  Browser
  2. LibreOffice icon  LibreOffice
  3. Microsoft 365 Copilot icon  Microsoft Office
  4. Obsidian icon  Obsidian
  5.  Google docs

Features

  1.  Knowledge Management
  2.  Export to LaTeX
  3.  Ad-free
  4.  PDF annotation
  5.  Library Management
  6.  Works Offline
  7.  Cross-references
  8.  Citations
  9.  Cloud Sync
  10.  Save web page for offline use
  11.  Dark Mode
  12.  File Tagging
  13.  Built-in viewer
  14.  WebDAV Support
  15.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
  16.  No registration required
  17.  Two-factor Authentication
  18.  Full-Text Search
  19.  Portable
  20.  Support for MarkDown
  21.  Real time collaboration
  22. Microsoft 365 Copilot icon  Compatible with Microsoft Office
  23.  WebDAV Sync
  24.  Importing from webpages
  25.  Automatic Tagging
  26.  Export to CSV
  27.  Export to Evernote
  28.  Tagging
  29.  Multiple languages
  30.  Synchronization

Zotero News & Activities

Highlights All activities

Recent News

Recent activities

  • Denys Tereshchenko liked Zotero
  • Fouine icon
    basedpolymer added Zotero as alternative to Fouine
  • SafeRender icon
    Noskar added Zotero as alternative to SafeRender
  • Bibliome icon
    Joshua Langberg added Zotero as alternative to Bibliome
  • Rectoly for Zotero icon
    Takaki Takemura added Zotero as alternative to Rectoly for Zotero
  • lilith888 liked Zotero
  • CitationEasy icon
    samsergi added Zotero as alternative to CitationEasy
  • mooovemaker liked Zotero
  • UlrikheLukoie liked Zotero
  • nikola2222 liked Zotero

Comments and Reviews

   
Comment summary: Zotero is highly regarded for its intuitive interface and open-source nature, positioning it as a robust reference manager. It excels with features like cross-platform compatibility, browser integration, sync options, and collaboration tools, which enhance academic productivity. Despite facing issues like the recent note editor changes and the lack of bulk editing, users appreciate its ease of use and flexibility, particularly when compared to commercial alternatives. Some criticism exists around iOS support and specific functionality changes.
Top Positive Comment
jendk3r
4

I started with EndNote, but it was feeling so old... Zotero is advanced (may be a bit overwhelming, when you try out also plugins) but will for sure get you there where you need with the reference management if you tweak a bit! With ZotFile you can also nicely sync Zotero with mobile devices.

Top Negative Comment
ab1
-2

Plugins don't seem to help with quotes: https://www.zotero.org/support/plugins

meyco
2

Simple, excellent UI, efficient organizing everything. Local backup and easy to restore.

Nick Scientist
1

Excellent desktop version. Web version could be a little faster to use but overall still gets the job done easily enough. The fact it keeps stuff cloud saved and syncs across devices is very handy. Free version not too limiting.

Marie-Jean THORAVAL
3

It is simply the best References Manager available, with fast development of new features, an amazing team of developers listening to users, and a strong community of users. Zotero is completely open source. It has been developed steadily for over 16 years. Together with the open source development of the software, this gives you strong confidence that your data is safe and will never be locked away by the company as others are doing. It is free to use locally on your computer. You only pay for online storage if you want to sync your data online. From Zotero 6, it is now possible to open PDF files directly within Zotero, and make annotations. This was the key feature that made me jump from Mendeley. I have used many different Reference Managers. Importing references in Zotero with the metadata and PDF files from the publishers websites with the browser extension is by far the highest quality in Zotero compared to the other Reference Managers I have used. And the developers are constantly listening to users for cases where it still needs to be improved.

dkshsat
-1

I just updated from Zotero version 5 to 6 They changed the note editor and all the notes they had written before were messed up. Even the note editor has been changed to a more stupid bullet style. (What the hell did TinyMCE change to?)

I rolled back to version 5, but my database has been upgraded to version 6 and I can't open it.

There is one more thing that I have been dissatisfied with for a long time. If they can already be equipped with Rich Text Editor, the function to preview the saved html file can be implemented. Nevertheless, the html files saved by the web clipper cannot be previewed. In fact, you have to double-click to open all files, not just html. Only pdf files can be previewed with the plugin.

userUX
-2

It was great, until they decided to change the notes (from tinyMCE to ProseMirror). After losing most of the formating my notes I end up with the poorest editor I ever saw: you can't even use shortcut to add links, you can't edit and customized the source HTML codes of the notes anymore.

7 of 15 comments

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Official Links

What is Zotero?

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.

Zotero helps you organize your research any way you want. You can sort items into collections and tag them with keywords. Or create saved searches that automatically fill with relevant materials as you work.

Zotero instantly creates references and bibliographies for any text editor, and directly inside Word, LibreOffice, and Google Docs. With support for over 100,000 citation styles, you can format your work to match any style guide or publication.

Zotero can optionally synchronize your data across devices, keeping your notes, files, and bibliographic records seamlessly up to date. If you decide to sync, you can also always access your research from any web browser.

Zotero lets you co-write a paper with a colleague, distribute course materials to students, or build a collaborative bibliography. You can share a Zotero library with as many people you like, at no cost.

Zotero information

AlternativeTo Categories

Web Browsers, News & Books, Office & Productivity, Backup & Sync, File Management, Security & Privacy, Education & Reference

Apple AppStore

  •   Updated 
  •   4.63 avg rating
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GitHub repository

  •  15,443 Stars
  •  1,137 Forks
  •  1607 Open Issues
  •   Updated  
View on GitHub

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Top Zotero apps (extensions / mods etc)

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Our users have written 15 comments and reviews about Zotero, and it has gotten 502 likes

Zotero was added to AlternativeTo by Raf on and this page was last updated .