This video highlights a few reasons why you might want to consider using citation managers in your scholarly research and writing. While the video features Mendeley, we also provides support and training for Zotero and EndNote.
| EndNote Desktop | EndNote Web | Mendeley | Zotero | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Individual or departmental purchase available through MCW-IS | Free; upgraded version available free to MCW users via Web of Science | Free (additional cost for more storage and group functionality available from Mendeley) | Free and open source (additional cost for more storage available from Zotero) |
| System requirements | Windows 7 and above, MacOS 10.10 and above, more details from EndNote | Widows 2007 or later, Mac OS X 10.6 or later, more details from EndNote | Windows 7 or later, Mac OS 10.10 and above, and Linux, more details from Mendeley | Windows XP SP2 or later, MacOS 10.9 or later, and Linux, more details from Zotero |
| Where data is stored | Computer | Web | Computer with web based syncing | Computer with optional web based syncing |
| Work offline | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Work from multiple computers | Must sync with EndNote web | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Word Processors | MS Word 2007 and above, Word for Mac 2011 and above, Google Docs | MS Word 2007 or later, Microsoft Word 2008 SP1/2011 plug-in for Macs, Google Docs | MS Word, Libre Office, BibTex export for use with LaTex | MS Word 2003-2016, Word for Mac 2004-2016, Google Docs |
| Mobile app | iPad app | No | iPad/iPhone/Adroid apps | iOS and Android apps |
| Share library | Share entire library (references, PDFs, annotations) with up to 100 EndNote users | Share with other EndNote Web users. All users can edit shared groups, but cannot share file attachments | Yes | Yes |
| Storage size | Unlimited | 2 GB free | 2 GB free, $ for more storage | 300 mb free, $ for more storage |
| Number of reference types | 50 | 51 | 20 | 38 |
| Import citation information from web | No | Yes, with bookmarklet | Yes, with a bookmark for a limited number of sites (mostly publishers or databases) | Yes |
| Import citation from library catalog | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Import citation from library databases | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Search database/catalog from within program | Yes | Yes | Catalog only | No |
| Retrieve citation information from pdf | Yes, from DOI or PubMed ID fields | No | Yes - extracted information from PDF, DOI, PubMed and Mendeley database | Yes - uses DOI, extracted information from PDF or Google Scholar |
| Global find/replace editing | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Field searching | Yes, any field | No - searches entire record | Yes, author, title, publication name, year & notes fields | Yes, any field |
| Duplicate detection | Yes, able to modify fields to use for deduplication | Yes from same database, but will not usually recognize duplicates from different databases | Yes | Yes |
| Add notes to references | Yes, use notes field | Yes, use notes field | Yes, use notes tab in desktop version | Yes, attached to references or as standalone notes |
| Spell check | Yes | No | No | No |
| Attach pdfs | Yes with option to attach automatically | No | Yes, and can highlight and annotate PDFs | Yes, with option to attach automatically |
| Search for and attach PDFs | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Annotate pdfs | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Search attached pdfs | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Create bibliography with different styles | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, limited default number, others download from Zotero |
| Edit output style | Yes | No | No | Yes, but very difficult |
| Online Tutorials & Videos | EndNote Training Channel | EndNote Training Channel | Mendeley Videos & Tutorials | Zotero Tutorials |
These aren't your only options for citation managers; there are other free programs such as JabRef, and subscription programs like Papers.
To learn more about the strengths and weaknesses of these products, consult the following comparison charts:
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