Citation Management Tools

Zotero (pronounced "zoh-TAIR-oh") is an application that collects, manages, and cites research sources. It's easy to use, connects with your web browser to automatically download sources, and is completely free. Zotero works well with the Firefox, Chrome, and Safari browsers. It allows you to attach PDFs, notes, and images to your citations, organize them into collections, tag them with keywords for different projects, and use over 8,000 citation styles to create bibliographies. If you want to synchronize your data across devices, Zotero lets you access your research from any web browser. It also supports collaboration and sharing—you can co-create papers or bibliographies and share materials with as many people as you’d like.

Zotero does have a few limitations. You receive 300 MB of storage when you sign up for a Zotero account. This may be less than you receive when you sign up for other citation managers, but you can purchase more storage if necessary. In addition, while Zotero’s status as an independent, nonprofit organization that has no financial interest in your private information is a positive attribute, this means that user support may not be as robust as it is for other tools.

Potential Microsoft Issue

Microsoft recently began blocking apps that don't come from the Microsoft App store by default, which may affect your ability to download Zotero. If you run into this issue, follow these steps:

1. Select Start (the Windows symbol)
2. Select Settings
3. Select Apps
4. Select Apps & features
5. Under Installing apps, select the drop-down box
6. Select Allow apps from anywhere or Anywhere

After that, you should be able to add new apps, including Zotero.