LibGuides: Citation Managers: Citation Manager Comparison

How to Choose Your Reference Manager

Citation Manager	Zotero	Mendeley	EndNote basic
Web based?	Can sync with an online account which is editable	Not primarily, but can sync with an online account which is editable	Yes
Must use online?	No	No	Yes
Cost	Free for basic account, some cost for more online storage space	Free for basic account, some cost for more online storage space	Free for basic account, some cost for more online storage space
Word-processor compatibility	MS Word, Open Office, Google Docs	MS Word, Open Office,	MS Word
Import from Databases	Yes	Yes	Yes
Import citation info from web pages	Yes, also archives the page and you can add annotations	Yes, with a bookmark for a limited number of sites (mostly publishers or databases)	Yes, with Web Capture tool
Storage capacity	Unlimited local storage and data syncing; 100MB free Zotero file syncing (larger syncing plans available for purchase)	Unlimited local storage and data syncing; 1GB personal and 100MB shared online space (larger online storage plans available for purchase)	Limited to 50,000 citations and 2 GB of attachment storage
Attach associated files (PDFs, etc.)	Yes	Yes, with function to annotate pdf	Yes
Search full text of PDFs	Yes	Yes	No
Create group or shared libraries	Yes	Yes, up to 3 members	Yes
Create bibliography with different styles	Yes	Yes	Yes
Automatic citation extraction from PDFs	Yes	Yes	No
Other features	Sync library with multiple computers Use tags to organize/search	Sync library with multiple computers Sync with Zotero library

This information has been borrowed and adapted from the LibGuide Citation and Writing Guides by the Penn State University Libraries.