Research Guide for Mathematics: Managing your references

Managing your references guide compares five reference management software, and provide links to tutorials and comparison tables. Opportunitites for training and reference enquiries support are also advertised here.

Reference management software, also known as citation management software, allows you to:

• collect references
• store references in a web account or on your desktop
• organise references
• add notes to your references
• link to full text, web pages and documents
• cite your references and create bibliographies

Some also have additional features such as:

• sharing your references
• pdf highlighting
• collaboration
• social networking

There are a huge range of reference mangers available.  The best way to choose a reference manager is to test some out and see which you like best.

You may want to consider:

1. Accessibility - desktop, web-based or web browser extension
2. Is the citation / reference style you need to use available?
3. Is the software compatible with the word processor you use?
4. If you want to share your references with colleagues, what do they use?

Under the comparison tables tab you will find a comparison of the pros and cons and of the features of six reference managers.  For more detailed information about these reference managers - including sources of help and training - refer to their individual tabs.

If you're having an issue with a reference management tool, please email us at the address below. Please give us as much information as you can, particularly:

• Your department/faculty or subject area
• The reference management tool or software you are using (RefWorks, EndNote, Mendeley, Zotero etc.)
• The operating system of the machine you are using (Windows 10, macOS Catalina etc.)
• The browser you are using (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari etc.)
• The word processor you are using (Word, Pages etc.)

Contact us at reference-management@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.