Citavi vs refbase
Citavi
citavi.comrefbase
wiki.refbase.netSide by side
| Figure | Citavi | refbase |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 3 | 2 |
| Spec score · Reference Management Software | 7.8 (#21) | 8.3 (#9) |
| Purpose | Citavi combines reference management, knowledge organization, and AI-powered insights for research writing. | refbase is a web-based, multi-user interface for managing scientific literature and bibliographic references. |
| Support | Citavi support includes a knowledge base, community forum, support tickets, and live chat. | The project directs users to its documentation, forums, and mailing lists for help and discussion. |
Plans
Citavi
- Citavi institutional licensingPriced on request
- Citavi WebPrice not published
- Citavi Windows + WebPrice not published
In their own words
refbase
refbase is a web-based, multi-user application for managing scientific literature and bibliographic references. It offers quick, simple, advanced, and SQL searches, including searches within results. Records can be shown in citation or print views, and the application generates formatted citation lists. It imports and exports records in formats such as MODS XML, RIS, BibTeX, and EndNote. The feature list names compatibility with desktop clients including Zotero and EndNote, as well as an open API and command-line client. Dynamic RSS feeds can track recently added or edited records and custom queries. Users can keep personal keywords and notes in user-specific fields. refbase is a free, self-hosted application licensed under the GNU General Public License version 2.0. Running it requires a web server, PHP 4.4.0 or greater, and MySQL 4.1.x or greater for Unicode support. The web installer requires a MySQL user with full database access, and some shared hosts may require manual installation. Bibutils is optional and recommended for added import and export functionality.