RefWorks vs Zotero
RefWorks
refworks.proquest.com
Zotero
zotero.orgSide by side
| Figure | RefWorks | Zotero |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | $1.67/mo |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 8 |
| Spec score · Reference Management Software | 7.9 (#18) | 8.6 (#3) |
| Spec score · Citation Management Software | 7.9 (#18) | 8.6 (#4) |
| API | RefWorks API documentation is available, and the documentation page identifies itself as EndNote Fusion API Documentation. | The Web API uses HTTPS at api.zotero.org, while the desktop client exposes a local API at localhost:23119/api/. |
| Citation styles | RefWorks generates bibliographies and citations from thousands of citation styles; the product page lists 7,000+ styles. | Zotero supports more than 9,000 citation styles and can create references and bibliographies inside Word, LibreOffice, and Google Docs. |
| Collaboration | Users can share projects and collaborate with administrative controls and permissions. | Users can share a Zotero library with as many people as they like at no cost, and groups support shared collections. |
| Purpose | RefWorks is a cloud-based reference management service that supports institutions and researchers with research and writing workflows. | Zotero is a free, open-source tool for collecting, organizing, annotating, citing, and sharing research. |
| Support | Clarivate lists 24/7 product training and support for RefWorks. | Most Zotero support occurs in the public Zotero Forums. |
| What it does | RefWorks is a cloud-based reference management service for collecting, organizing, collaborating on, and publishing research. | Zotero collects, organizes, analyzes, annotates, cites, and shares research sources. |
Plans
Zotero
- 300 MBFree
- Free storageFree
- 2 GB$20 a year
- 2 GB storage$20 a year
- 6 GB$60 a year
- 6 GB storage$60 a year
- Unlimited$120 a year
- Unlimited storage$120 a year
In their own words
RefWorks
RefWorks is a cloud-based reference management service for collecting, organizing, collaborating on, and publishing research. Users can find, import, and save references from sources such as PubMed and the Library of Congress, then organize files including PDF, PowerPoint, Word, Excel, and HTML. Deduplication tools help maintain a reference library. The service can generate citations and bibliographies in more than 6,000 styles, and includes a citation style editor. Its RefWorks Citation Manager add-in connects with Google Docs and Microsoft Word. Researchers can privately share full-text documents and work together on group projects in real time. RefWorks also integrates with databases and library systems including Web of Science, ProQuest Central, and Summon. It runs in a browser, and its interface is available in nine languages. New users can enter an institutional email to check subscription availability; access is offered through subscribing institutions. Institutional administrators can manage accounts, distribute citation styles, measure usage, and set collaboration and annotation rights. Pricing is available on request, and the product page offers a trial request without stating its duration.
Zotero
Zotero is an open-source tool for collecting, organizing, annotating, citing and sharing research. Its browser Connector can identify research items during browsing and save them to a library. Collections, keyword tags and saved searches help organize material, while a PDF reader and note editor support working with documents. Zotero supports over 9,000 citation styles and integrates with Microsoft Word, LibreOffice and Google Docs. The desktop app stores research locally by default; syncing is optional. Zotero Storage can sync PDFs, images, web snapshots and other files across devices, with access through an online library. Libraries can be shared with any number of people at no cost, and groups support shared collections. The free plan includes 300 MB of storage; paid storage starts at $20/year for 2 GB. Zotero says synced data is encrypted in transit and newly created accounts' data is encrypted at rest with AES-256. The data server is in the United States. The data server software can be run locally, though Zotero says self-hosting is technically challenging and unsupported. Most support takes place in public forums.