Skip to Main Content

How to use and create citations

What is citation management software

Citation management software download, organize, and insert citations into the document you are writing. They use the citation style you choose to add the in-text citations and automatically build the works cited list, reference list, or bibliography at the end of the document. Citation management software can also allow for group work and sharing documents between people. Most people use citation management software for longer scholarly works such as research articles, theses or dissertations, books, and more. 

Graphic titled Pros and Cons of citation management software. The list of pros includes no need to memorize citation styles and saves time formatting documents. Cons include learning curve and software must be installed and updated.

Choosing citation management software

These are the most commonly used citation management software. This table compares them. There are others, but EndNote, Mendeley, and Zotero are the most popular at Georgia Tech.
  EndNote Mendeley Zotero
Cost Free through Georgia Tech OIT Free from Elsevier Free and open source
Strengths Versatile and powerful Creates references from PDFs Great for group work
Ease of use Difficult at first Easy Easy
Social network No Yes Yes
Operating system Mac, Windows, iOS app Browser-based Mac, Windows, Linux, Zotero for Mobile app
Storage Unlimited 2 GB free 300 MB free

Adapted from Introduction to Citation Management from the University of Pittsburgh Library system. 

You can find the citation management software at the following links.

You must be a Georgia Tech student, faculty, or staff member to download EndNote. Use your Georgia Tech login and password to access Georgia Tech's software site, OnTheHub. 

Download Zotero for free.