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Paperpile

by Paperpile LLC · Application

Subscription reference manager that lives in the browser and Google Drive, with citation plugins for Google Docs and Word and mobile apps

ProprietaryPaidAcademicEnterpriseCloud
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Link verified Nov 2, 2026

Overview

Paperpile is a paid, web-based reference manager. Its library runs in the browser and stores PDFs in the user's own Google Drive (OneDrive sync is in beta), with a Chrome extension for collecting references and citation plugins for Google Docs and Microsoft Word that support many citation styles and BibTeX export. The Expert tier adds PDF annotation, and iOS and Android apps allow reading and annotating on mobile.

Pricing is subscription-only, billed yearly, with Regular and Expert individual plans, an academic discount for eligible institutions, per-seat group pricing and an enterprise tier with single sign-on and custom contracts; a free trial precedes purchase. Paperpile is well suited to teams that write in Google Docs, but it is proprietary, requires a Google or Microsoft cloud account for file storage, and has no offline desktop client or self-hosting option.

Capabilities

  • Browser-based library with Google Drive file storage
  • Citation plugins for Google Docs and Word
  • Chrome extension for reference capture
  • PDF annotation (Expert plan)
  • iOS and Android apps
  • BibTeX and citation-style export

Typical workflows

  1. Co-writing a paper in Google Docs with shared citations
  2. Reading and annotating PDFs on a tablet

Strengths

  • Deep Google Docs integration
  • Files stay in the user's own cloud drive

Limitations

  • Subscription only; no free tier
  • Depends on Google Drive or OneDrive for storage
  • Browser extension sign-up limited to Chrome; other browsers in beta

Prerequisites

  • Google or Microsoft account
  • Chrome for initial setup

Who it is for

  • Researchers writing in Google Docs
  • Labs wanting managed seats

Alternatives & comparison

Zotero and Mendeley are free and desktop-centred; Paperpile charges a subscription in exchange for a cloud-first workflow built around Google Docs.

  • JabRef

    Open-source, BibTeX/biblatex-native reference manager for LaTeX users with online fetchers, groups, file linking and editor integration

    Open sourceFree
  • Mendeley

    Free reference manager from Elsevier with a desktop and web app, PDF annotation, a Web Importer, groups and bundled cloud storage

    ProprietaryFree
  • Zotero

    Free, open-source reference manager with browser connectors, word-processor plugins, a PDF reader, group libraries and optional paid file storage

    Open sourceFree
Compare Paperpile with its alternatives →

Sources & verification

Primary sources consulted for this record. Claims are tied to the fields each source supports; the automated link checker re-verifies every URL on a schedule.

  • Official documentation
    Paperpile Help

    https://paperpile.com/help

    Supports: docs_url

    checked Nov 1, 2026
  • Official site
    Paperpile

    https://paperpile.com/

    Supports: name, summary

    checked Nov 1, 2026
  • Pricing page
    Pricing - Paperpile

    https://paperpile.com/pricing

    Supports: pricing_model, capabilities, limitations

    checked Nov 1, 2026
Confidence
High
Reviewed
Nov 1, 2026
Links
Verified · Nov 2, 2026

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biblatex

Philip Kime and contributors · LaTeX & typesetting

LaTeX bibliography package that reimplements BibTeX formatting in LaTeX macros, with the Biber backend, Unicode sorting and multiple bibliographies

LPPL-1.3cFreeOpen sourceLocalNov 2, 2026