{
  "slug": "mendeley",
  "name": "Mendeley",
  "aliases": ["Mendeley Reference Manager", "Mendeley Desktop"],
  "vendor": { "name": "Elsevier", "slug": "elsevier", "website": "https://www.elsevier.com" },
  "homepage_url": "https://www.mendeley.com/",
  "docs_url": "https://www.elsevier.com/products/mendeley",
  "product_type": "application",
  "product_status": "active",
  "summary": "Free reference manager from Elsevier with a desktop and web app, PDF annotation, a Web Importer, groups and bundled cloud storage",
  "description": "Mendeley is Elsevier's free reference manager. Mendeley Reference Manager, available as a desktop app and in the browser, imports PDFs individually or by folder, watches folders for new files, reads and annotates PDFs, organizes items into collections and tags, and inserts citations through a cite-as-you-write add-in. A Web Importer browser extension saves references while browsing, groups let co-authors share libraries and annotate PDFs together, and an \"Ask my library\" AI feature answers questions across saved references. Every account includes a fixed amount of free cloud storage; the site also promotes LeapSpace, an Elsevier research companion.\n\nMendeley suits researchers who want a no-cost, cloud-synced library with Word integration and are comfortable with a proprietary, vendor-hosted service. The older Mendeley Desktop client was retired in favour of Reference Manager, so legacy workflows and some plugins no longer apply, and there is no self-hosted or open-source option.",
  "capabilities": ["Import PDFs and folders with automatic metadata extraction", "Web Importer browser extension", "PDF reading and annotation", "Cite-as-you-write add-in for word processors", "Shared groups with collaborative annotation", "Cloud sync with bundled storage"],
  "workflows": ["Building a personal library from downloaded PDFs", "Co-authoring with a shared group library"],
  "advantages": ["Free with cloud sync included", "Desktop and web clients"],
  "limitations": ["Proprietary, vendor-hosted; no self-hosting", "Legacy Mendeley Desktop retired; some plugins discontinued", "Public site blocks automated access, limiting documentation checks"],
  "prerequisites": ["Free Elsevier/Mendeley account"],
  "audiences": ["Students and researchers wanting a free cloud library", "Users in Elsevier-centred institutions"],
  "alternatives": ["zotero", "paperpile", "jabref"],
  "comparison_notes": "Zotero is open source with WebDAV self-storage; Paperpile is paid and Google Docs-centred; JabRef is BibTeX-native and offline. Mendeley is free and cloud-synced but proprietary.",
  "categories": [{ "slug": "citation-management", "primary": true }],
  "tags": ["bibliography", "pdf", "browser-extension"],
  "use_cases": ["manage-references", "write-papers"],
  "operating_systems": ["macos", "windows", "linux", "web"],
  "execution_modes": ["cloud", "local"],
  "interfaces": ["desktop", "web", "browser-extension"],
  "deployment_models": ["saas", "desktop"],
  "integrations": ["Microsoft Word (Mendeley Cite)", "Overleaf", "ScienceDirect"],
  "data_formats": ["BibTeX", "RIS", "EndNote XML", "PDF"],
  "languages": [],
  "source_model": "proprietary",
  "pricing_model": ["free"],
  "self_hostable": false,
  "sources": [
    { "url": "https://www.mendeley.com/", "type": "official_site", "title": "Mendeley | Homepage", "supports": ["name", "summary", "capabilities", "pricing_model"], "checked_at": "2026-11-02" },
    { "url": "https://www.mendeley.com/reference-management/reference-manager", "type": "official_docs", "title": "Mendeley | Features", "supports": ["capabilities"], "checked_at": "2026-11-02" },
    { "url": "https://www.elsevier.com/products/mendeley", "type": "official_site", "title": "Mendeley – Elsevier", "supports": ["vendor"], "checked_at": "2026-11-02" }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "uncertainty_note": "mendeley.com returns 403 to command-line clients; pages were read through a rendering fetcher. Supported desktop platforms were not confirmed on the pages checked.",
  "discovery_method": "editorial-research",
  "depth": "standard",
  "editorial_status": "reviewed",
  "visibility": "public",
  "featured": false,
  "author": "batch-E"
}