Get started with Paperpile on the web

Welcome to Paperpile 👋.

Once you sign up at https://paperpile.com and install the Chrome extension, you are ready to go. Here is a quick intro to get you started.

If you already have a library from Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, or any other software, see Migrate from other products.

Find and collect papers

First things first — you'll want to add some papers or other references to your new library. From your Paperpile library, click Add on the top left for multiple ways to do so.

Tip: To quickly upload PDFs, just drag and drop them from your file manager into the Paperpile window.

You can also import references directly from searches in databases:

Use your browser to search for articles on Google Scholar, PubMed, arXiv, and many other academic databases. Import references with one click using the Paperpile buttons:
Click the Paperpile button in your browser toolbar to import from hundreds of supported publisher sites. A green triangle appears on the button when you're viewing a supported site, for an example, visit doi.org/10.1038/nature10530 to try it out.

Read and annotate papers

PDFs are typically automatically added when you add a reference.
To manually add a PDF to a reference, click Add PDF and use the different options in the PDF menu. Find the PDF online automatically, attach it to the reference, or search for it online.

Click the green PDF button to open the PDF where you can read, highlight, and add sticky notes.

Get organized

Next, add some folders and labels to help keep things tidy. In the sidebar, click the plus button next the My Library header to add new folders.

Click the plus button next to the Labels header to add new labels.

Drag a reference into a folder or on a label using the drag handle on the left side of the reference, or use the toolbar buttons to organize many references at once: