How Does Papers Compare to Dropbox?

Papers revolutionizes your research experience by dramatically enhancing how you discover, annotate, collaborate, and cite research. With the addition of our new AI Assistant, finding relevant papers and deriving insights from your research has never been easier. Check out the comparison chart below to see how Papers stacks up against Dropbox.

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Papers reference management user interface with AI assistant.

Papers vs Dropbox Comparison

With Papers you can organize like a pro with a suite of features built to make your world a bit more simple. Whether organizing, reading, finding new papers or getting information from your research, see how Papers compares to Dropbox below.

papers
Dropbox
Organization
Import references & PDFs
Import other file types
Automatic metadata extraction and article identification
Merge duplicate articles
Bulk import references through CSV
Enhanced CSV import functionality
Export references to XLSX
Full-text search, including annotations
Advanced search filters
Customizable lists
Smart Lists
Labels and article ratings
Watch folders for automatic PDF import
File management
Custom Fields
Reading
AI Chat with PDF
Clickable enhancements for PDFs
Inline references
Full reference lists
Linked author names
Automatic attachment of supplemental information
Full screen PDF viewer
Article outline
PDF annotation, highlight tools & drawing tools
High resolution figure & video viewer
Easily open articles in various places (publisher website, PubMed, etc.)
Finding New Papers
Built-in search
1-click PDF downloads
Extensions supporting 1-click downloads & PDF streaming across the web
Institutional Proxy integration
Crossref integration
Dimensions.ai integration
Advanced Discovery and Metrics
Personalize paper recommendation engine
Customizable recommendations based on publication time frame
Constantly-updated stream of recommendations
Related articles
Citation count metrics
Relative citation ratio (article level impact)
Field citation ratio
Visualization and clickable lists of citation articles
Contextual citations
Altmetric integration
AI Assisted Query Builder
Advanced Search
Save Searches
Full Text Search
Sharing
Private collaboration groups
Shared metadata
Shared PDFs
Shared public lists
Shared tagging
Shared annotations
Shared Smart List
Shared Libraries
Multiple Users
Transferable License
Citing
Word-compatible citation tool
Google Docs-compatible citation tool
Instant bibliography insertion and style formatting
Included citation styles
Add and create custom styles
Custom CSL styles
Marking favorite styles
Integrated web search within the plugin
Quickly copy formatted citations
Export to other citation file formats (.bib, .ris)
Access to references in both personal and shared libraries
EndNote citation converter
Article Acquisition
Institutional Proxy support
Direct importing of Open Access Papers (Gold/Green OA)
Supported Platform/Devices
Desktop app (Windows, Mac)
Web reader with enhanced PDFs
Web-based library
Compatibility with all modern web browsers
Mobile apps (smartphone, tablet)
iOS (including Apple Pencil support)
Android
Theme support (dark mode)
Cloud Storage and Sync
Sync library across platforms and devices
Cloud storage space for library metadata & PDFs
Support
24/7 Customer Support
Extensive knowledge hub
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How to switch to Papers

Switching your reference manager to Papers is easier than pi.

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Migrate

Move your existing research, including tags, lists, and folders, into Papers with our simple upload functionality.

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Launch

Ensure your library is set up exactly as you want, with Papers experts just a click away to help.

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Optimize

Explore Papers' various features designed to make your research life easier - including the AI Assistant, Smart Lists, and collaboration tools

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Success

Enjoy your new reference management system and continue making world-changing discoveries.

FAQ

Check out some of the common questions we receive regarding Papers.

Have more questions? Visit our Knowledge Hub.