Paperpile vs Mendeley Reference Manager

Paperpile8.9Visit Mendeley Reference Manager8.4Visit

Higher score Paperpile #2 in Reference Management Software 8.9/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 1 of 3 features Visit Paperpile

vs

Mendeley Reference Manager #6 in Reference Management Software 8.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 3 features Visit Mendeley

• Paperpile fits best

  Google-centric academic teams

• Mendeley Reference Manager fits best

  Teams wanting affordable PDF-focused collaboration

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Side by side

Feature	Paperpile 8.9/10 Visit ↗	Mendeley Reference Manager 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.9	8.4
Ranking	#2 in Reference Management Software	#6 in Reference Management Software
Best for	Google-centric academic teams	Teams wanting affordable PDF-focused collaboration
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	$4.15/user/mo	$55/yr
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	30 days	—
Deployment	Cloud, Mobile, Browser extension	Cloud, Desktop, Browser extension
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android, Chrome extension	Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Chrome extension
Support	Email, Community, Docs	Docs
Integrations	9 integrations	3 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market
Features Paperpile 1/3 · Mendeley Reference Manager 1/3
PDF annotation	✓	✓
Citation plugins	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Browser capture	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Specs
Storage limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Supported platforms	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Team collaboration	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Strong PDF storage, search, highlighting, notes, and annotations Google Docs and Microsoft Word citation plugins Shared libraries, duplicate detection, and research integrations	PDF organization, highlighting, comments, and annotations Shared libraries support team collaboration Microsoft Word citation and bibliography insertion
Cons	No free plan; paid plans are billed annually Safari and Firefox support is described as beta Enterprise pricing is not displayed in the published plan details	No native iOS or Android apps Word is the primary documented word-processor integration AI features and added storage require paid tiers
Our verdict	Paperpile is a web-based reference management application for researchers, students, and academic teams. It collects references from academic databases and publisher websites, organizes them with folders, labels, search, and duplicate… Read the review →	Mendeley Reference Manager is a web and desktop reference-management application for researchers, students, and academic teams. It stores, organizes, searches, and annotates references and PDFs, while importing files and browser-captured… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Paperpile — where it wins

  • Strong PDF storage, search, highlighting, notes, and annotations
  • Google Docs and Microsoft Word citation plugins
  • Shared libraries, duplicate detection, and research integrations

  Where it doesn't

  • No free plan; paid plans are billed annually
  • Safari and Firefox support is described as beta
  • Enterprise pricing is not displayed in the published plan details

• Mendeley Reference Manager — where it wins

  • PDF organization, highlighting, comments, and annotations
  • Shared libraries support team collaboration
  • Microsoft Word citation and bibliography insertion

  Where it doesn't

  • No native iOS or Android apps
  • Word is the primary documented word-processor integration
  • AI features and added storage require paid tiers

• Paperpile8.9/10 · 30-day trial

  A capable, Google-centric reference manager for academic teams that need shared research libraries.

  Visit PaperpileFull verdict →
• Mendeley Reference Manager8.4/10 · Free plan

  An affordable, PDF-focused reference manager with collaboration and Word integration.

  Visit MendeleyFull verdict →