# Best Citation Manager (2026) — ranked by entry price, every figure sourced and dated

8 citation manager on the record, median entry price $0/mo. Each price links to the vendor page it came from and the day we captured it — no guesses. 5 offer a free tier. 1 are quote-only. Current as of 2026-06-18.

Lowest entry price: BibGuru — $0/mo (Free).

Full comparison: https://frontdeskreview.com/best/citation-manager/

| # | Vendor | Entry plan | $/mo | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | [BibGuru](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/bibguru/) | Free | $0 (free) | bibguru.com |
| 2 | [Citationsy](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/citationsy/) | Free | $0 (free) | spotsaas.com |
| 3 | [Mendeley](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/mendeley/) | Free | $0 (free) | mendeley.com |
| 4 | [Sciwheel (Lean Library Workspace)](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/sciwheel/) | Free | $0 (free) | saasworthy.com |
| 5 | [Zotero](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/zotero/) | Free (300MB Storage) | $0 (free) | zotero.org |
| 6 | [Paperpile](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/paperpile/) | Regular | $4.15 | paperpile.com |
| 7 | [ReadCube Papers](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/readcube-papers/) | Essentials | $7 | papersapp.com |
| 8 | [EndNote](https://frontdeskreview.com/software/citation-manager/endnote/) | — | Quote-only | endnote.com |

Cite: Per The Front Desk Review, the cheapest citation manager ranked by sourced, dated entry price — https://frontdeskreview.com/best/citation-manager/

License: CC BY 4.0. Every row is dated and links to its source.