Citation Manager · pricing · Updated September 2026
ReadCube Papers pricing (2026)
ReadCube Papers starts at $10/mo (Essentials) as checked on 2026-09-09, read from about.readcube.com — the public source it was captured from, not a ReadCube Papers page; 3 plans. Best for academic researchers. Every figure below links to its source and the date we captured it.
At a glance
- Entry price: $10/mo (Essentials) · 21% off with annual billing
- Free tier: No · 30-day trial
- Compliance: HIPAA — · SOC 2 — · GDPR —
- Best for: academic researchers; lab groups; Word users; institutional libraries
As of · every figure below links to its source
ReadCube Papers plans & pricing
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Billing | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $10 | −21% | per_seat | $10/user/mo billed monthly or $95/user/year (~$7.92/mo, ~21% off), read from the vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-11, where this tier is listed as Essentials. Academic discount 40%. 30-day free trial (no card). Unlimited PDF storage, AI chat with PDFs (daily limit), up to 5 shared libraries. Confirmed on official page 2026-06-18. | about.readcube.com |
| Pro | $20 | −23% | per_seat | $20/user/mo billed monthly or $185/user/year (~$15.42/mo, ~23% off), read from the vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-11, where this tier is listed as Plus (the page notes it was formerly Papers Pro). Academic discount 40%. Adds advanced search (150M+ publications), up to 25 group members, up to 15 shared libraries, AI chat with library, transferable seats. Confirmed on official page 2026-06-18. | about.readcube.com |
| Enterprise | not priced monthly | — | custom | Custom quote (no published price). Unlimited users, SSO, document delivery, dedicated support, admin dashboard, modular add-ons. | about.readcube.com |
Last verified 2026-09-09. Pricing re-fetched from papersapp.com/pricing/ on 2026-06-18 (Essentials $7/user/mo, Pro $14/user/mo, per-seat, confirmed). ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification confirmed on papersapp.com/security (via Digital Science). GDPR not explicitly stated on fetched pages — compliance.gdpr set to null. No SOC2 or HIPAA found. Re-verified 2026-09-02 against the live pricing page — Essentials: $7 -> $10 (third-party figure).
Price changes
Price on record
$10/moTracked since June 2026. Last recorded move Sep 4, 2026: $7 → $10. No change record has cleared two sources yet, so nothing is published on the wire.
Capabilities
Integrations: Microsoft Word (SmartCite), Google Docs (SmartCite), Overleaf, iOS, Android.
Key features: SmartCite for Word and Google Docs; Enhanced PDF reader with full annotation; 8,000+ citation styles; ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified (via Digital Science).
Plan limits: No forever-free plan — 30-day trial then downgrade/cancel; Up to 5 shared libraries on Essentials; 40% academic discount requires verification.
Frequently asked questions
How much does ReadCube Papers cost?
ReadCube Papers starts at $10/mo (Essentials); it has 3 published plans. Verified 2026-09-09.
Is ReadCube Papers cheaper billed annually?
Yes. ReadCube Papers publishes a 23% discount for paying annually (on the Pro plan). Verified 2026-09-09.
What are cheaper alternatives to ReadCube Papers?
Cheaper citation manager than ReadCube Papers (entry $10/mo) include Zotero at $1.67/mo, Paperpile at $4.15/mo, Citationsy at $4.17/mo. Verified 2026-09-09.
Does ReadCube Papers support HIPAA?
ReadCube Papers HIPAA support: —. SOC 2: —. GDPR: —.
Does ReadCube Papers have a free plan?
ReadCube Papers free tier: No; 30-day free trial.
ReadCube Papers vs alternatives
Cheaper citation manager alternatives
- Sciwheel (Lean Library Workspace) from $9.95/mo
- Mendeley from $4.99/mo
- BibGuru from $4.99/mo
- Citationsy from $4.17/mo
- Paperpile from $4.15/mo
- Zotero from $1.67/mo
More citation manager tools
Related categories
Display this standing
ReadCube Papers currently holds a bronze deskmark here — Rank 6 of 8 · Citation Manager. Anyone may show it. There is nothing to apply for, nothing to pay, and displaying it changes no score: the standing comes from the published algorithm and money never touches it.
The image is drawn from our live data, so it follows the standing rather than freezing it: if ReadCube Papers moves up or down a tier, the plaque on your own site says so at our next publish. Nothing is tracked beyond the ordinary web-server log that records any image request.