Zotero is a computer program that provides a storage space for citations (references to works you use in your writing) and formats them in any of hundreds of citation formats as you write your paper, article, annotated bibliography, dissertation or book.
Go to http://zotero.org to download the latest version of Zotero, plus Browser Connectors for any of the following web browsers you use: Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari. See our video showing how to do this and other key setup steps.
Alternately, if all the computers you use have Zotero installed, you can register a free online account with Zotero, which will allow you to store your Zotero records on Zotero's servers, and sync that online library with the Zotero program on any computer. You will still need the Zotero program to be running on the computes you use, however.
Zotero 7.0 came out of Beta in August 2024.
Just need to format a bibliography fast?
Don't need these sources again after this paper?
Don't need a tool to do the in-text citing for you, just the bibliography?
Zoterobib is an all-online, lightweight tool created by the team behind Zotero. Give it a little information about your source, and it will usually find the rest, and produce a correctly formatted citation in APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, or any of 9300+ other styles. Even if it doesn't find your source, you'll just enter the title, author, publication information etc., and it will do the formatting.
Zotero workshops are offered as part of regular library workshop series such as Fridays@the Library. Unable to attend a workshop or need to review a concept? See below for our video tutorials on the main functions of Zotero.
To request a Zotero presentation tailored to your class, lab, student group, department, etc., email Rachel Brekhus, brekhusr@missouri.edu. In your email, please include:
Be sure to check out the webinars offered by Zotero itself, also.
These Zotero blog posts often include short how-to videos.