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BibDesk vs Paperpile: catalog facts
BibDesk	Paperpile
Free Free and open source.	Paid Paid subscription with a 30-day free trial.
macOS	Android, iOS, Web, Browser extension
Links references to their PDFs and web pages One-click import from Google Scholar, arXiv and PubMed	Built-in PDF viewer with annotation tools Citation plugins for Google Docs and Word
macOS only Built around BibTeX, less suited to Word-based workflows	Requires a Google account Sign-up only on Chrome for now, Safari and Firefox in beta
Downloadable app	Downloadable app, Web application, Browser extension
Open source	Closed source
License not stated	License not stated
No account needed	Account needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.