Bibliography management in Overleaf
When it comes to bibliography management packages, there are three main options in LaTeX: biblatex, BibTeX and natbib (a package for use with BibTeX).
Overleaf recommends biblatex for new projects — it is actively maintained, provides an easier and more flexible interface, and better language localization than the other two options.
Video: Bibliography Management in Overleaf (03:59)
This video is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Reference Managers (EndNote, Zotero, Mendeley)
You can use your favourite reference manager with Overleaf. They have direct integrations with Zotero and Mendeley. You can use Overleaf with EndNote and easily upload a .bib file from other services.
Biblatex
This Overleaf project provides a guide on using the biblatex package for efficient reference management in LaTeX documents. It includes clear instructions on setup and recommendations for troubleshooting. Additionally, you’ll find examples of well-formatted references in the bibliography section which serve as a template for creating your own .bib files. Use this project as a template to ensure consistency and accuracy in your own Overleaf projects!
if no citation style is set LaTeX uses the one that matches the bibliography style
A video tutorial (04:49 mins):
More examples can be found here.
How to search for references in an Overleaf project
Providing citations to prior work is an important aspect of academic writing but managing and using a library of references can be time-consuming. Overleaf provides you not only with integrations with reference managers but also an enhanced reference-search feature.
BibTeX
Although BibTeX is an older format, some journals and publishers still require BibTeX. If your publisher provides a BibTeX template (.bst file), use BibTeX for that project.
BibTeX is a file format used for lists of references for LaTeX documents. Many citation management tools support the ability to export and import lists of references in .bib format. Some reference management tools can generate BibTeX files of your library or folders for use in your LaTeX documents.
Learn how to create and manage bibliographies using BibTeX on Overleaf:
by reading this article by Overleaf TeXpert, Lian Tze, that pulls together all the threads relating to citations, references and bibliographies, as well as how Overleaf and related tools can help you manage your references
by watching a short video (3:30 mins) by V. Knight: (film)
Overleaf supports BibTeX styles and packages available in TeX Live. Here’s a specific list of the .bst files that are already installed on Overleaf’s servers (so you don’t have to add them specifically to your project) as well as the link to the package documentation:
natbib
Natbib extends BibTeX with author-year citation support. You may encounter it in older templates or journal submissions. For new projects, biblatex is recommended.
Researcher?
