Exporting and migrating your citation data from RefWorks to another tool is easier than it may seem. Below you will find instructions on how to export your RefWorks citation collections and how best to migrate that information to your preferred citation software. If you have any further questions or issues with migrating your citations, please reach out to your respective Liaison Librarian for assistance.

*NOTE*: Long term citation manager support via the library will provided for Zotero only, starting January 2025.

1. Log in to your RefWorks account.

2. Once logged in, Click on the 'Share' menu tab near the upper left, and select 'Export References'

NOTE: If you would like to keep your folder organization, you will need to export one folder at a time. RefWorks recommends exporting 200 citations or fewer at once. 

3. Select and save the exported RefWorks citations in a file format that is compatible with your other bibliographic software.

NOTE: If you are importing into Mendeley or Zotero, save the file type as .ris

4. When you click on 'Export', a file will download into your selected downloads folder. Once downloaded, you can take that file and import it into your selected citation software.

For further instruction on how to import your RefWorks citation file into your other citation manager, please follow the instructions for your selected software below:

• Migrate Citation Records to Zotero
• Migrate Citation Records to Mendeley
• Migrate Citation Records to EndNote

NOTE: Beginning in January 2025, Zotero will the citation manager tool supported by the Lemieux Library. If you need further assistance with Zotero and its uses, please visit our set-up and tutorial videos in the Zotero library guide. If you still need further assistance, please reach out via askalibrarian@seattleu.edu or reach out to one of our Research Librarians.

1. Download Zotero. Open Zotero’s desktop application and create a username/login. Go to File->Import. 

2. Select the .ris or .txt file you wish to import, then follow the prompts to add it to your library. Repeat the steps in Zotero for each RefWorks file. 

NOTE: Lemieux Library does not provide extended support for Mendeley use. For assistance beyond basic import and set-up, please contact the Mendeley support team directly.

1. Create a Mendeley account, if you have not done so already.
2. Click on Import Library, select RIS, and select the .ris or .txt file you saved from RefWorks. Repeat the steps in Mendeley for each RefWorks file.

NOTE: Lemieux Library does not provide extended support for Endnote use. For assistance beyond basic import and set-up, please contact the EndNote support team directly.

1. Open EndNote Desktop. Go to File->Import->File.

2. Click Choose and select the .ris or .txt file you wish to import.

3. Under Import Option, select Reference Manager (RIS). Then click Import. Repeat the steps in EndNote for each RefWorks file.