Citation Finder

Missing details for your bibliography? Enter a title, author, or DOI to search Crossref and PubMed for candidate records. Compare the publication details to identify the reference you need.

Find a citation from a title, author or DOI

Use this reference finder when you have some details of a publication and need to locate its record. Start with its title, an author's name or a DOI. Crossref and PubMed may return several candidates, so compare each one with the work you intended to cite.

A candidate can help you recover a DOI or other bibliographic details. Finding a nearby title does not confirm that it is your source, and an unsuccessful search does not prove that a reference was fabricated.

Use the search fields to narrow your reference lookup

Title and author
Enter the article or book title in the title field. If it is short or common, add an author's name to give the search more context. A partial title can return candidates, but may also miss the intended publication.
Journal or series
Add the journal or series name when you know it. Use the name of the publication or series, rather than the publisher's name.
Publication year
Use a four-digit year alongside another search field. Year alone cannot start a search. If the date is uncertain, try removing it and compare the returned publication details.
DOI
Enter the identifier or its doi.org link to look for that DOI's record. Review any other details you supplied separately; a DOI lookup here is still a candidate search.
Keywords or abstract fragment
Use relevant words or a short phrase as search terms. This searches publication metadata; it does not read your paragraph and establish which sources support its claims.

To compare a DOI with a complete reference, use the DOI checker.

Review a candidate before copying its citation

Compare the title, authors, year and publication details, then open the DOI, source or registry link. Search similarity ranks candidates using the fields compared; it is not a probability that the reference is correct or evidence that the source supports your claim.

APA, MLA and Chicago suggestions are built from the returned metadata. Check missing details, punctuation and the rules for your source type before using one. Book, chapter and edition details need particular care; finding a book record does not establish complete book-style formatting.

Once you identify the intended publication, use the citation verifier to compare the complete reference you plan to submit. For a whole reference list, use the bibliography checker.

Check provider coverage as well as the candidates. A completed search with no results differs from a provider failure, and useful candidates may remain available when another provider is unavailable. Crossref and PubMed coverage is incomplete; this Finder does not search arXiv directly.

Citation finder examples

These examples use independently checked public records. The searches were checked on September 27, 2026; candidate order, records and provider availability can change. They illustrate record discovery, not verification of every reference detail or claim.

A journal article found from its title and author

Input

Title:
Macrophyte species richness improves resilience to grazing
Author:
Roth
Year:
2023

Observed result

The results included Macrophyte species richness improves resilience to grazing by Jamila S. Roth and Laura K. Reynolds, published in Journal of Ecology in 2023, with DOI 10.1111/1365-2745.14153. A separate author response with a similar title also appeared, so compare the authors, year and publication details before selecting a candidate.

Review the publisher record and Crossref record.

A book candidate whose citation still needs review

Input

DOI:
10.11647/OBP.0034

Observed result

The DOI search returned Lee Haring's 2013 book How to Read a Folktale: The 'Ibonia' Epic from Madagascar, published by Open Book Publishers, with DOI 10.11647/obp.0034. Confirm that you need the whole book rather than a chapter or review, then check edition details and the citation rules required by your institution.

Compare the publisher record and Crossref record before using the reference.

Citation finder questions, answered

How do I find a citation from a partial title?

Enter the title words you know, then add an author, journal or year if available. Compare the candidates with your original source. A short or common title can return several different works, and some genuine publications will not be found.

Can this reference finder find sources from text?

You can use keywords or an abstract fragment as search terms. The tool does not analyse a paragraph for claims, prove that a paper supports a sentence or insert citations into a manuscript. Read the source to assess whether it supports your writing.

What does the search similarity percentage mean?

It is a comparison score for the supplied fields that the Finder compares. It is not a verification result, confidence probability or research-quality score. A high score can still leave missing details, different editions or the relevance of a source to your claim unresolved.

Can I find a book or a reference without a DOI?

You can search by title and other bibliographic details without supplying a DOI. Available book and article records may appear, including some PubMed records without DOIs. Coverage and edition details are incomplete, and book citation suggestions need source-type review. Bare ISBN, PMID and arXiv identifiers are not supported directly.

Why did the search return no candidates?

The input may be too narrow, the providers may not cover the work, or a provider may be unavailable. Review the coverage message, check the spelling and try fewer search fields or a known DOI. No candidates is not proof that the publication does not exist.

Is this citation finder free?

An account with available credits is required. A completed search uses one credit, including a search with no matches. Provider failures that prevent a usable search result are not charged. Review the credit policy shown above the Find Citation button.