Guides, FAQs, and support for Recito Reader
Need direct help? Email support@recitoreader.com — you'll get a personal reply, not a bot.
Recito Reader is a modern research and reference management platform that combines intelligent paper discovery, an immersive reader, and powerful organization in one clean interface. It lets you discover, collect, organize, annotate, and cite seamlessly; featuring a beautifully clean interface and a native read-aloud audio mode that makes it the ideal companion for serious researchers and readers.
At its core, Recito connects to an extensive network of open scholarly databases, including Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, CORE, Europe PMC, Unpaywall, Elsevier, and CrossRef, giving you access to over 300 million unique searchable academic works. You can import papers by DOI, title, URL, or file upload; and when an open-access version exists, it is fetched automatically through a multi-strategy retrieval pipeline that tries up to 10 different sources.
Your library lives in your browser by default (no account required). Signing up unlocks cloud sync so your library follows you across devices.
Click Sign In on the homepage, enter your email and password. You can also sign in with Google for one-click access.
Reset links expire after 1 hour. If yours has expired, simply request a new one.
10.1038/nature12373) or type a paper title.The Discover tab lets you explore and search across 300M+ unique academic works from Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, CORE, Europe PMC, Unpaywall, Elsevier, and CrossRef — all directly within Recito. Search by topic, title, author, or keyword, then save any result straight to your library. When you import a paper, Recito uses a multi-strategy PDF retrieval pipeline that tries up to 10 different sources to find the free PDF. It is the fastest way to build a reading list without leaving the app.
Paste a direct link to a PDF or a paper landing page. Recito will attempt to fetch the PDF directly. For publisher pages that require login, it captures a web snapshot instead.
Click Add Paper → Upload PDF and select a file from your device. No size limit for local storage; cloud upload limit depends on your plan.
Install the Recito Companion extension to save papers directly from your browser while reading on publisher websites. When you visit a paper page, a save button appears — click it to add the paper to your library without switching tabs.
How to install:
chrome://extensions in your browser → enable Developer mode → click Load unpacked → select the extracted folder.Works with Chrome, Edge, Brave, and all Chromium-based browsers. The extension is safe, contains no tracking or analytics, and Chrome Web Store availability is coming soon.
Supported sites: arXiv, PubMed, IEEE, Springer, Nature, Wiley, ScienceDirect, JSTOR, SSRN, bioRxiv, medRxiv, ACM Digital Library, Taylor & Francis, SAGE, Oxford Academic, Cambridge University Press, and thousands more.
Click any paper in your library to open it in the reader. The toolbar at the top gives you zoom, page navigation, and view controls. The right panel holds your notes and annotations.
Select any text in the PDF to highlight it. A toolbar appears — choose a color or add a note. All annotations are saved automatically and visible in the right panel.
Open the TTS panel from the reader toolbar to have the paper read aloud. You can adjust speed and voice. Useful for long papers or accessibility.
Click the + icon next to FOLDERS in the sidebar to create a folder. Drag papers into folders, or use the right-click context menu on a paper card.
Tags let you label papers across multiple folders. Add tags via the paper's detail panel or the right-click menu. Filter by tag from the sidebar.
Star important papers for quick access under the Starred filter. Deleted papers go to Trash and can be restored or permanently removed from there.
You can export citations as .txt, .rtf (Word-compatible), or .html files from the citation dialog.
Without an account, your library is stored entirely in your browser's local storage (IndexedDB). It's private, fast, and works offline — but it's tied to that one browser on that one device.
With an account, papers and metadata sync to the cloud so you can access your library from any device after signing in.
Go to Sync Library in the sidebar. Connect a local folder on your device to keep a copy of your PDFs synced locally as well as in the cloud.
If you're signed in and cloud sync is active, your paper metadata and annotations are safe in the cloud. PDF files are stored based on your plan. If you're using Recito without an account, clearing browser data will remove your local library — export a backup first.
Go to your profile menu (bottom-left avatar) → Settings → Account → Change Password. You'll need to enter your current password.
Settings → Export → download a full JSON export of your library metadata, annotations, and notes. This is a backup you can re-import later.
Settings → Account → Danger Zone → Delete My Account. You'll need to confirm with your email address. This permanently removes your account and all cloud data. Local browser data must be cleared separately from your browser settings.
Some papers are behind paywalls that block automated access. Recito already tries up to 10 different sources (Unpaywall, Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, publisher direct links, Elsevier OA API, CORE, CrossRef, and more) to find a free PDF. If all sources fail, try these alternatives:
If your password isn't working, use Forgot password? in the sign-in modal to get a reset link. If you created your account before a recent update and your password isn't accepted, resetting it will always fix this.
Reset links expire after 1 hour. Go back to the sign-in page → Forgot password? and request a new link. If the email doesn't arrive within a few minutes, check your spam folder.
Click the panel icon in the top-left of the sidebar to toggle collapsed/expanded mode. On mobile, the sidebar opens as a sheet overlay instead. Keyboard shortcut: ⌘ B / Ctrl B.
If the dashboard takes longer than usual to load, it may be waiting for cloud sync. Your papers are cached locally so they should appear within a split second even if sync is in progress. If problems persist, try a hard reload (Ctrl Shift R / ⌘ Shift R).
Can't find an answer here? Reach out directly — every message gets a personal reply.
For bugs, billing questions, feature requests, or anything else — email us or use our feedback form.
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