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Best Productivity ResourcesBy Shushant LakhyaniVerified creator

Desktop App

Zettlr

A free Markdown editor built for academic writing and long-form research.

Visit Zettlr4.5

  • Rating

    4.5 / 5

  • Pricing

    Free

  • Difficulty

    Intermediate

  • Works on

    Windows, macOS, Linux

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What is Zettlr?

Zettlr is a free, open-source Markdown editor designed for researchers, students and writers. It connects to Zotero for citations, supports Zettelkasten-style linked notes, and exports your work to PDF, Word and other formats through Pandoc, with all files kept as plain text on your own computer.

Pros: what Zettlr does well

  • Built-in citation support with Zotero
  • Plain Markdown files on disk
  • Flexible export via Pandoc

Cons: where it falls short

  • Takes time to learn its academic features
  • No official mobile app

Who Zettlr is for

Students and researchers writing papers, theses or long documents with lots of references.

Who can skip it

People who just want quick notes that sync to their phone.

Zettlr alternatives

Not sold on Zettlr? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.

All Writing resources

Zotero

Focus: reference manager, pdf and academic. Shares citations and open source with Zettlr. Adds iOS, Chrome and Firefox. Rated 4.8 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.8Visit

JabRef

Focus: reference manager, bibtex and academic. Shares citations and open source with Zettlr. Same 4.5 rating.

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.5Visit

ZoteroBib

Focus: bibliography and references. Shares citations and academic writing with Zettlr. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.7 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Web AppFreeWeb
4.7Visit

MarkEdit

Focus: writing app, mac app and github. Shares markdown editor and open source with Zettlr. A Mac app, not a desktop app. Rated 4.6 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Mac AppFreemacOS, Offline
4.6Visit

MyBib

Focus: bibliography and references. Shares citations and academic writing with Zettlr. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.6 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit

Hyperresearch

Focus: deep research, claude code and github. Shares citations and open source with Zettlr. An AI tool, not a desktop app. Rated 4.4 (Zettlr: 4.5).

AI ToolFreeWindows, macOS
4.4Visit

Free alternatives to Zettlr

Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.

OpenDraft

Focus: research papers and literature review. Shares citations and open source with Zettlr. An AI tool, not a desktop app. Rated 4.4 (Zettlr: 4.5).

AI ToolFreeCross-Platform
4.4Visit

Pandoc

Focus: document converter, markdown and command line. Shares open source with Zettlr. Rated 4.8 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.8Visit

Logseq

Focus: PKM, Note-Taking and Graph Database. Shares Open Source with Zettlr. Adds iOS, Android and Web. Rated 4.6 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit

Quarto

Focus: publishing, markdown and reports. Shares open source with Zettlr. Rated 4.6 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit

Xournal++

Focus: handwriting, pdf annotation and pen input. Shares open source with Zettlr. Rated 4.6 (Zettlr: 4.5).

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.6Visit

Jan

Focus: local ai, llm and offline. Shares open source with Zettlr. Same 4.5 rating.

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.5Visit
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