Convert a DOI to RIS - or a PMID, PMCID, ISBN, arXiv ID, ISSN, ADS bibcode, or paper URL. Download an RIS file you can import into Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, or any reference manager. Paste multiple identifiers (one per line) to generate a complete .ris file in one go.
Working from PubMed? Paste a PMID and the tool converts PMID to RIS directly, resolving the record against PubMed - the same one-step conversion as DOI to RIS.
7 identifier types · Batch input → single .ris file · Free, no signup
One identifier per line. We’ll resolve it and return an RIS record. Nothing is stored.
0 / 2,000 characters
Resolving an identifier confirms the paper exists - it does not confirm the citations in your bibliography point to the right papers. The dominant AI-fabrication pattern is a real, resolvable DOI paired with an invented title. Audit your whole reference list for fabricated citations before you submit.
Each resolved identifier produces an RIS record. The record type (e.g. JOUR for journal articles, BOOK for books, GEN for preprints) is inferred from the resolved metadata.
Input
Output
TY - JOUR AU - Watanabe, K. TI - Title of the paper JO - Nature VL - 615 SP - 123 EP - 130 PY - 2023 DO - 10.1038/s41586-023-05881-4 ER -
Conference papers, theses, and other publication types are mapped to the correct RIS record type automatically. Common tags include AU (author), TI (title), JO (journal), VL (volume), SP/EP (start/end page), PY (year), and DO (DOI). Fields vary depending on the publication type and what metadata is available.
If your reference started life in PubMed, you have a PMID rather than a DOI. This tool converts a PMID to RIS in one step: paste the numeric PubMed ID (e.g. 23831765), and it resolves the record against PubMed and emits the same RIS output you would get from a DOI. There is no need to first look up the DOI - PMID to RIS is a direct conversion here.
PubMed’s own export gives you a .nbib (MEDLINE) file, which not every reference manager accepts. RIS is the more universal format, so converting PMID to RIS avoids the extra import-filter step in EndNote, Mendeley, or Citavi. PMCIDs (PMC3737249) and arXiv IDs convert to RIS the same way. To convert many at once, paste one PMID per line.
RIS is a tag-based text format for exchanging bibliographic references between software. Each line starts with a two-letter tag (TY, AU, TI, etc.) followed by two spaces, a hyphen, a space, and the value. An entry ends with ER -.
The format was originally developed by Research Information Systems (hence the name) and is now the most widely supported interchange format across reference managers. If you are not sure which format a tool or reference manager expects, RIS is usually the safest bet.
See the RIS entry in our glossary.
Enter any of the following scholarly identifiers and the tool will resolve the full bibliographic metadata and generate an RIS record.
| Type | Example | Source |
|---|---|---|
| DOI | 10.1038/nature12373 | CrossRef, publishers |
| PMID | 23831765 | PubMed / NCBI |
| PMCID | PMC3737249 | PubMed Central |
| arXiv ID | 2209.14430 | arXiv.org |
| ISBN | 978-0-306-40615-7 | Books |
| ISSN | 0028-0836 | Journals (print) |
| eISSN | 2050-084X | Journals (electronic) |
| ADS bibcode | 2023Natur.615..123W | NASA Astrophysics Data System |
| Paper URL | https://www.nature.com/articles/... | Publisher sites (.gov, .edu, etc.) |
RIS is the most universally supported bibliographic interchange format. You can import .ris files into:
.ris files directly.If your reference manager is not listed, try importing the .ris file anyway - almost every tool that handles bibliographic data supports the format.
Yes. Paste a PMID (PubMed ID) and the tool resolves it against PubMed, then returns an RIS record - a PMID to RIS conversion, identical to DOI to RIS. PMCID and arXiv IDs convert to RIS the same way. For batch work, enter one PMID per line.
Yes. Enter one identifier per line. The tool will resolve each one and return all RIS records in a single block, ready to copy or download as a .ris file.
Both are text-based interchange formats for bibliographic references. BibTeX is native to LaTeX and uses curly-brace syntax; RIS uses tagged lines and is more universal across non-LaTeX tools. If you use LaTeX or Overleaf, go with BibTeX. For everything else - Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, RefWorks - RIS is the safer choice.
Check that you have entered a valid DOI (starting with 10.), PMID, PMCID, ISBN, arXiv ID, ISSN, or ADS bibcode. The tool resolves identifiers against CrossRef, PubMed, PubMed Central, OpenLibrary, arXiv, and NASA ADS. If the upstream database is temporarily unavailable, try again in a moment.
Yes. No account required. Nothing you enter is stored.
Not sure what identifier you have? Run it through the Identifier Detector first, or look up the metadata to verify before exporting.
This page is a front end for the public Scholar Sidekick API — the same RIS export runs over plain HTTP, so you can call it from a script, an AI agent, or your reference manager. Light use needs no key at all. A free account issues an ssk_ key that raises your rate limit.