Comparison

Papers by ReadCube vs Uploader for Mendeley

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Papers by ReadCube

Manage, read, and discover research literature on your mobile devices. Annotate PDFs, organize your library with custom lists and tags, and receive personalized recommendations for new papers. Syncs seamlessly with desktop and web applications.

Highlights
  • Read and manage research papers
  • Annotate PDFs with notes and highlights
  • Organize library with custom lists and tags
  • Discover new research with personalized recommendations
  • Search and download articles
  • Sync across devices
Features
Read full description

ReadCube is the simplest way to read, manage and discover research literature. ReadCube on your iPhone and iPad are the perfect companions to the ReadCube web and desktop software, enabling you to access your papers anywhere – read on the go, organize your library, and annotate PDFs with notes and highlights. Enhanced PDF: • Tap-able inline citations, reference lists, and author names so you can quickly find cited articles and related information • Supplements are automatically attached where available • Fullscreen or double-page PDF viewing plus multi-touch zoom/navigation for an optimal reading experience • Multi-color highlighting and note taking tools Easily find new papers: • Search the ReadCube databases within the app • Quickly download new articles with a single tap when you’re on campus or with your institutional proxy • Import directly from Safari, email attachments, and other apps • In your preferred browser, use any search engine to find article PDFs • Use the “Open In…” option from the browser or any app to add PDFs to your ReadCube library • Metadata is automatically resolved - no more guessing with cryptic file names Personalized Recommendations: • Discover relevant new papers based on your library or lists – you’ll never miss another important paper again! Stay organized: • Create custom lists and sort articles into one or multiple lists • Quickly search your entire library (and all annotations) • Add any number of #tags to further customize your library organization • Sync everything – papers, notes, highlights – between the ReadCube desktop and web apps or your other mobile devices Simplify your research life – try ReadCube for free on your iPhone, iPad, and computer. We love feedback from our users - please email support@readcube.com with any suggestions or issues. Thanks for using ReadCube!

About

Uploader for Mendeley

Effortlessly upload articles and PDFs to your Mendeley library. This app automatically extracts bibliographic data from web pages and documents, offering customization and duplicate prevention for a streamlined research workflow.

Highlights
  • Direct URL pasting for uploads
  • Share webpages or PDFs
  • Recognizes bibliography from PDFs
  • Accurate bibliography for many websites
  • Duplicate prevention
  • Quick actions with custom tags
Features
Read full description

Directly paste a page URL into the Uploader-for-Mendeley search box or share a webpage or PDF with Uploader-for-Mendeley. We take care of the rest. Uploader-for-Mendeley is the most complete and customizable uploader app for Mendeley: - Recognizes bibliography entities from PDF files directly - Provides accurate bibliography for many websites (including ArXiv, ResearchGate and CNKI) - Offers duplicate prevention and integrates well with Google Scholar - Allows quick actions (e.g., adding a specific tag in a tap) - ... and much more Uploader-for-Mendeley automatically pulls in data from journal articles (such as those found on ArXiv.org or Nature.com) to create the perfect bibliography entry that can be directly be added to your personal Mendeley library.

Screenshots

Papers by ReadCube4 screens
Uploader for Mendeley4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Uploader for Mendeley at 5.0 against Papers by ReadCube's 3.7. Uploader for Mendeley also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Papers by ReadCube's advantage is monetization model (free vs paid) and ratings volume (557 vs 2). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Uploader for Mendeley holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Papers by ReadCube has 557 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 48% of Papers by ReadCube's written reviews are positive against 50% of Uploader for Mendeley's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Papers by ReadCube ships an update every 2 months, Uploader for Mendeley every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Papers by ReadCube versus Uploader for Mendeley: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPapers by ReadCubeUploader for Mendeley
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (557 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews48.4% of reviews50.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings557 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size79 MB12 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperDigital Science & Research Solutions Inc.Sven Gowal

Customer experience

Papers by ReadCube

All ratings555 ratings
Positive65.9%
Neutral10.3%
Negative23.8%
Written reviews353 reviews
Positive48.4%
Neutral18.1%
Negative33.4%

Uploader for Mendeley

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

Papers by ReadCube

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes
  • Sync issues causing data loss and duplication
  • Unreliable PDF downloads and access
  • Inconsistent behavior of annotation tools
  • Compatibility problems with newer devices and OS versions

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add eraser tool for handwritten annotations
  • Improve PDF viewing and navigation experience
  • Implement better organization and folder management
  • Integrate citation and bibliography tools
  • Provide more customization options

Uploader for Mendeley

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Papers by ReadCube

No in-app purchases

None

Uploader for Mendeley

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Papers by ReadCube free?
Papers by ReadCube is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Uploader for Mendeley free?
Uploader for Mendeley is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Papers by ReadCube or Uploader for Mendeley?
Uploader for Mendeley is rated higher. Papers by ReadCube averages 3.7 out of 5 from 557 ratings, while Uploader for Mendeley averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Papers by ReadCube or Uploader for Mendeley have ads?
Neither Papers by ReadCube nor Uploader for Mendeley shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Papers by ReadCube or Uploader for Mendeley?
Papers by ReadCube ships an update every 2 months, and Uploader for Mendeley every 3 months. Most recently, Papers by ReadCube was updated on October 29, 2026 and Uploader for Mendeley on October 30, 2026.

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