PDF Reference Checker — Click Any Citation While You Read

EvalCite's PDF reader renders a paper in your browser and makes every in-text citation live: click [12] or (Smith, 2020) and instantly see whether the cited work exists, its correct metadata, and its abstract. No other free tool verifies citations in context, while you read. Free, no signup, and your PDF never leaves your browser unprocessed — it's discarded right after the references are extracted.

How it works

1. Open a PDF

The file is rendered locally in your browser with PDF.js. On the server, only the references section is extracted and parsed — numbered lists and author-year styles alike.

2. Click a citation

Every citation marker is detected and linked to its reference-list entry: numbered styles ([3], [3,7], [2–5], [4]–[8]) and author-year styles ((Smith, 2020), Smith et al. (2020), [Smith 2020]). Clicking pins a card in the side pane.

3. Read the verdict

The card shows the verification status against 8 databases, the matched record's metadata, its abstract when available, and a Copy-BibTeX button for the corrected entry. Bulk markers like [2–5] resolve to one compact card per reference.

Who uses the reader

• Reviewers — spot-check a manuscript's bibliography in minutes instead of an afternoon of manual lookups.
• Editors — screen submissions for fabricated references before sending them out for review.
• Students — verify the papers you're citing from before their errors become your errors.
• Readers — decide which cited works are worth chasing down, with abstracts one click away.

Frequently asked questions