Skip to Main Content

EndNote 21 for Mac: Adding References

Using EndNote to manage your references and create in-text citations and reference list on a Mac computer

Banner image for adding references page

Adding References to Your EndNote Library

Adding References via Manual Entry

  • Manual entry is a basic method to add references into your EndNote library.
  • See also the Tabs above for more common ways to add references.

Guidelines for Entering Records

  • Enter author names in the following format:

Family name, First name Second name

For maximum flexibility enter whole names whenever possible. Some reference style, such as Chicago, require the full author name. If a style requires abbreviated first and middle names, Endnote will adjust this automatically. 

For example, Henskens, Frans A.

  • Enter authors with titles in the following format:

Family name, First name Second name, Title.  For example, Smith, Alfred, Jnr

  • Records with more than one author - each author must be entered on a separate line.
  • Enter all known authors – DO NOT use ‘et al’.
  • If the author is an organisation (i.e. a corporate author) type a comma after the name: e.g. University of Newcastle,
  • If the corporate author has a comma in their name, enter two commas in the place of the comma,  e.g.

University of Newcastle,, School of Law

  • If there is no author, follow the conventions of your reference style.
  • Enter the year of publication as a four-digit numeral, e.g. 2024
  • EndNote will automatically add “a” or “b”, etc. to the year if multiple references by the same author in the same year are included in the bibliography
  • Follow the conventions of your referencing style for publications that do not have a year of publication (APA 7th recommends use of n.d.), or where an article has been accepted for publication but has not been assigned volume and issue numbering (APA 7th recommends In press).
  • Do not underline or italicise titles - the EndNote output style used will take care of formatting issues.
  • Do not enter a full stop at the end of the title.
  • It is best to enter the title capitalised as it will appear in the bibliography.
  • Use the Short Title field to enter abbreviated versions of the regular title for in-text or footnote entries (if an EndNote style is configured to use the Short Title field and that field is empty, the normal Title field will be used instead).
  • Enter the full journal title in the Journal field. If abbreviated journal titles are required in reference lists, a Journal Term List can be set up to store the abbreviations.
  • Enter ‘2nd’, ‘3rd’, etc., but do not enter ‘ed’, or ‘edn’.
  • Enter the number only; do not include any abbreviations such as 'vol' or 'no'.
  • Do not use commas within page numbers. For example, 1,098 should read 1098.
  • Page ranges may be entered as complete (1442-1449) or abbreviated (1442-9) ranges. The style used to create the bibliography will format in the correct way.

How to Enter Records and Examples

  1. Click the New Reference icon EndNote manual entry icon 

This will open a New Reference edit window. 

  1. By default, the New Reference window is set for the entry of journal articles. Select other reference types from the drop-down menu.
  2. Enter citation details into the fields provided, paying attention to the Guidelines for Entering References above.
  3. Click the Save button in the top right of the Window to save the record.
 Manual entry on Mac
EndNote record for manual entry of books
EndNote record for manual entry of book chapters
EndNote record for manual entry of journal articles
Manual entry for websites
EndNote record for manual entry of government reports

Direct Export from Databases to EndNote

 

Most journal databases and library catalogues include a download option that allows the export of records from the database to an EndNote Library. This is called ‘direct export’.

Direct export generally involves the following 3 steps:

  1. Searching the database
  2. Identifying and marking records to save
  3. Selecting the database’s direct export option

If an EndNote Library is open, records will be imported there. Otherwise, navigate to and open the EndNote library.

Direct export differs slightly depending on the database and web browser used to search the database. Check the exact instructions on using direct export for specific databases below.

Some databases do not provide a direct export option - instead you may need to use EndNote's Import process.

This process uses import filters - most filters are supplied with EndNote, or can be downloaded from the EndNote Import Filters site. 

 

A Word of Caution about Direct Exporting and Importing

Although importing records can save you a lot of time, it is important to understand that it is not always 100% accurate. This means that it is essential to carefully check the records imported and correct any mistakes or inaccuracies.

Mistakes in the records in your library will translate into mistakes in your in-text citations and reference list entries. Preview how new records will display in your favourite reference style by using the Summary tab.

See the Quality Control tab above for more details.
  1. Conduct your search and click the citation icon (the quotation mark) in the top right hand corner of the item.
  2. Click "ENDNOTE". Leave the drop down on "Encoding" and select "Download".

Adding references from Library Search

  1. Open the downloaded record file:
  • If using Firefox, select the default Open option and click OK.
  • If using Chrome, click the downloaded file from the left of the browser task bar.
  • If using Edge, click the Save/Open option from the pop-up menu bar at the bottom.
  • If using Safari, go to the Downloads folder, and then drag the file to the EndNote icon in the Dock at the bottom.

EndNote will open and prompt you to select the EndNote library to import your results.

Watch the video on direct export from Library Search into EndNote

(This video is based on the Windows platform, but the process is the same for both Windows and Mac.)

Online Search within EndNote

 

The Online Search Mode allows you to connect to library catalogues (including the University of Newcastle library catalogue), PubMed, and Web of Science to search and download records, all from within your EndNote library.  

Note: Whilst the Online Search Mode includes links for many journal databases, PubMed and Web of Science are the only databases searchable from within EndNote. Use the Direct Export option for the other University subscribed databases. 

 

To use the Online Search Mode:  

1. Open the Online Search dropdown menu from the left of the EndNote Library Window.  

2. Select the connection to search, or click more... to view the complete list of catalogues and databases.  

3. Enter your search terms, then click Search. The results will display in the Retrieve results box below.  

4. Select all or individual records (hold the <command⌘> key while selecting), then click the plus sign (Add to Library sign for online search) to add the selected references to your library

5. When you have finished searching, click All References to return to your EndNote library.  

EndNote online search for Mac

 

 

A Word of Caution about Online Search

Although importing records can save you a lot of time, it is important to understand that it is not always 100% accurate. This means that it is essential to carefully check the records imported and correct any mistakes or inaccuracies.

Mistakes in the records in your library will translate into mistakes in your in-text citations and reference list entries. Preview how new records will display in your favourite reference style by using the Summary tab.

See the Quality Control tab above for more details.

Watch the following video on Searching PubMed in EndNote: the process is the same for both Windows and Mac.

Watch the following video on Searching PubMed in EndNote

(This video is based on the Windows platform, but the process is the same for both Windows and Mac.)

 

Creating Records from PDF Files

 

  • EndNote can create new records from PDF files that include a DOI in the metadata or the first two pages of the PDF. EndNote sends the DOI to two online databases (PubMed and CrossRef) capable of looking up reference data by DOI. If located, the bibliographic data is then sent back to EndNote, where a record is created and the PDF attached.  
  • It is possible to import a single file, or a folder (and sub-folders) of PDF files. 
  • If the PDF does not have a DOI, or the bibliographic details are not retrieved, EndNote will still create a record, attach the PDF and include just the file name in the Title field.

 

  • Within EndNote, click File > Import
  • Click Show Options and navigate to the file to import
  • Ensure PDF File or Folder is selected as the Import Option
  • Click Import

creating records form a pdf file

  • Within EndNote, select File > Import File 
  • Click Show Options and navigate to the folder to import
  • If you want EndNote to create a separate group set for the imported PDFs, click PDF Folder as a Group Set from the Import Options dropdown list.
  • Click Import

Creating records from a folder of PDF files

After the import process has finished, you will see the references imported in your EndNote library.

  • When a PDF folder imported as a group set, a group set and individual groups are created, group names correspond to those used in the original folders where the PDFs were imported from.
  • If the PDF does not include a DOI, or the bibliographic details are not retrieved, EndNote will create a record, attach the file and include just the PDF file name in the Title field.

Add references via pdf folders on Mac

 

You can set PDF Handling options to automatically rename your PDF files imported or attached.

  1. From the top menu click EndNote 21 | Settings| PDF Handling, then 
  2. Select one of the PDF Auto Renaming Options 

You can also set up an auto-import folder to automatically import PDF files saved in that folder if you wish. 

  1. Tick the Enable Automatic Importing option.
  2. Click Select Folder and browse to choose a folder that will hold your downloaded PDF files.
  3. Click Save.

 

PDF auto importing

Watch the video on adding references from PDF Files

(This video is based on the Windows platform, but the process is the same for both Windows and Mac)

Although adding records automatically can save you time, it is important to understand that it is not always 100% accurate. This means that it is essential to carefully check the records imported and correct any mistakes or inaccuracies.

Mistakes in the records in your library will translate into mistakes in your in-text citations and reference list entries. It is vital to make sure that all the data in your EndNote library is accurate and free from any mistakes.

 

To review a record, double-click it to open the Tabs panel, if it isn't already open.

  1. Select the Summary tab in the right-hand-side Tabs panel of your EndNote library.
    Choose your referencing style. In this example I have selected APA 7th style.
    Check the output preview against the relevant referencing guide.
    A screenshot from EndNote.
    I notice three errors in the output. 1. The author NSW Health is displaying incorrectly. 2. The title of the article is displaying in all capitals. 3. The title of the journal is displaying in all lower case. Let's fix these three errors. Image of the output errors in EndNote.
  2. Select the Edit tab.
    Image of the edit tab in EndNote.
    Make the required changes and select Save. Note that in order for a corporate author to display correctly in EndNote we must add a comma after the name.
    Instruction to add a comma after a corporate author name.
  3. Check that the output is now correct in the Summary tab.
      Image of the corrected citation in EndNote.

EndNote identifies a record as a duplicate if two or more records are assigned the same reference type (such as Journal Article), and include the same information in the Author, Year and Title fields. 

To identify and delete duplicate records:

  • Select Library | Find Duplicates. 
    EndNote will display a Find Duplicates window, differences between records will be highlighted in blue.
  • For each set of duplicates the original (first entered) record will always appear in the left column.
  • Click the Keep this Record button for the version required.

A screenshot of finding duplicates feature in EndNote for Mac

Note: If you have cited records from this Library in a Word document, check to ensure you are not deleting the version of the record you have cited.

  • It is important to follow up this automatic checking process with a manual check for duplicates. 
  • The easiest way to do this is to re-sort your Library Window alphabetically by title (click the Title column heading), then visually scan, identify and delete duplicate records.

EndNote maintains three Term Lists - one for Authors, one for Journals, and one for Keywords.

There are two situations when you might need to interact with the Journals Term List.

  1. If you edit the journal name in your reference, but the output still looks incorrect. That is because EndNote has saved the incorrect version of the journal name to the List. To fix it:
    Library > Open Term Lists > Journals Term List
    Find the incorrect journal title and select Edit to make changes, then OK to save it.
  2. If your referencing style requires abbreviations instead of full journal names.
    Library > Open Term Lists > Journals Term List
    Highlight all the terms in the Journals List and select Delete Term.
    Select Lists and then Import List.

    Browse to the Terms folder and select the correct list of journals. For Vancouver style, you will usually need the Medical list.
    A screenshot of the Terms folder in Mac Finder.
     

Watch the video on removing duplicate records from EndNote.

(This video is based on the Windows platform, but the process is the same for both Windows and Mac)

Library help