Connected

The library you already have, on Android

Collections and papers, as you organized them on the desktop. Highlights and notes go back to Mendeley or Zotero, and downloaded papers read offline.

A paper library on an Android tablet, browsed by collection

Recorded on an Android tablet. The same app runs on phones and E Ink devices.

How it works

See it in use

01

Browse by collection

Narrow the list with smart views, collections and tags in the sidebar — on the left on a tablet, on its own screen on a phone. Tap a paper to open it; if the PDF isn't on the device yet, Rectoly downloads it first.

Browsing collections and opening a paper in the library on an Android tablet
02

Your marks go back to the library

Highlights, underlines and notes you make sync to Mendeley or Zotero as ordinary annotations, so they are waiting on your computer too.

A highlight and an underline made on an Android tablet, synced back to the library
When you'd use it

Where it fits in your day

Before a trip

Papers for where there's no signal

⋯ › Download all missing PDFs puts the papers on screen on the device. Annotations made offline are sent when you're back online.

If you use your own server

PDFs on your WebDAV server

The Zotero edition reads and writes PDFs on the same WebDAV server as Zotero. The Mendeley edition browses your server and opens PDFs from it.

From your files app

A PDF on the device, no account needed

Use Open PDF… on the home screen, or Open with from another app. It isn't added to Mendeley or Zotero.

The details

Sync on its own
Annotations sync when you open a paper, when you change something, and while you read — and every six hours or so in the background.
Nothing lost while offline
Annotations that couldn't be sent stay on the device as unsent, and Rectoly tries again.
Conflicts, your choice
If the same annotation changed in two places, you choose which to keep.
Pull to sync
Pull the list down, or choose ⋯ › Sync changes.
Free up space
Long-press a paper and choose Remove local PDF. The paper stays in your library.
Group libraries
Open the groups you belong to, as well as your own library.

Now on Android

Rectoly runs on Android phones, tablets and E Ink devices such as Boox. The app comes from this site, and one purchase covers it together with iPad, Windows and Mac.