Thanks — it is on its way

On Windows

The download is the installer itself — a .msi file. It is about 190 MB.

1. Double-click the .msi in your Downloads folder.
2. Windows will say Windows protected your PC. Choose More info, then Run anyway. See below for why.
3. The installer runs without administrator rights and installs only for you, under your own %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs folder.
4. It opens when the install finishes, and asks you to sign in through your browser. Rectoly has no password field of its own.

What the installer does

• Installs for your account only, with no administrator rights and no changes outside your profile. It adds a Start-menu entry.
• Nothing to install first. The Java runtime, the PDF engine and the Visual C++ runtime all travel inside the package.
• Your library and annotations live in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Rectoly (RectolyZotero for the Zotero edition) and stay there if you uninstall.
• The Mendeley and Zotero editions can sit on the same PC. Removing one leaves the other, and its data, untouched.
• First run needs the internet: signing in happens on Mendeley's or Zotero's own website, so a PC that is offline cannot finish setup.

The ZIP, and who it is for

The ZIP is the same application without an installer, for PCs where policy blocks .msi files — managed university or company machines, mostly. Unpack it anywhere and run the launcher inside. It is not a more private option: it keeps its data in the same place as the installed version, and its launcher meets the same SmartScreen screen on first run.

Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit.SHA-256: Rectoly for Mendeley · Rectoly for Zotero

On a Mac

The download is a .dmg disk image.

1. Double-click the .dmg in your Downloads folder.
2. Drag Rectoly onto the Applications folder in the window that opens.
3. Open it from Applications. macOS asks once whether to open an app downloaded from the internet; the app is signed with a Developer ID and notarised by Apple, so nothing else stands in the way.

macOS 14.0 or later, on a Mac with Apple silicon.

On Android

The download is the app package itself — an .apk file, well over 100 MB.

1. Open the .apk from your browser's downloads, or from the Files app.
2. Android asks whether to allow installs from that app (Install unknown apps). Allow it, go back, and tap Install.
3. Google Play Protect may then say it blocked the app to protect your device — it says that for any app it has not seen on Google Play. Tap More details, then Install anyway. If instead it offers to scan the app, let it and continue. Then open Rectoly.
4. It asks you to sign in on Zotero's or Mendeley's own sign-in page, which opens inside the app. Rectoly never shows a password field of its own.

Good to know

• If Install anyway does not appear, turn off Scan apps with Play Protect for a moment in the Play Store (your profile › Play Protect › settings), install, and turn it back on.
• Updates come from this site, not from a store. Rectoly checks for a new version when it starts and tells you; install the new .apk over the old one, and your library and notes stay.
• This copy works on every Android device, with or without Google Play: Rectoly for Android comes from this website, not from Google Play. If a test version from Google Play is installed, remove it first — the two are signed differently, so neither can update the other.
• Buying happens on this website: in the app, Buy on rectoly.com opens the checkout here. Pay once, sign in with the same Zotero or Mendeley account, and Rectoly unlocks on Android and on every other device. A purchase made on iPad, Windows, Mac or Linux unlocks Android too.
• On an E Ink device such as Boox, turn on E Ink optimisation under Settings › Reader.

Android 9 or later, 64-bit (arm64) — phones, tablets and E Ink devices such as Boox. HarmonyOS NEXT cannot install Android apps. SHA-256: Rectoly for Mendeley · Rectoly for Zotero

On Linux

The download is a .deb package for Ubuntu, Linux Mint and Debian, around 170 MB.

1. Open a terminal in the folder the file went to, usually Downloads.
2. Run sudo apt install ./rectoly-for-*.deb. apt fetches anything else the app needs.
3. Open Rectoly from the applications menu, or type rectoly-for-mendeley or rectoly-for-zotero in a terminal.

Good to know

• Updates come from this site. Rectoly checks for a new version when it starts and tells you; install the new .deb the same way, and your library and notes stay.
• On Linux, handwriting recognition (and so handwriting search), reading aloud, OCR in the Zotero edition and screen readers are not available; everything else works as on Windows and Mac.
• Japanese, Chinese and Korean input works with fcitx5 and IBus.

Other distributions

The .tar.gz holds the same app. Unpack it anywhere and start bin/Rectoly for Mendeley (or bin/Rectoly for Zotero) inside the folder; nothing is installed system-wide.

Ubuntu 22.04, Linux Mint 21, Debian 12 or later; other distributions through the .tar.gz (glibc 2.35 or later). 64-bit x86. SHA-256: Rectoly for Mendeley · Rectoly for Zotero