XML for reference managers — Help

What XML actually is

Think of XML as a structured packing list. Each reference is one box; each label on the box says what's inside — title, authors, year, DOI. Your reference manager reads the labels and files the box in the right drawer.

You don't have to write XML. Systematic Review generates it for you. Knowing the shape just helps when an import goes sideways.

What an entry looks like

<record>
  <ref-type name="Journal Article">17</ref-type>
  <contributors>
    <authors>
      <author>Smith, J.</author>
      <author>Doe, A.</author>
    </authors>
  </contributors>
  <titles>
    <title>HIIT in type 2 diabetes: a randomised trial</title>
  </titles>
  <dates><year>2024</year></dates>
  <electronic-resource-num>10.1016/j.jdc.2024.01.001</electronic-resource-num>
</record>

Tip

Every export from /app/exports ships with a sibling CSV. If a colleague rejects XML, send them the CSV — it carries the same fields in a spreadsheet shape.

Importing into EndNote

Open your EndNote library.
File → Import → File…
Choose the .xml file Systematic Review gave you.
Import Option: EndNote generated XML.
Duplicates: Discard Duplicates if you've imported a prior run.

Importing into Zotero

Zotero reads EndNote XML directly: File → Import…, pick the file, accept defaults. Attachments (your downloaded PDFs) are linked automatically when they sit in the same folder as the XML and follow our naming scheme (e.g. 003_Smith_2024.pdf).

Common mistake

Editing XML by hand in TextEdit or Word. Word changes straight quotes to curly ones and breaks the file. If you need to fix a field, fix it in the source CSV and re-export.