I write research-heavy articles, and with AI tools spitting out plausible-but-fake citations everywhere, I wanted a way to verify my references before publishing. Citely bills itself as an AI citation checker and source finder, so I tested it on real reference lists. Here’s my honest review.
Citely is an AI-powered citation checker and source finder for researchers, students, and writers. You paste a paragraph, claim, or reference list, and it checks for fake or hallucinated citations, verifies references, and finds original sources across databases like CrossRef, PubMed, and arXiv. The goal is to keep your research credible and your citations real.
If you cite a lot of papers, checking they actually exist and say what you claim is a real time-saver.
AI assistants often invent citations; Citely helps you catch those before they embarrass you.
Finding credible original sources for a claim is faster than manual database hunting.
It verifies and finds sources; it’s not a replacement for Zotero-style library management.
It checks credibility, but you still need to read and understand what you cite.
Paste a paragraph, claim, or research question and it surfaces credible papers to back it up.
It flags fake or unverifiable citations — the headline feature in an era of AI-generated references.
It cross-checks against CrossRef, PubMed, arXiv, and more, so verification isn’t limited to one index.
You can run an entire reference list through it and review results in one pass.
Here’s the real pricing at the time of writing. Citely uses a credit system:
Pros: Solves a genuinely current problem (AI fake citations), checks multiple databases, affordable entry trial, flexible credit plans, and a one-time long-term option.
Cons: Credit-based limits mean heavy users must plan usage, per-check character caps (300 for source finding), and it’s a verification tool rather than a full research suite.
Scite focuses on showing how a paper has been cited (supporting vs contrasting) and is a broader research intelligence platform. Citely is narrower and more affordable, aimed at catching fake citations and finding original sources fast. If you need deep citation-context analysis, Scite is richer; if you mainly want to verify that your references are real and credible, Citely is the leaner, cheaper pick.
For anyone publishing research in the age of AI-generated text, yes. The $9 trial is a low-risk way to test it on your own reference list, and the yearly plan is well priced for regular use. A note on academic integrity: Citely helps you verify and find real sources, but it doesn’t replace reading your sources or following your institution’s citation rules — use it as a safeguard, not a shortcut.
It checks for fake citations, verifies references, and finds original credible sources across databases like CrossRef, PubMed, and arXiv.
A $9 one-time trial, $19/month, $14/month billed yearly, or a $347 one-time 3-year Believer plan.
Yes — that’s its main purpose: flagging citations that can’t be verified in real databases.
CrossRef, PubMed, arXiv, and more.
The cheapest entry is the $9 trial; there isn’t a permanent free plan, but credits let you test it affordably.
You can try it and explore the plans here: Visit Citely.
Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link. If you sign up through it, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
