For each source you add, the tool stores the author(s), year, title, publication or publisher, source type and URL. When you choose a citation style, it parses the authors (accepting “Surname, F.” or “First Last”, separated by semicolons), applies the basic APA 7th, MLA 9th or Chicago notes-bibliography template for that source type, and lists every source alphabetically by the first author’s surname. You can copy the reference list or include it in a Markdown export. The formatting covers the common one/two/three-author book, article, website and report cases and intentionally simplifies edge cases, so verify each entry against the official style guide.

When you add a note under a source you choose its kind. A direct quote is the author’s wording recorded verbatim (the tool shows it in quotation marks); a paraphrase puts a single passage into your own words at roughly the same length; a summary boils a longer section down to its essentials; and “my idea” is your own analysis or connection. Labelling each note this way keeps the author’s words clearly separated from yours, which is what lets you cite accurately and avoid accidental plagiarism when you write.

AnyTool’s Research Notes tool is 100% client-side. Every source, note, quote, tag and the citation formatting live in this browser’s localStorage and never leave your device — there is no sign-in, no server and no analytics, and the tool works offline once cached. Because the data is tied to this browser, opening the tool elsewhere or in private mode starts fresh and clearing browser data erases your research, so use Export (Markdown or JSON) to keep a backup or move to another device.

This tool is a quick, private place to gather sources and notes and draft a basic reference list, all in your browser with nothing uploaded. It deliberately simplifies citation edge cases and is single-device, so for a long thesis or a shared project a dedicated reference manager such as Zotero — which syncs across devices, stores PDFs and supports thousands of styles — is the better fit. A good workflow is to draft and organise here, export Markdown or JSON to back up, and always verify the final citations against the official style guide.