How to find and read research papers for free (legally)
Many research papers sit behind paywalls, but a large and growing share can be read for free — legally. Here are the tools researchers and students use every day.
1. Start with a search engine made for research
- Google Scholar searches almost every field. Click "All versions" under a result: one of them is often a free copy (a PDF on a university website or a repository).
- PubMed is the main database for medicine and life sciences, run by the US National Library of Medicine. Tick the "Free full text" filter to see only papers you can read.
- OpenAlex is a free, open index of the world's research — papers, authors, institutions and journals. ResearchBoard's numbers come from it.
2. Look for an open-access version
Many papers are published "open access", free for anyone to read. Even when the journal version is paywalled, the author may have put a free copy online.
- Unpaywall is a free browser extension: when you open a paper's page, a green tab appears if a legal free copy exists anywhere.
- DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals) lists thousands of quality-checked journals where every paper is free.
- PubMed Central holds free full texts of millions of biomedical papers.
3. Read preprints
A preprint is a paper shared before peer review. Preprint servers are free to read:
- arXiv — physics, mathematics, computer science and AI.
- bioRxiv and medRxiv — biology and health sciences.
- SSRN — economics, law and social sciences.
Remember that preprints have not yet been checked by peer reviewers. Read our guide What is a preprint?
4. Use your library
If you are a student or staff member, your university library pays for many journals. Log in through the library website rather than going to the journal directly. Many public libraries also offer free access to research databases.
5. Ask the author
Researchers are almost always happy to share their own paper. Find the corresponding author's email on the paper's first page and send a short, polite message asking for a copy. Sites such as ResearchGate also let you request a paper with one click.
6. Check the author's or university's website
Many universities run a repository where staff deposit their papers. Search the paper's title together with the university name, or look at the author's personal page.
A note on piracy sites
Some websites share paywalled papers without permission. Using them can break copyright law in many countries and may expose your computer to security risks. With the legal options above, you can usually find a free copy anyway.
Keep up with new research
ResearchBoard counts the papers published every day in every country. See the live dashboard, the most-cited new papers, or how many papers are published every day.