No online library access? Increasingly, scholarly research is more openly accessible than ever before.
Here are a couple of tools to help you find that content. We recommend you use these in conjunction with Google Scholar.
Unpaywall and Lean Library Open are free browser extensions (add-ons) that enable you to access millions of peer-reviewed journal articles. It's fast and legal.
Download one (or both) of these browser extensions to find openly available scholarly articles directly as you browse the Internet.
- Download the unpaywall browser extension.
- Click the green tab beside a research article to read the full text (if unpaywall can't find full text, you'll see a gray tab instead).
- Download the Lean Library Open browser extension.
- Select ‘Lean Library Open’ to get the free browser extension, which does not need a library subscription.
- Find the icon in the toolbar of your browser. The icon will turn green when you have access to an article.
For further information, see this animated video from Lean Library.
Please also consider checking our Open Access scholarly resources library guide for other suggestions.