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ORCiD: Importing your research outputs

You may have heard of ORCID iDs but don't know what they are for or how to create one. This guide explains why you might need one, how to sign up and how ORCID identifiers are being used by organisations, publishers and funding organisations.

How to add your research outputs to your ORCID record

There are three ways to add works to your ORCID record. 

  • Link your works from another system - for example: CentAUR, Scopus or Publons 
  • Import a BibTex File of your works (for example, from Google Scholar)
  • Type the details in manually 

The way in which you import works into your ORCID profile will depend on what type of outputs you want to add. 

Search and Link to established databases
If the majority of your work is journal articles, it is probably best to start by importing your works directly from the bibliographic databases such as Scopus and Europe PubMed Central. If you have claimed your publications from Web of Science via a Publons profile, this can also be a good starting point.

Importing from Google Scholar
If you work in the Arts and Humanities, you may not have many records in Scopus or Web of Science. If this is the case, you may choose to import your works from your Google Scholar profile by using a BibTex file.  Full instructions on how to do this are on the ORCID website. 

Add information manually
If your research outputs are not available in online databases, you can opt to add the details manually. Full instructions are available in the ORCID knowledge base.

Linking your research outputs to your profile from Scopus and other databases

There are several tools available in ORCID that allow automatic importing of records relating to your research outputs from linked databases. 
To use the search and link functions, choose Search and Link from the 'Add Works' dropdown menu. 

You will be offered a choice of databases to link to. Choose the one that is most appropriate for your subject area and type of output. 

Tip: You could always check what records exist for your research outputs in the various databases before you do the search & link. 

Clicking on the downward arrow on the right of each database will show a brief description of the content. 


Full instructions on how to import works via searching and linking are available from ORCID. 

How is the work displayed in my profile?

By importing from a database, the record in your profile is more likely to be correct and may have a DOI link and a link to the record in the appropriate bibliographic database. 

The source of the record is also shown - in this example Scopus to ORCID linking. 

The record can be expanded by clicking on the grey arrow in the top right corner. This shows the full citation, when there record was added to the ORCID profile and any coauthors. 

Full instructions on how to import works via searching and linking are available from ORCID. 

Importing works automatically

There are lots of tools that let you import your works automatically from other databases. The full list is available at ORCID. 

These are the most useful: 

  • CentAUR
  • CrossRef metadata search
  • DataCite
  • Europe PubMed Central 
  • ISNI
  • ResearcherID
  • Scopus

Full instructions are available on the ORCID website

Did you know?

Once you have linked to other databases or identifiers, the information will appear as links on your ORCID profile. This will help others to find, read and possibly cite your work. 

Other IDs

Help with importing from Scopus and ResearcherID

Watch these presentations on how to import records from Scopus or ResearcherID into your ORCID profile. 

ORCID and Scopus

Do you have an ISNI?

The International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI)  is a system to link the public identities of contributors to media content such as books, TV programmes, songwriters and newspaper articles. Check to see if you have an ISNI record