Open Access Helper 4+
skip the academic paywall
Claus Wolf
-
- Free
Screenshots
Description
Open Access Helper: Effortless Access to Scholarly Articles
Unlock Open Access
Easily find legal, free-to-read versions of paywalled scientific articles. Open Access Helper uses the trusted APIs from unpaywall.org and core.ac.uk to locate open access copies, making research more accessible for students, researchers, and curious minds.
How It Works
When you view a research article, the extension detects its DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and checks for an available open access version. Simply click the Open Access Helper badge to access the document!
As you hover over the badge, it will indicate whether you’ll be accessing the “Published Version,” “Accepted Version,” or “Submitted Version.”
EZProxy or OpenAthens Made Simple
If your university library uses EZProxy or OpenAthens for off-campus access, this extension makes it seamless to connect. Just set your institution’s domain (e.g., harvard.edu), and with one click, you can proxy the current page through your library’s server.
100% Legal and Privacy-Respecting
Every link provided leads to officially open-access or legally archived copies of research articles. Plus, Open Access Helper doesn’t collect personal data—just anonymous usage stats to improve functionality.
Open Source & Developer-Friendly
This is a passion project—check out the code, share feedback, or report bugs. Your contributions and ideas are always welcome!
Get started today—make research easier and more accessible with Open Access Helper!
What’s New
Version 2025.3
- Major bug fixes thanks to an improved testing framework (now with 45 end-to-end tests).
- Open Access Button may now appear if no institution is selected. Disable it in Extension Settings > Alternative Access.
- OpenCitations badge now displays citation counts for users who have just installed the extension or who never saved settings. Turn it off in Extension Settings > Additional
- core.ac.uk is now an Open Access source again. Manage this in Extension Settings > Alternative Access.
Enjoy better reliability and more control over your experience!
App Privacy
The developer, Claus Wolf, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy.
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
- Identifiers
- Usage Data
Privacy practices may vary based on, for example, the features you use or your age. Learn More
Information
- Provider
- Claus Wolf
- Size
- 774.6 KB
- Category
- Education
- Compatibility
-
- iPhone
- Requires iOS 17.6 or later.
- iPad
- Requires iPadOS 17.6 or later.
- Mac
- Requires macOS 11.0 or later.
- Apple Vision
- Requires visionOS 1.3 or later.
- Languages
-
English, German
- Age Rating
- 4+
- Copyright
- © 2018-2025 Claus Wolf
- Price
- Free