Skip to content
Merito

Free tool · Free Merito account to run

Citation Lens

Takes your most-cited paper and sorts every citation into four groups: independent researchers, your own institution, co-authors and self-citations.

About 10 secondsFree with a Merito accountUp to 50 citing works · OpenAlex

You'll sign in (free) before the analysis runs — your search is kept and runs right after. Example: Leyla Karaman or 0000-0002-1825-0097.

What you'll see

Every citation, in one of four groups

The sorting is rule-based and repeatable: the same paper gives the same result.

  • Sketch of a globe with connected nodes outside it

    Independent

    Authors with no shared institution or co-authorship with you.

  • Sketch of an institution building with a flag

    Same institution

    At least one citing author shares your institution.

  • Sketch of three linked people

    Co-authors

    People you have published with before.

  • Sketch of a stack of papers with an arrow looping back to it

    Self-citations

    Your own later papers citing this one.

Why it's useful

Independent citations show reach beyond your own circle

The authors in the independent group are also natural people to approach for expert letters — Merito lists them with their paper and year.

How it runs

We find your author record, pick your most-cited paper, read up to 50 works that cite it, and compare authors and institutions. No AI is involved, and no credits are used.

Merito is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice or predict approval odds.