> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.scite.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Collections

> Create collections of papers and monitor how their citations develop over time.

A **collection** is a set of papers you monitor over time. Collections alert you to new supporting or contradicting citations, flag retractions, and give you a living view of how a research area is developing. Use them to track your own publications, monitor another group's output, or stay on top of a field. A **dashboard** is a report on a collection.

Create collections from a list of DOIs or a search query through this API, via [MCP](/mcp/overview), or in the Scite UI, which also imports from Zotero, Mendeley, or a CSV of DOIs. A collection created anywhere is available everywhere: use it as context in the UI, the API, or MCP.

**Need an API key?** On Pro, create one in the [API Console](https://scite.ai/users/me/api). Creating a key doesn't grant every optional scope; see [Authentication](/authentication) for feature access. For higher limits or managed credentials, [contact sales](https://scite.ai/contact).

## Working with collections

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST 'https://api.scite.ai/api_partner/collections/create' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"name": "My Review", "dois": ["10.1038/nature12373", "10.1126/science.1157784"]}'
```

If both `dois` and `query` are provided, `query` takes precedence.

| Endpoint                                            | Purpose                                  |
| --------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| `POST /api_partner/collections/create`              | Create a collection from DOIs or a query |
| `GET /api_partner/collections/{collection_slug}`    | Fetch a collection by slug               |
| `PUT /api_partner/collections/{collection_slug}`    | Update a collection                      |
| `DELETE /api_partner/collections/{collection_slug}` | Delete a collection                      |

Collection write operations (create/update/delete) require an API key with **write** scope; see [Authentication](/authentication#self-service-api-keys-pro-plan).

<Note>
  If you get a `403 User not authorized` on a Collections call even with a valid key, your account may not have Collections access enabled. [Email sales](mailto:sales@scite.ai) to check.
</Note>

## Related

* [Search guide](/guides/search): the `query` you can pass into a collection is the same search syntax
* [Papers & Authors guide](/guides/papers-and-authors): look up the publications inside a collection by DOI
* [Errors and rate limits](/errors-and-rate-limits): troubleshoot `401`, `403`, and retryable failures