ORCID: Link Your Name With Your Research

Follow the instructions to create an ORCID iD detailed in the PDF above. Note: Check if you already have an ORCID iD (see Do I already have an ORCID iD?) even if you think you don't. Many publishers, funders, and organizations have you create an ORCID, and it is easy to forget that you did as part of their processes especially if you used a different email address.

Once you have the iD, build your ORCID record including Biographical information, Employment, Education & Qualifications, Memberships & Service, Invited positions & Distinctions, Funding, Works, Peer Review activity, and Research Resources. You can then include the iD as a link on your CV or web page.

If you are unsure whether you already have an ORCID iD or not, you will still want to follow our instructions to create an ORCID (see link below).

• At step 5, select Register now and fill out the first page with your information.
• On the next page, ORCID will provide a list of researchers with similar names. Check the records to see if you are listed.
• If you believe one of the records shown is yours and don't remember your login information:
  • go to the forgot password page to update your password (see link below) or
  • contact ORCID either using the Help button at the bottom of the page to chat with ORCID support or submitting a support ticket (see the Contact ORCID Support link below).
• If none of the records are yours, select "None of these are me, continue with registration"

Follow the directions in the link below to remove your duplicate record. Before removing, we recommend:

• determining which ORCID id to keep
• copying information from the ORCID profile that you will remove to the ORCID profile that you are keeping. Note: information will not transfer between profiles, and once removed, all information is permanently deleted.
  • Consider copying over any:
    • Biographical Info (name(s), employment, website and profile links, biography, etc.)
    • Affiliations (employment, memberships, education, etc.)
    • Funding Info
    • Works & Peer Review
    • Trusted Parties and Auto-updates

There are many reasons for researchers to get an ORCID iD. Here are some of those benefits and reasons:

• Distinguish yourself. Your unique identifier differentiates you from every other researcher and allows for name changes, use of different alphabets, and name variation. 
• Integrations. Interoperable with many systems, so you can share data between your ORCID record and funders, publications, data repositories, and other research workflows.
• Saves Time. The data within your ORCID record is interoperable with any systems that are ORCID-enabled such as funders, publishers, and institutions so you can autofill forms and enable trusted organizations to update your record for you.
• Control Your Research Profile. You own and curate your ORCID profile, so you can share the full picture of your scholarly activity despite changes in name, institution, location, area of focus, etc.
• Share Your Profile. Allow people to see a complete picture of your professional activities with your ORCID profile link, even generate a PDF version of your record that is formatted like a CV.
• Funder Required. Many funders including the federal government now require researchers to get an ORCID iD. Many publishers and institutions also recognize and support ORCID.

ORCID is for all researchers in all subject areas! ORCID can be used to keep an easily accessible record of a wide variety of scholarly works, including artistic performances. ORCID has also integrated with more and more HSS systems. For example, you can login to MLA International Bibliography, Humanities Commons and SSRN using your ORCID iD to connect both systems. You can also import works from organizations like MLA to your ORCID record to help build your ORCID profile.

Yes! Elsevier, Thomson Reuters, Nature, and other major scholarly publishers are integrating ORCID iDs into the manuscript submission process and embedding ORCID iDs across their research ecosystems. This saves authors time during the submission process and enables automatic updating of author bibliographies when articles are published. NIH, NSF, and other federal agencies have also integrated ORCID into the ScienCV researcher profile platform, linking researchers, their grants, and their scientific output. Funding agencies are using ORCID to streamline the grant and contract application process and reduce the data entry burden for those applying for research grants.

In fact, you may see ORCID adoption required by Federal agencies going forward. In 2021, the White House released a National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM-33) on US Government-Supported Research and Development National Security Policy. NSPM-33 directs Federal agencies conducting research and/or awarding research funds to establish policies related to the use of Digital Persistent Identifiers (DPIs, also known as Persistent Identifiers or PIDs) for researchers’ disclosure of information during funding application and reporting workflows. Although ORCID is not mentioned specifically in the NSPM-33 memo, ORCID is currently the only PID for individuals that meets the requirements stipulated in the NSPM-33 guidance. This means that going forward most federal agencies will require researchers seeking funding to obtain an ORCID iD.

Most scholarly publishers accept ORCID during manuscript submissions. If you give publishers permission to do so, they can automatically update your ORCID profile when the submitted article is published and will often include your ORCID iD on the final manuscript so readers can explore your ORCID profile.

You may also import publications, patents, grants and other works into your record at any time using the Search and Link option in the Works section of your ORCID profile (see "Add works by direct import from other systems" below for further directions).

You can designate trusted individuals or organizations to enter information into your ORCID record or remove trusted parties from your ORCID account. 

1. Login to ORCID.
2. Select the drop-down menu with your name in the upper right corner.
3. Select the Trusted Parties option.
4. You'll see any Trusted Organizations that you've granted permission to interact with your record such as publishers when submitting a manuscript or funders when submitting a grant application.
5. You'll also see Trusted Individuals. Use the search box in the Trusted Individuals section to enter the ORCID iD, e-mail address, or name of the person you want to make a trusted individual, then select search.
   • Note: If you enter an email address or ORCID ID, a pop-up box will ask you to confirm adding that user as a trusted individual. A user must have an ORCID iD before you can make them a trusted individual. If you search for a trusted individual by name, a list of matching ORCID records will appear. Select the Add button next to the name of the person you want to make a trusted individual or select their ORCID iD to display their ORCID record.
6. To remove Trusted Individual's, select the trash can icon next to the Trusted individual’s name.

We acknowledge the following sources for this guide, from which we reused text and content: