Zotero API Skill
Overview
Use scripts/zotero_cli.py to perform deterministic Zotero API operations: download items to disk, fetch a single item, search items, create new items, or write updated metadata back to Zotero. The script reads ZOTERO_USER (user ID) and ZOTERO_API_KEY from the environment unless overridden by flags.
Quick Start
Download all items (skip attachments by default):
zotero-api-skill/scripts/zotero_cli.py download --output-dir ./output
Fetch a single item as JSON:
zotero-api-skill/scripts/zotero_cli.py get --key ABCD1234
Update an item from a JSON file:
zotero-api-skill/scripts/zotero_cli.py update --key ABCD1234 --input ./output/ABCD1234/original.json
Search items by query:
zotero-api-skill/scripts/zotero_cli.py search --query "transformer retrieval" --limit 10
Create an item from data JSON:
zotero-api-skill/scripts/zotero_cli.py create --input ./new_item.json --data-only
Tasks
Download items
Use download to save each item into its own directory under --output-dir. The script writes original.json and a dated original-MM-DD.json snapshot.
Common options:
- •
--limit: page size for Zotero API pagination. - •
--max-items: stop after N items. - •
--include-attachments: include attachment items. - •
--start: start offset for pagination. - •
--no-snapshot: skip the dated snapshot file.
Fetch a single item
Use get with --key to print the item JSON to stdout, or pass --output to save it to a file.
Search items
Use search with --query to run a Zotero quicksearch. Optional filters: --qmode, --item-type, --tag, --start, --limit.
Create items
Use create with --input to POST new item data. The input file can be:
- •A list of data objects (array), or
- •A single data object, or
- •A list of full Zotero items (with a top-level
datafield).
Update item metadata
Use update with --key and --input to PUT item metadata. The input file can be:
- •A full Zotero item JSON (with a top-level
datafield), or - •A data-only object (set
--data-onlyto force this).
Prefer updating from a freshly fetched item so required fields like itemType, key, and version stay consistent.
Notes
- •The script uses Zotero API version 3 and retries on transient HTTP errors.
- •If you need the same update flow as the repo, edit the
datapayload and useupdateto write back.