What is ORCID?

ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is a free persistent identifier that helps to tie together not just your publications, but also your employment history and research activity.

Funders, publishers and bibliographic databases are increasingly using ORCID to identify and credit specific researchers, and research platforms like the European Open Science Cloud offer the opportunity to sign into their services with an ORCID account. It allows a link to be created to the most up to date details of the researcher if they move organisations after something is published.

Benefits of ORCID

• One click to greater visibility for your research – Everywhere an ORCID is surfaced it links directly to your profile.
• Links up different web profiles - ORCID is interoperable with a number of services, so you only need to update in one place to roll out changes to connected accounts. If you have a ScopusID, Web of Science ResearcherID or ISNI, you may wish to connect these to your ORCID to quickly update all profiles.
• Eliminates name ambiguity in authorship if you share your name with other researchers.
• Ensures your publication history is tied to you and makes it easy to share it with potential funders, publishers, collaborators and employers.
• Stays with you throughout your career – You can keep the same ORCID if you change organisations. Remember to include non-organisational email addresses in your account for ease of access if you change institutions.
• Keeps you compliant - Funders (e.g. UK Research Councils) and publishers increasingly require or encourage researchers to use an ORCID.
• Having an ORCID makes it easier to engage with open research principles and strategy, such as FAIR data principles, by improving transparency in research.