Zotero Plugins Atlas
Plugins / Reading & PDFs

Zotero Color Keys

by meaning-infinite · github.com/meaning-infinite/zotero-color-keys

Adds keyboard shortcuts for text colour and highlight colour in Zotero notes, with eight colours and clear keys, acting on the selection or current paragraph.

Zotero Color Keys has Atlas grade A (recommended) because every code check came out low. It works with Zotero 8–10. Last checked 6 Nov 2026.

Reading & PDFs
View source
Downloads a .xpi file (0.04 MB). In Zotero, open Tools → Plugins and install it from the file.
In useAn estimate of how many copies of Zotero have it: Zotero downloads each new version once for every copy that has the plugin, so we count the downloads of its most-downloaded recent release. Rounded. Plugins that update from outside GitHub count low.
110
DownloadsAll-time downloads of its release files from GitHub, counting every update. Installs from elsewhere aren't counted.
120
ReleasesVersions published on GitHub. Everyone who has the plugin downloads each one again, which adds up in Downloads.
3
StarsPeople who starred the repository on GitHub: a rough measure of interest.
1
ContributorsPeople who have committed code to the repository.
1
LicenceThe licence the code is published under, as GitHub reports it.
MIT
A
Atlas gradeRecommended
because every code check came out low
Applies to v0.1.1, released 25 Oct 2026Code checked · not yet tested in a live Zotero
What we found in the codeSets the gradeThe worst finding in these three areas sets the grade.
Code transparencyReadable code; not yet checked against the published sourceThe developer uploaded the release file from the meaning-infinite account. We haven't yet checked whether this file matches the public source code.UnknownWe couldn't check this yet.
Updates
Updates come from this project's GitHub repositoryThe update address offers this version
Where your data goesNo web requests foundLowLow concern: normal for plugins that do this job. Listed so you know.
No further detail for this area yet.
Powerful capabilitiesNo powerful capabilities foundLowLow concern: normal for plugins that do this job. Listed so you know.
No further detail for this area yet.
Before you installShown, not gradedFacts to help you decide. They don't change the grade.
Works withZotero 8, 9, 10 · not 11 betaUpdates automatically
Zotero 8 ✓ worksZotero 9 ✓ worksZotero 10 ✓ worksZotero 11 beta ✗ doesn't work
What you'll needNothing extra detectedDetected automatically from its code
No further detail for this area yet.
MaintenanceActive · last release 25 Oct 20261 contributor
No further detail for this area yet.
LanguagesDocumentation in Chinese and EnglishInterface: English and Chinese
No further detail for this area yet.
We report what we found in the code. Open any area for the evidence.How we gradeReport a problem

What it does

Written by AI from the README

Adds keyboard shortcuts for text colour and highlight colour in Zotero notes, with eight colours and clear keys, acting on the selection or current paragraph. Also colours underline and highlight annotations in the PDF reader.

Colouring text in a note takes three clicks. Here you press one key, and pressing the same colour again removes it. Every key binding is customisable.

What you'll need

Detected automatically

We haven't detected any setup requirements. That isn't the same as none: check the developer's README.

Where your data goes

We found: no web requests found.

Other plugins that do this

Matched on what they do

For the same job, work with Zotero 10 and graded A or better. Closest match first.

  • A+
    Streamline Highlight Popup

    Replaces the reader's text selection popup rows with one row of colours for highlights and one for underlines, so colour and style are chosen in a single click.

    Matches “annotation and highlight color” · 167 downloads · Active · Zotero 7–10
  • A
    Reader Tool Shortcuts

    Adds configurable keyboard shortcuts for the PDF reader's note, text and area annotation tools, with Alt+3, Alt+4 and Alt+5 as defaults.

    Matches “keyboard shortcuts for annotation tools” · 98 downloads · Active · Zotero 9–10
Compare all 3 side by side
How we pick these

By how closely what they do matches this plugin, using descriptions and the phrases people search with. Copies and forks of this plugin are listed under Forks and copies instead. No plugin pays to appear here.

Forks and copies

No forks listed.

The developer's response

The developer hasn't responded. Developers can reply here, and their reply sits next to our findings.I'm the developer

Ratings and reviews

What people who use it say. This is separate from the grade, which is what the code does, and never changes it.

No ratings yet.

Write a review
Your rating of Zotero Color Keys v0.1.1

Your review is public, under the name you give, and published with the directory's data under CC BY 4.0. Links are removed. We never store your IP address: a scrambled code made from it is kept for 30 days to catch fake reviews. Every review is checked before it's published; how fake ones are spotted isn't published, so it can't be gamed.

Install Zotero Color Keys
ARecommended
  1. 1Download the plugin fileDownload v0.1.1.xpi · 0.04 MB
  2. 2In Zotero, open Tools › Plugins
  3. 3Click the gear, choose Install Plugin From File… and pick the file
Step-by-step guide with pictures