OpenAIRE
OpenAIRE is a European open research infrastructure that connects repositories, research outputs, projects, organisations, funders and researchers through interoperable metadata, an open scholarly knowledge graph and a portfolio of Open Science services.
It helps researchers discover and connect research outputs, enables repositories and CRIS systems to expose interoperable metadata, and provides institutions, communities and funders with tools for monitoring, research data management and Open Science implementation.
OpenAIRE also contributes infrastructure, expertise and services to the European Open Science Cloud and the development of the EOSC Federation.
Page information
Topic: Open research infrastructure and services
Coverage: OpenAIRE Graph, metadata aggregation, repository compatibility, discovery, community gateways, monitoring, research planning and EOSC integration
Primary audience: Researchers, data stewards, repository and CRIS managers, research organisations, funders, research communities and infrastructure providers
Main components: OpenAIRE Graph, EXPLORE, PROVIDE, CONNECT, MONITOR, ARGOS, Guidelines, Validator, Broker and UsageCounts
Last reviewed: August 2026
What is OpenAIRE?
Open research infrastructure
A distributed infrastructure for collecting, connecting, enriching and reusing metadata about research activities and outputs.
Scholarly knowledge graph
An interconnected information space covering research products, people, organisations, projects, funders and data sources.
Human support network
A European network providing national expertise, training, policy support and guidance on Open Science implementation.
Service ecosystem
Tools for discovery, repository integration, research planning, community portals, monitoring and metadata improvement.
What OpenAIRE is not
Not a single repository: OpenAIRE aggregates and connects metadata from repositories, publishers, CRIS systems, registries and other trusted sources.
Not only a search portal: EXPLORE is the discovery interface, while OpenAIRE also provides aggregation, monitoring, planning, community and infrastructure services.
Not a replacement for institutional systems: repositories and CRIS systems remain responsible for their original records and services.
Not identical to EOSC: OpenAIRE is an infrastructure and service provider contributing to the broader European Open Science Cloud ecosystem.
Not limited to publications: it connects publications, datasets, software, protocols and other research products.
OpenAIRE in the research ecosystem
Content providers
Repositories, journals, CRIS systems, aggregators and registries expose structured metadata.
OpenAIRE infrastructure
Aggregates, validates, deduplicates, enriches and connects metadata from distributed sources.
Research communities
Discover, curate, connect and showcase outputs relevant to their scientific domain or project.
Institutions and funders
Monitor research activities, openness, collaborations, outputs and impact through transparent indicators.
How research information flows through OpenAIRE
1. Expose metadata
A repository, CRIS or another source provides records through a supported machine-readable interface.
2. Validate and register
The provider checks compliance with the OpenAIRE Guidelines and registers its data source.
3. Aggregate and enrich
OpenAIRE collects, cleans, deduplicates, links and enriches the supplied metadata.
4. Discover and reuse
Records become available through the Graph, portals, dashboards, APIs and connected infrastructures.
The OpenAIRE Graph
The OpenAIRE Graph is the central knowledge layer of the OpenAIRE infrastructure. It represents research as a connected system rather than as isolated lists of publications or datasets.
Research products: publications, research data, software, protocols and other outputs.
Research actors: researchers, organisations, funders and projects.
Data sources: repositories, journals, publishers, CRIS systems, registries and aggregators.
Relationships: authorship, affiliation, funding, citation, supplement, software use and links between related research products.
Indicators and classifications: openness, use, citations, Fields of Science and Sustainable Development Goals.
Connected research information
Outputs and creators
Connects research products with their authors, contributors and responsible organisations.
Outputs and funding
Links publications, datasets and software with projects, grants and funding organisations.
Outputs and sources
Records repositories, journals and other locations where a research product is available.
Connected research outputs
Represents citations and relationships between publications, datasets, software, protocols and other research products.
OpenAIRE Guidelines
The OpenAIRE Guidelines define how repositories and research information systems should expose metadata so that records can be aggregated and interpreted consistently.
Literature repositories
Requirements for institutional and thematic repositories containing publications and related scholarly outputs.
Data archives
Guidance for exposing datasets, access information, funding and relationships to publications.
CRIS systems
Profiles for exchanging research information from Current Research Information Systems.
Related research products
Metadata patterns for representing software and other connected research outputs.
Metadata important for OpenAIRE compatibility
| Metadata area | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Persistent identifiers | Support identification, deduplication and linking of research products, people, organisations and projects. |
| Resource type | Distinguishes publications, datasets, software and other research products. |
| Funding information | Connects outputs to grants, funding programmes and funders. |
| Access rights | Indicates whether an output is open, embargoed, restricted or metadata only. |
| Licence | Communicates conditions for lawful reuse. |
| Related identifiers | Connect publications, datasets, software, projects and supporting resources. |
| Affiliations | Support institutional discovery, attribution and monitoring. |
| Repository source | Preserves provenance and directs users to the authoritative record. |
Validation and data-source registration
Select the guideline
Identify the relevant profile for the repository, archive, CRIS or other data source.
Run validation
Test the metadata interface and records against the appropriate OpenAIRE rules.
Register the source
Submit the validated data source through OpenAIRE PROVIDE.
Monitor aggregation
Review harvesting status, validation history and metadata-improvement notifications.
OpenAIRE PROVIDE
PROVIDE is the principal workspace through which repository and content managers interact with the OpenAIRE aggregation infrastructure.
Validate
Check metadata and protocol compliance with the OpenAIRE Guidelines.
Register
Register repositories, journals, CRIS systems and other eligible data sources.
Enrich
Receive notifications about additional links and metadata available through the OpenAIRE Graph.
Measure
Connect repository usage information to OpenAIRE UsageCounts.
OpenAIRE EXPLORE
EXPLORE is the public discovery interface built on the OpenAIRE Graph. It allows users to search connected research products and their wider scholarly context.
Discover: search publications, datasets, software and other research products.
Follow connections: examine authors, organisations, projects, funders and related outputs.
Find a repository: identify an appropriate repository for depositing a research product.
Link outputs: claim and connect research products with grants or ORCID records.
Share openly: deposit through an appropriate compatible repository or Zenodo.
OpenAIRE CONNECT
CONNECT enables research communities, infrastructures and organisations to create customised discovery gateways built on the OpenAIRE Graph.
Community gateway
Creates a dedicated portal representing the identity and scope of a scientific community or infrastructure.
Curated discovery
Selects and organises outputs relevant to the community from the broader OpenAIRE Graph.
Output linking
Allows researchers to associate publications, datasets and software with the community.
Visibility and reporting
Supports presentation, analysis and communication of the community’s research outputs.
OpenAIRE MONITOR
MONITOR provides configurable dashboards and documented indicators for research organisations, funders and research initiatives.
Research outputs
Monitors publications, datasets, software and other connected research products.
Open Science
Provides indicators related to openness, access and implementation of Open Science practices.
Funding and collaboration
Connects research outputs with funded projects, organisations and collaborations.
Custom dashboards
Adapts indicators and views to the needs of an institution, funder or research initiative.
ARGOS
ARGOS supports the creation and management of structured plans for research data, software and other digital outputs.
Create plans
Prepare Data Management Plans, Software Management Plans and other research-output plans.
Use structured templates
Apply funder, institutional, project or domain-specific planning requirements.
Collaborate and review
Involve research teams, data stewards, legal specialists and repository staff.
Connect the lifecycle
Link plans with projects, repositories, identifiers and research outputs.
Supporting services
| Service | Primary function |
|---|---|
| Metadata Validator | Tests repository interfaces and records against OpenAIRE compatibility rules. |
| OpenAIRE Broker | Notifies providers about metadata, links and enrichment information available from the Graph. |
| UsageCounts | Collects and processes standardised repository views and download statistics. |
| ScholeXplorer | Aggregates and exposes links between scholarly literature and research data. |
| OpenOrgs | Supports identification, disambiguation and curation of research organisations. |
| OpenAIRE AAI | Provides federated access to OpenAIRE services using recognised academic, community or other trusted identities. |
| Zenodo | Provides a general-purpose repository for research outputs when an appropriate specialised repository is unavailable. |
| Amnesia | Supports local anonymisation of datasets before controlled or open publication. |
How researchers use OpenAIRE
1. Plan
Use ARGOS to plan the management and publication of data, software and other digital outputs.
2. Publish
Deposit outputs in an appropriate compatible repository or in Zenodo.
3. Connect
Link outputs with projects, ORCID, organisations and related research products.
4. Discover and reuse
Search connected outputs and follow their funding, provenance and scholarly relationships.
How repository and CRIS managers use OpenAIRE
Implement guidelines
Map local metadata fields and values to the relevant OpenAIRE application profile.
Validate the source
Test the machine-readable interface and resolve metadata or protocol errors.
Register and aggregate
Register the data source and monitor regular collection by OpenAIRE.
Improve metadata
Use Broker notifications and usage information to enrich repository records and services.
How institutions and funders use OpenAIRE
Define policy
Use OpenAIRE guidance and expertise when developing institutional or funding policies for Open Science.
Support implementation
Connect policies with repositories, planning tools, identifiers and research-support workflows.
Monitor progress
Use Graph-based dashboards to examine outputs, openness, funding and collaborations.
Improve evidence
Review metadata quality and indicator methodology before using results for policy or assessment.
OpenAIRE and EOSC
OpenAIRE and EOSC have complementary roles. EOSC develops a federated European environment for research data and services, while OpenAIRE provides established components for scholarly communication, metadata aggregation, discovery, monitoring and research data management.
Discovery: OpenAIRE makes research outputs and their relationships available to EOSC-oriented services and users.
Catalogue and knowledge graph: the Graph provides an established information layer for connected research products.
Service onboarding: PROVIDE and the Guidelines support preparation and aggregation of repository resources.
Monitoring: MONITOR supports evidence-based analysis of Open Science activities.
Research data management: ARGOS connects planning with repositories, identifiers and project information.
Node support: OpenAIRE services and expertise can support EOSC Nodes in building discovery, monitoring and community-facing capabilities.
Repository interoperability
OpenAIRE compatibility means more than making repository records publicly visible. Metadata must be structured so that machines can identify the research object, its contributors, funding, access conditions and relationships.
Protocol
Provide a stable and correctly implemented machine-readable harvesting interface.
Metadata profile
Use the required properties, cardinalities and controlled values.
Identifiers
Supply persistent identifiers for outputs, people, organisations and projects where available.
Relationships
Connect publications, datasets, software, funders and related research objects explicitly.
Metadata quality and enrichment
Validation: checks whether supplied records follow the required metadata profile.
Deduplication: identifies records that describe the same research product.
Identity resolution: reconciles names and identifiers for people and organisations.
Relationship inference: extracts or infers links between publications, data, software and other entities.
Classification: adds Fields of Science, Sustainable Development Goals and related semantic information.
Provenance: records the sources and processing history of Graph information.
Using OpenAIRE Graph data and APIs
EXPLORE interface
Supports interactive discovery and examination of individual records and connections.
Graph API
Provides programmatic access to research products, projects, organisations, people and data sources.
Dataset downloads
Support large-scale analysis, local knowledge graphs and bibliometric research.
Specialised APIs
Support scholarly links, metadata enrichment and other focused integration scenarios.
OpenAIRE in 2026
OpenAIRE launched its Strategy for 2026–2028, focusing on open, trustworthy and sustainable research infrastructure and the responsible use of emerging technologies.
The OpenAIRE Graph continues to expand its research-product coverage, classifications, affiliations and inferred links.
Graph version 11.2.0 was released in July 2026 with expanded Fields of Science classifications and additional links among software, publications and organisations.
The legacy XML-based Search API was retired in favour of the newer JSON-based Graph API.
OpenAIRE continues developing EXPLORE, PROVIDE, CONNECT, MONITOR, ARGOS and its role in EOSC Federation services and data exchange.
Common misconceptions
“OpenAIRE is a repository.” OpenAIRE connects and indexes repository metadata; outputs normally remain hosted by the original repository.
“Registration alone ensures compatibility.” The metadata interface and records must pass the relevant validation checks.
“OpenAIRE contains only EU-funded publications.” The Graph includes multiple research-product types, funders, countries and trusted international sources.
“EXPLORE and the Graph are the same.” EXPLORE is a user interface built on the broader Graph infrastructure.
“OpenAIRE replaces the institutional CRIS.” It aggregates and connects information but does not replace local research-information management.
“Every Graph relationship comes directly from a repository.” Some information is supplied by providers, while other links and classifications are added during Graph processing.
“OpenAIRE and EOSC are identical.” OpenAIRE contributes services and infrastructure to EOSC but remains a distinct organisation and service ecosystem.
How to use this page
For researchers
Use EXPLORE and ARGOS to find, plan, deposit and connect research outputs.
For repository managers
Use the Guidelines, Validator and PROVIDE to establish and maintain compatibility.
For communities
Use CONNECT to create a curated portal for relevant research products and Open Science activities.
For institutions and funders
Use MONITOR and Graph data to support transparent analysis and evidence-based policy.
Explanatory status
This page provides an explanatory overview of OpenAIRE, its Graph, interoperability framework and principal services.
It does not replace the official OpenAIRE Guidelines, service terms, API documentation, metadata profiles or repository-validation rules.
OpenAIRE services, Graph data models, APIs and subscription conditions may change. Production integrations should therefore be checked against the current official documentation.
Metadata aggregated by OpenAIRE may include information supplied directly by data providers as well as links, classifications and enrichments added during Graph processing. The original repository record remains the authoritative source for the deposited research object.