How Do Authors Archive a Webpage with WebCite for Citation?

Updated

WebCite can no longer accept new archiving requests. The site states that it is "currently not accepting archiving requests," so authors cannot submit a new webpage for archiving through WebCite today. What still works is access to material archived in the past: existing snapshots remain available to view and cite. If a journal or publisher asks you to archive a cited webpage now, you need another archive service or a locally preserved copy; WebCite is only an option for references that were already archived there.

What WebCite Was Designed to Do

WebCite was an on-demand archiving system for web references — cited webpages, websites, and other internet-accessible digital objects — used by authors, editors, and publishers of scholarly papers and books. Its purpose was to keep cited web material available to future readers.

The problem it addressed is documented on the site: webpages cited in articles can disappear or change. One study published in Science found that 13% of internet references in scholarly articles were inactive after only 27 months. A WebCite-enhanced reference solves this by pairing the original live URL with a link to an archived copy showing the material exactly as the citing author saw it.

What a WebCite-Enhanced Reference Contains

A WebCite-enhanced reference includes two elements:

  1. The original live URL — which may disappear or change in the future.
  2. A link to the archived copy — the snapshot the citing author accessed when preparing the citation.

This lets readers reach the cited material even if the live page returns a "404 File Not Found" error or has been edited since.

Archiving a Page: What Is and Isn't Possible Now

Action Status
Submit a new archiving request Not accepted — the site says it is currently not accepting archiving requests
Access snapshots archived in the past Available
Cite an existing WebCite-archived page Available

Because new submissions are closed, the practical steps for an author depend on whether the page was already archived:

  • If the page already has a WebCite snapshot: use the archived link alongside the live URL in your reference, and verify the snapshot opens and matches the content you are citing.
  • If the page has no WebCite snapshot: WebCite cannot create one now. Save a local copy of the page yourself and use an alternative web archive to produce a citable snapshot, then include that archive link with the live URL.

Verifying a Reference Before Submission

Whichever archive you use, check the reference the same way a reader would:

  1. Open the archived link and confirm it loads the content you cited, not an error page.
  2. Compare the archived copy with what you saw when you accessed the page, since live pages may have changed since archiving.
  3. Keep the original live URL in the reference even when an archive link is present — the WebCite format includes both.

Common Pitfalls

  • Assuming WebCite still accepts submissions. The closure notice is the first thing to check; planning a workflow around new WebCite archives will fail.
  • Citing only the archive link. The enhanced-reference format keeps the live URL as well, so readers can see the original source.
  • Skipping the verification step. An archived link that no longer resolves leaves the same broken-reference problem the archive was meant to prevent.

For new citations, treat WebCite as a source of existing snapshots and pair it with a currently operating archive or a preserved local copy to meet publisher requirements.