Template · Study
Free literature review template with a sources table
Organize research for a paper or thesis: every source in a table with year, method, key finding and relevance, a chart of methods, and sections for themes, disagreements and gaps.
Literature review
Research question:
Sources
| Title | Authors | Year | Method | Key finding | Relevance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Survey | High | |||
| 2022 | Experiment | Medium | |||
| 2021 | Review | High |
Themes
Where sources disagree
Gaps
To read
Free. Barside asks before it adds the template, then makes a new note from it. Needs Barside 1.50 or newer.
Nothing opened? Barside may not be installed yet. Download Barside, then choose Open in Barside again.
A literature review is a conversation between sources. A matrix of sources makes the conversation visible: who found what, how, and where they disagree.
Who it is for
It is for students writing a thesis or dissertation, researchers starting a project, and analysts reviewing evidence. It works for any field that cites sources. For an ongoing way to connect ideas from reading, see the Zettelkasten method.
What is in the literature review template
- Research question: one line at the top.
- Sources: a table with Authors, Year, Method, Key finding and Relevance.
- Sources by method: a bar chart drawn from the table.
- Themes, Where sources disagree and Gaps: the parts of your review.
- To read: the next sources.
An example
Sam's research question is how remote work affects team trust. She adds three sources: a 2024 survey, a 2022 experiment and a 2021 review, each with a one-sentence key finding and a relevance rating. After twenty sources, the chart shows most studies are surveys, so she notes a gap: few experiments. That gap shapes her own study design.
How to use the literature review template
- Choose Open in Barside above. Barside opens and asks before it adds anything.
- Pick the workspace for the note, and leave Keep it in my templates ticked to use the template again.
- Choose Create note. A new note called "Literature review" opens, ready to fill in.
- Next time, start one from New note from a template, or let Barside make it on a schedule as a repeating note.
No Barside yet? It is free for Windows, Linux and Mac: download Barside, then choose Open in Barside again.
How to write a stronger review
- Read for themes, not for summaries of single papers.
- Write each key finding in one sentence, in your own words.
- Note disagreements: they are often the most interesting part.
- The gaps section becomes your research question.
Make it yours
- Add a Citation column in your style.
- Keep a note per source with its highlights, and link it with [[.
- Ask your notes questions with AI search, which cites the notes it uses.
FAQ
Questions and answers
Can Barside import my PDFs?
Yes. Add PDF files to a note: Barside shows their pages and keeps the file in your library. Write the source's row in this table and link the note.
Is the literature review template free?
Yes. The template and Barside are both free. Barside Plus is optional and adds cloud backup and sync between computers; templates do not need it.
Does the template work offline?
Adding it needs the internet once, so Barside can fetch it from barside.space. After that, the template and every note made from it live on your computer and work offline.
Can I use it on a Mac?
Yes: Barside for Mac is out. Barside also runs on Windows and Linux. The template page works in any browser, so you can preview it anywhere.