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How to Use Your Free Reads with a Personal Account

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How to start reading for free

With a free personal JSTOR account, you can read up to 10 articles online for free every 30 days. Eligible articles will display a Read online option, and your free read is not counted until this option is selected, allowing you to search for and browse available articles for what you'd like to read first.

Note: According to publisher policies, not all articles are included in the free online reading program.
Read online option with remaining free articles count on an article page

To get started:

  1. Create a personal account or sign in to your existing personal account.
  2. Search for articles on JSTOR. Your results will default to content that you can access.
  3. When you find an article you'd like to read, select the Read online button.
    • Only eligible articles will display this option.
  4. Once you've chosen Read online, you'll see the number of free article reads you have remaining for the period above the article viewer. You'll have 30 days to read this article for free.
  5. Scroll to start reading, or use the pagination controls at the top of the article viewer.

Your JSTOR account can also help you organize your research. See Organizing your research with Workspace for more information.

Where to find articles you've read

If you previously read an article that you'd like to reference or read again, you can find a record of the articles you've read under the Free article views tab in your account History.

Free article views tab on the account History page

To see your articles:

  1. Log in to your personal JSTOR account and choose My Account from the drop-down menu under your name.
  2. Select History.
  3. Select the Free article views tab.

From the time you choose Read online for the first time to read an article, you'll have 30 days to use any remaining article reads before the article count resets, and you can proceed to read new free articles.

For example, if you read your first article on April 15th, your 30-day period begins and lasts until the available article count will reset on May 15th of the same year. If you read another article within the same time period, for example, on April 30th, the reset has not yet occurred. Your available article count would still reset on May 15th, and you have until then to read your remaining articles.

What happens when the countdown ends? / How can I remove articles?

While it's not possible to remove items from your free article views until after your article count resets, you can read available articles for free when a new article count cycle begins.

Return to your research at any time. When the 30-day article count cycle has ended, all articles that you've read online will move to the Previously-viewed articles section so you won't lose your research. If you want to read the same article again in a different 30-day cycle, you can select that article to read, but please note this counts as an article view for the current month's count as well.

How to check your remaining free article reads

Once your 30-day reading period has begun, the number of free article reads you have remaining for the period will be displayed near the Read online option for eligible articles and above the article viewer for articles you're reading during the current period.

Remaining free article count and reading period reset date under Access Plan details

To check your remaining free article reads:

  1. Log in to your personal JSTOR account and choose My Account from the drop-down menu under your name.
  2. Select Access Plan.

The number of free article reads you have remaining, as well as the date the current reading period will reset, can be found under Free to read.

Tip: Access to JSTOR may also be available through your library, school, or alumni association. Explore the institution search, check with your alumni association, or ask your local librarian about JSTOR.

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