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Every question you have before your first paper, answered for free with no sign-in. Articles are drafted from arXiv's official documentation and link to it; arXiv's own pages are always the final word.
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ReferenceGlossary: endorsement, primary category, cross-listing and more →
Plain-English definitions of every term you'll meet.
Before authoring
Is arXiv right for you, what kind of paper you're writing, and how to prepare it.
Is arXiv the right place for my paper?
A plain-English check on whether arXiv fits your work: what arXiv is, what its moderators look for, and which kinds of papers usually belong elsewhere.
Research paper vs survey vs position paper — and the CS peer-review rule
How arXiv's October 2025 CS practice treats review articles and position papers differently from research papers, and what documentation you need to include.
Choosing your primary category (cs.AI vs cs.LG vs cs.CL and friends)
How to pick the right arXiv primary category for AI, machine learning and NLP papers, using arXiv's own taxonomy and machine learning classification guide.
Cross-listing: when and how
What arXiv cross-listing is, when adding a secondary category helps readers, why arXiv warns against excessive cross-lists, and how moderators handle them.
English-language requirement and translations
arXiv now requires a full English-language version of every submission. Here's what that means, how to include a translation, and how to order your files.
TeX or PDF? Preparing files arXiv will accept
Should you upload LaTeX source or a PDF to arXiv? What arXiv says about PDFs made from TeX, fonts, figures, .bbl files and common reasons processing fails.
Licenses on arXiv, explained
A friendly guide to the licenses arXiv offers, from CC BY to the arXiv non-exclusive license, and why your choice is irrevocable once your paper is posted.
Before submitting
Endorsement, codes, finding an endorser the right way, and what happens after you submit.
What is arXiv endorsement and do I need one?
What arXiv endorsement is, why it exists, and how the January 2026 update ended institutional email alone as a route to automatic endorsement for new authors.
Getting your endorsement code
How to get your arXiv endorsement request: start a submission, pick a category, find the email with your code and link, and share it safely with an endorser.
How to find an endorser the right way
Respectful ways to find an arXiv endorser: start with people who know your work, use arXiv's own tools, avoid mass emails, and use opt-in communities.
What to send an endorser
What to include when asking someone to consider endorsing you on arXiv: a short intro, your paper, category, endorsement link and code, plus a template.
After you submit: on hold, reclassification and moderation
What happens after you submit to arXiv: the announcement schedule, why papers go on hold, how reclassification works, and how to appeal a moderation decision.
Replacing, versioning and withdrawing a paper
How arXiv versions work: fixing a paper before it is announced, replacing it with a new version afterwards, and what withdrawal does and does not remove.
Before reviewing or endorsing
Eligibility, responsibilities, useful feedback, declining kindly and confidentiality.
Am I eligible to endorse?
How arXiv decides who can endorse: authorship within an endorsement domain, a paper-date window, registering as author of your papers, and how domains work.
What an endorser is (and isn't) responsible for
What arXiv asks of endorsers: know the author or see the paper, check it fits the subject area and keep it confidential. What it does not ask: peer review.
Giving useful pre-submission feedback
How to give first-time authors feedback that helps before arXiv: check fit, category, content type, format and clarity, and write comments they can act on.
How to decline kindly
How to say no to an endorsement request with care: when arXiv says not to endorse, recording 'do not endorse' on arXiv's form, and writing a kind note.
Manuscript confidentiality for reviewers
Why unpublished manuscripts you review must stay confidential, what arXiv asks of endorsers, and how ResearchGuild handles manuscript visibility and deletion.