Dear Zotero Team,
Greetings. Below are my suggestions and feedback regarding my experience using Zotero:
1、Add a serial‑number or ID field within item metadata.
This field should be placed prominently, roughly below the title and above the short‑title field.
I suggest supporting multiple numbering modes: automatic numbering based on the time items are imported into Zotero; fixed numbering by import timestamp; dynamic numbering that updates as items are added or removed; and manual user‑input numbering.
Crucially, this number should be stored as native metadata for each item. The Zotero search bar should support queries using this ID. When exporting libraries or syncing with third‑party tools such as Codex, Lvjing (Xiao Lü Jing), and MarginNote, these numbers should persist to enable stable reference lookup and item matching.
In my workflow, I import large volumes of literature. Relying on authors or titles to recall, locate and retrieve specific papers is imprecise and cumbersome for searching. Numeric IDs solve this problem effectively: they are concise, easy to remember, and allow fast, accurate retrieval.
Previously, I manually added serial numbers at the start of item titles. However, I recently discovered that these custom numbers get embedded into item metadata. This interferes with metadata retrieval for journal tags, corrupts original bibliographic information, and even appears in in‑text citations and reference lists when generating papers.
Some peers recommended using the Call Number field for custom numbering. Unfortunately, Call Number sits far down in the item‑detail panel and requires scrolling to view. Furthermore, certain item types (e.g., imported policy web pages) lack a Call Number field entirely, which breaks consistent numbering.
A dedicated native numbering field would therefore greatly improve user experience.

Thank you for your reply.

I have just reviewed the plugin page you recommended. My understanding is that the BetterBibTex plugin is mainly for adjusting citation formats. Could you please confirm whether my understanding is correct?

If this plugin only serves to modify citation formats, it is not the feature I am hoping to see implemented.

What I would like is a new **Serial Number** field within the item‑information pane, which displays a unique ID for each bibliographic item. This would allow users to locate references precisely by numeric ID, instead of relying on long titles or author names.

Details are as follows:

1. Purple circle at the top‑right corner: My original workaround was rather clunky. Every time I imported a reference, I manually added a numeric ID inside the item’s title field. This let me keep track of Reference 1, Reference 8, and so on — much easier than remembering titles, authors or publication years.

However, this approach has clear downsides. First, it corrupts the title metadata, which causes failures when metadata‑fetching tools attempt to retrieve journal information from the title. Second, when inserting citations into Word, the manually‑added numbers appear in the final reference list.

2. Green ellipse on the left: A colleague suggested an alternative: use the **Call Number** field to enter IDs manually. The call‑number field does not affect formatted bibliographic output. Nevertheless, its input box sits at the bottom of the right‑hand item panel and requires scrolling down to access. Viewing and editing IDs therefore adds extra steps and hurts usability. Furthermore, the call‑number field is not available for all items; some web‑imported records lack this field entirely. On top of that, Zotero cannot search by call number, so users still have to search using titles, authors or years.

3. Red box on the right: I would like a dedicated **Serial Number** field added in this section to assign a unique identifier to each item, enabling quick lookup by entering that number. Users should be offered configurable numbering modes:
① Numbers generated based on import timestamp, permanently fixed;
② Numbers generated by import timestamp but auto‑renumbered when items are added or deleted;
③ Fully manual, user‑editable custom numbers.

This serial number should be stored as native item metadata. It must survive item exports and synchronisation with third‑party software, so that lookups by ID remain possible. In addition, the top search bar should support serial‑number queries, so typing a number directly brings up the corresponding reference.

To sum up briefly: add a Call‑Number‑like **Serial Number** field in the red‑boxed area for assigning IDs to each reference, and permit searching for items by entering those IDs in the search box.

Thank you for your consideration.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/zotero.org/images/forums/u17412733/f1oqe7o47v3qqjaj74uk.png

It adds an automatically generated citation key. That's not typically a number (though you can probably set it up to be one) but a short, stable identifier across item types which it sounds like what you would like.