Citing Infomap

When you use Infomap in published work, cite both the 2008 PNAS paper (which introduced the map equation) and the MapEquation software package (which identifies the implementation and version, for reproducibility). These are the canonical references for the method and the tool.

The survey [Smiljanić et al., 2026] is the best single reference for the wider map-equation framework, its flow models, and its extensions. Cite it too when your work builds on that broader treatment, and as the primary reference for results that originate in the survey itself.

BibTeX

@article{rosvall2008maps,
  title   = {Maps of random walks on complex networks reveal community structure},
  author  = {Rosvall, Martin and Bergstrom, Carl T.},
  journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences},
  volume  = {105},
  number  = {4},
  pages   = {1118--1123},
  year    = {2008},
  doi     = {10.1073/pnas.0706851105},
}

@misc{mapequation2026software,
  title        = {{The MapEquation software package}},
  author       = {Daniel Edler and Anton Holmgren and Martin Rosvall},
  howpublished = {\url{https://mapequation.org}},
  year         = {2026},
}

For the version-stamped software entry (recommended for reproducibility), visit https://www.mapequation.org and copy the BibTeX from the “How to cite” section there; it includes the current release version.

Citing extensions

If your analysis uses a specific flow model or network type, you may also need to cite the paper that introduced that extension. Each chapter under Flow models & representations and Robustness & reliability names its source paper in its “Going deeper” section, and they are collected on the References page.

Going deeper

Full publication list: https://www.mapequation.org/publications.html