Connected Papers vs Litmaps (2026): Pricing, Features & Which to Choose

Who comes out ahead

Based only on the facts in our directory. The right pick still depends on the job you need done.

Lower starting price
Connected Papers
From $5/mo against from $10/mo
Free plan
Tie
Both have one
Higher rating
Connected Papers
4.5 against 4.4
Same job?
Yes
Both are Research tools

Side by side

Compared on	Connected Papers	Litmaps
Our rating	4.5Better	4.4
Starts at	$5/moBetter	$10/mo
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Category	Research	Research
Plans	From $5/mo	From $10/mo
Key features	Visual graph of papers connected by shared citations Discovery-focused rather than question-answering-focused Free tier for standard use Operating since 2019 Identifies influential and foundational papers in a field	Visual citation mapping around a research topic or paper Ongoing alerts when new papers connect to a saved map Free tier for standard use Operating since 2019 Continuous monitoring rather than a one-time snapshot
Pros	Genuinely different mechanism from the chat-based tools dominating this category Strong for early-stage literature discovery and field mapping Free tier available for standard use	Ongoing alerts address literature that changes over a long project, not just a single search session Free tier available for standard use Visual mapping approach suits early-stage discovery well
Cons	Does not answer questions about a paper's actual content More graphs and features require a paid plan Best used alongside a reading or chat tool, not as a standalone solution	More maps and features require a paid plan Alert-based monitoring adds less value for short, one-off research tasks Visual graph format does not answer content questions the way a chat-based tool does
Company	Connected Papers, founded 2019	Litmap Ltd., founded 2019

Prices come from each vendor's pricing page, last checked 20260629. Check the vendor before you buy.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Is Connected Papers better than Litmaps?

In our reviews Connected Papers scores 4.5 and Litmaps scores 4.4. The better pick depends on the job. Connected Papers: A visual citation graph, not another chat-with-papers tool. Litmaps: Citation mapping with ongoing alerts, not just a one-time snapshot.

Which is cheaper, Connected Papers or Litmaps?

Connected Papers has the lower starting price: from $5/mo for Connected Papers and from $10/mo for Litmaps.

Do Connected Papers and Litmaps have free plans?

Yes, both have a free plan.

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