Shortlist by what you need
Start here if you know why you are leaving Elicit.
Want the closest match?
GatsbiMost similar to Elicit in what it does, its category and its price.
Visit (opens Gatsbi in a new tab)Need a free plan?
RayyanHas a free plan, rated 4.4 out of 5.
Visit (opens Rayyan in a new tab)Want to pay less than Elicit?
ScholarcyFrom $5/mo, against from $12/mo for Elicit.
Visit (opens Scholarcy in a new tab)Want the best rated?
AnaraRated 4.3 out of 5 in our review, against 4.3 for Elicit.
Visit (opens Anara in a new tab)
At a glance
Green means better than Elicit, red means worse. Prices are starting prices per month.
| Tool | Our rating | Starts at | Free plan | Best for | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 ElicitBaseline | 4.3 | $12/mo | Yes | Automates systematic review, extracting data into tables across many papers at once | |
| Gatsbi | 3.6−0.7 | Not listed | No | Generates research topics, drafts papers with citations and automates systematic reviews. | vs Elicit |
| Rayyan | 4.4+0.1 | $10/mo$2 less | Yes | Built specifically for the systematic-review screening process, not general search | vs Elicit |
 OpenRead | 3.5−0.8 | Free | Yes | Ask a research paper a question and Oat, the AI assistant, answers directly from its content - plus rapid paper summarization and visual mapping of related work, updated every 5 minutes. | vs Elicit |
 PaperBrain | 3.6−0.7 | Free | Yes | Search, read and summarise scientific papers through a single interface. | vs Elicit |
 Enago Read | 4.2−0.1 | $12/moSame price | Yes | A literature-review assistant backed by a full academic-services company | vs Elicit |
 Paperguide | 4.2−0.1 | $10/mo$2 less | Yes | Bundles search, review, full draft writing, and reference management in one platform | vs Elicit |
| Anara | 4.3Same | $10/mo$2 less | Yes | Extracts PDF tables into structured, typed data schemas | vs Elicit |
| Scholarcy | 4.3Same | $5/mo$7 less | Yes | Turns each paper into a structured flashcard-style summary | vs Elicit |
The alternatives in detail
In order of how closely each one matches Elicit.
Gatsbi
3.6Not listed
vs Elicit−0.7
Generates research topics, drafts papers with citations and automates systematic reviews.
- Research topic discovery
- Paper drafting with citations
- Patent drafting
Systematic review screening is a genuinely good fit for automation
Generated citations must be checked individually against real sources
Rayyan
4.4$10/mo
vs Elicit$2 less+0.1
Built specifically for the systematic-review screening process, not general search.
- Automatic duplicate detection across imported records
- Blind collaborative screening with decision reconciliation
- AI-assisted ranking that learns from reviewer decisions
Purpose-built for the specific, demanding task of systematic-review screening
Narrow focus on screening means it doesn't replace search or writing tools
OpenRead
3.5Free
vs Elicit−0.8
Ask a research paper a question and Oat, the AI assistant, answers directly from its content - plus rapid paper summarization and visual mapping of related work, updated every 5 minutes.
- Paper Espresso - rapid AI summarization of key points
- Paper Q&A grounded directly in a document's own content
- Oat AI Assistant for interactive research Q&A
Answers grounded in a specific paper's actual content, not generalized training knowledge
Free tier caps monthly AI feature uses, not just uploads
PaperBrain
3.6Free
vs Elicit−0.7
Search, read and summarise scientific papers through a single interface.
- Search across scientific literature from one interface
- Summaries to triage whether a paper deserves a full read
- Content generation from the papers you collect
Compresses the triage step that dominates a literature review
Summaries are a filter, never a substitute for the source
Enago Read
4.2$12/mo
vs ElicitSame price−0.1
A literature-review assistant backed by a full academic-services company.
- Copilot for real-time research question answering
- Automatic paper summaries and key-insight extraction
- Discovery across 200+ million papers
Backed by an established academic-services company with an 18-plus-year history
Core research features overlap closely with several standalone competitors
Paperguide
4.2$10/mo
vs Elicit$2 less−0.1
Bundles search, review, full draft writing, and reference management in one platform.
- AI search across 200+ million papers
- AI Writer generating full draft text grounded in user references
- Automated Deep Research Reports analyzing trends across a topic
AI Writer's full-draft generation goes further than most competitors' citation-only assistance
More features require a paid plan
Anara
4.3$10/mo
vs Elicit$2 lessSame
Extracts PDF tables into structured, typed data schemas.
- Typed schema extraction of tables and structured data from PDFs
- Library connections to Zotero, Mendeley, Notion, Google Drive, PubMed, arXiv, and JSTOR
- Grounded, clickable citations tied to source passages
Structured data extraction goes beyond prose-only answers
Five-tier pricing structure takes more comparison to find the right plan
Scholarcy
4.3$5/mo
vs Elicit$7 lessSame
Turns each paper into a structured flashcard-style summary.
- Flashcard-style structured summary cards for each paper
- Browser extension generating summaries directly on a paper's page
- Free tier for standard use
Flashcard format suits fast triage of many papers well
Summary-card format is less suited to deep follow-up questions than a chat interface
FAQ
Questions people ask
Is Elicit free?
Elicit has a free plan, and paid plans start from $12/mo.
What is the best free alternative to Elicit?
Rayyan is the highest-rated alternative here with a free plan (4.4 out of 5). Other free options: Anara, Scholarcy, Enago Read.
What is the cheapest alternative to Elicit?
Among paid plans, Scholarcy has the lowest starting price (from $5/mo). If you need it free, start with Rayyan.
How did you pick these alternatives?
We match tools on what they do, their category and their price, using the details in our directory. Ratings come from our reviews and reader reviews.