Is Elicit or Mendeley better?

Neither clearly leads. Elicit starts at Free and Mendeley at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Elicit or Mendeley?

Elicit starts at Free and Mendeley at Free.

Does Elicit or Mendeley run on more platforms?

Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.

Can I use Elicit for free?

Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.

What is Elicit best used for?

Elicit is most often used for screening and summarizing 40,000+ academic papers in systematic reviews, extracting structured data from 200+ research sources automatically, querying full-text papers using ai for custom literature analysis, tracking new relevant research with personalized notification alerts. Of those, screening and summarizing 40,000+ academic papers in systematic reviews and extracting structured data from 200+ research sources automatically are not what Mendeley is typically brought in for.

Research · head to head

Elicit vs Mendeley

Elicit

Research

The AI research assistant

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Mendeley

Research

The free all-in-one reference manager

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Elicit pro and Scale plans available at different monthly prices; annual billing options not specified; Mendeley free tier limited to 5 Reading Assistant questions per month and 2GB storage
Prices and features above were last checked on 28 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Elicit and Mendeley actually diverge.

Attributes where Elicit and Mendeley differ
Attribute	Elicit	Mendeley
Pricing model	subscription	freemium

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Research).

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Elicit

Screening and summarizing 40,000+ academic papers in systematic reviewsnot Mendeley
Extracting structured data from 200+ research sources automaticallynot Mendeley
Querying full-text papers using AI for custom literature analysisnot Mendeley
Tracking new relevant research with personalized notification alertsnot Mendeley

Mendeley

Storing and organizing large research librariesnot Elicit
Searching and querying PDFs in librarynot Elicit
Uncovering patterns and connections across referencesnot Elicit
Comparing experimental data across multiple studiesnot Elicit

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Elicit

Pro and Scale plans available at different monthly prices; annual billing options not specified
Enterprise plan pricing not disclosed; requires contacting vendor

Mendeley

Free tier limited to 5 Reading Assistant questions per month and 2GB storage
Annual billing required to receive one free month equivalent discount
Storage limits restricted on Plus (5GB) and Pro (10GB) tiers

Pricing, plan by plan

Elicit

Free

BasicFree
- Limited usage for Research Agent and Research Reports
- Unlimited search across 138+ million papers
- Unlimited summaries and chat with papers
Pro$49/month
- Standard usage for Research Agent, Research Reports, and Systematic Literature Reviews
- Dedicated workflow screening up to 5,000 papers
- Up to 20 table columns
Scale$169/month
- 5x usage for Research Agent, Research Reports, and Systematic Literature Reviews
- Figure extraction and interpretation
- Real-time team collaboration
Enterprise$null/custom
- Custom usage limits
- Unlimited alerts and up to 40,000 paper screening
- Up to 40 table columns

Mendeley

Free

FreeFree
- 2GB storage
- 5 Reading Assistant questions per month
Plus$4.99/month
- Unlimited Reading Assistant
- 5GB storage
- $55/year annual billing
Pro$9.99/month
- Unlimited Reading Assistant
- Compare Experiments
- Ask My Library
Max$14.99/month
- Unlimited Reading Assistant
- Compare Experiments
- Ask My Library

Which should you pick?

Choose Elicit if

You want to start without paying.

Elicit review

Choose Mendeley if

You want to start without paying.

Mendeley review

Questions people ask

Is Elicit or Mendeley better?: Neither clearly leads. Elicit starts at Free and Mendeley at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Elicit or Mendeley?: Elicit starts at Free and Mendeley at Free.
Does Elicit or Mendeley run on more platforms?: Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Elicit for free?: Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Elicit best used for?: Elicit is most often used for screening and summarizing 40,000+ academic papers in systematic reviews, extracting structured data from 200+ research sources automatically, querying full-text papers using ai for custom literature analysis, tracking new relevant research with personalized notification alerts. Of those, screening and summarizing 40,000+ academic papers in systematic reviews and extracting structured data from 200+ research sources automatically are not what Mendeley is typically brought in for.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Elicit: Does Elicit offer a free plan?

Yes, Elicit's Basic plan is free and includes unlimited search across 138+ million research papers, unlimited summaries, chat with papers, source viewing, and Zotero import. Limited usage is included for Research Agent and Research Reports.

Source

Mendeley: How much does Mendeley Premium cost?

Mendeley Plus costs $4.99 per month or $55 per year. Pro tier costs $9.99 per month or $110 per year. Max tier costs $14.99 per month or $165 per year. All annual plans include one free month of service.

Source

Elicit: What is the difference between Elicit's Pro and Scale plans?

Elicit's Pro plan ($49/month) includes standard usage limits, dedicated screening of up to 5,000 papers, and access to 135 data sources. The Scale plan ($169/month) offers 5x higher usage limits, screening of up to 40,000 papers, figure extraction, team collaboration, and access to 200 data sources.

Source

Mendeley: Is there a free version of Mendeley?

Yes, Mendeley offers a free tier with 2GB of storage and 5 Reading Assistant questions per month. No credit card is required for the free plan.

Source

Elicit: What security features does Elicit Enterprise offer?

Elicit's Enterprise plan includes single sign-on (SSO), SAML, two-factor authentication (2FA), PRISMA-grade screening and extraction accuracy, and a dedicated customer success team. Pricing is custom and requires contacting the vendor.

Source

Mendeley: What storage do different Mendeley plans include?

The free tier includes 2GB storage. Plus tier provides 5GB storage. Pro tier includes 10GB storage. Max tier offers unlimited storage across all your research libraries.

Source

Elicit vs Mendeley

Elicit

Mendeley

The short version

Where they differ

What people use each for

Elicit

Mendeley

Where each one falls short

Elicit

Mendeley

Pricing, plan by plan

Elicit

Mendeley

Which should you pick?

Choose Elicit if

Choose Mendeley if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Elicit

More on Mendeley

Keep looking

Other head to heads