Elicitvs
Obsidian
Obsidian: A powerful knowledge base on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files
Elicit
The AI research assistant
As of 28 August 2026, Elicit has a free plan and paid plans start at $49/month. AI tool to search, summarize and extract data from over 125 million academic papers for literature review. Softwr lists it under Research.
Overview
What Elicit does
AI tool to search, summarize and extract data from over 125 million academic papers for literature review.
What people use it 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
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about Elicit.
- Pro and Scale plans available at different monthly prices; annual billing options not specified
- Enterprise plan pricing not disclosed; requires contacting vendor
Cross-shopped
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Pricing
What Elicit costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
Basic
Free
- Limited usage for Research Agent and Research Reports
- Unlimited search across 138+ million papers
- Unlimited summaries and chat with papers
- View sources and Zotero import
Pro
$49 /mo
- Standard usage for Research Agent, Research Reports, and Systematic Literature Reviews
- Dedicated workflow screening up to 5,000 papers
- Up to 20 table columns
- Extract from 135 data sources
- 10 personalized research alerts
- Custom extractions and API access
Scale
$169 /mo
- 5x usage for Research Agent, Research Reports, and Systematic Literature Reviews
- Figure extraction and interpretation
- Real-time team collaboration
- Up to 30 table columns
- Extract from 200 data sources
- Admin panel with usage tracking
Enterprise
On request
- Custom usage limits
- Unlimited alerts and up to 40,000 paper screening
- Up to 40 table columns
- PRISMA-grade screening and extraction accuracy
- Enterprise security features (SSO, SAML, 2FA)
- Dedicated customer success team
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
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.
SourceWhat 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.
SourceWhat 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.
SourceKeep looking
Where to go from Elicit
- Elicit alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- Elicit pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- Elicit badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Research softwareThe full category
- Best Research softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Research software for
Compare Elicit with
- Obsidian
- Roam Research
- Mendeley
- NVivo
- Paperpile
- Zotero
- LabArchives
- Castor EDC
- Suzy
- Benchling
- LabVantage
- Sapio Sciences
- GWI
- Aurelius
- Chemaxon
- Condens
- NVivo
- Castor EDC
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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for Elicit, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
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