Elicit
Free TierAI research assistant for academic papers
Based on 2,600 reviews • Last updated February 11, 2026
What is Elicit?
Elicit is an AI-powered research assistant that helps academics and researchers find, analyze, and synthesize scientific papers. It uses language models to search across 200+ million papers, extract key findings, and help with systematic reviews — dramatically speeding up the literature review process.
Best for:
Researchers, PhD students, and academics who need to efficiently review and synthesize scientific literature
Pros & Cons
✓ Pros
- ✓Best AI tool for academic research
- ✓200M+ paper database
- ✓Excellent data extraction
- ✓Saves hours on literature reviews
- ✓Great systematic review support
✕ Cons
- ✕Credit system can be limiting
- ✕Works best for STEM papers
- ✕Extraction accuracy varies
- ✕Limited humanities/social science coverage
Key Features
Use Cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Elicit better than Google Scholar?
For research synthesis, yes. Elicit doesn't just find papers — it extracts key findings, compares methodologies, and helps you build systematic reviews. Google Scholar only searches titles and abstracts.
How does Elicit extract data from papers?
Elicit uses AI to read full papers and extract information into structured tables based on your custom columns — like sample size, methodology, key findings, and more.
Is Elicit free for students?
Elicit offers a free tier with 5000 credits. For most student projects, the Plus plan at $10/mo provides sufficient access for literature reviews.
