Alternatives · AI Research
Sharly AI alternatives
As of Nov 13, 2026, the best Sharly AI alternative for most people is ChatPDF (2.8 GPA), second in our ranking of AI research tools. It's also the best free one.
Sharly AI compared with 5 alternatives: ChatPDF, Humata, AskYourPDF, Paperguide and Scholarcy.
Sharly AI has a free plan. Paid plans start at $12.5 per month, billed yearly. All 5 alternatives are free or have a free plan.
Listings checked up to Nov 12, 2026 · Where the facts come from
Black Friday: is there a Sharly AI sale?
At a glance
| Tool | Price | Free plan | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sharly AIThis tool | Free plan · from $12.5/mo | Yes | Web |
| ChatPDF | Free plan · from $89.99/yr | Yes | Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android |
| Humata | Free plan · from $9.99/mo | Yes | Web |
| AskYourPDF | Free plan · from $11.99/mo | Yes | Web, iOS, Android, Browser extension |
| Paperguide | Free plan · from $12/mo | Yes | Web, Browser extension |
| Scholarcy | Free plan · from $90/yr | Yes | Web, Browser extension |
Price against what you get
Sharly AI starts at $12.50 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. 4 of the 5 alternatives on this chart score higher and start lower: ChatPDF, AskYourPDF, Paperguide and Scholarcy.
Humata starts lower without scoring higher.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
How each one differs from Sharly AI
ChatPDF
Ask questions about PDFs and get answers with citations
- ChatPDF starts at $89.99 per year or $14.99 per month (US App Store in-app purchase).
- ChatPDF also lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps.
- ChatPDF also covers AI search.
- ChatPDF does not cover documents, which Sharly AI does.
Suits: Students and researchers who want quick answers from a paper or textbook chapter
Humata
Document Q&A with cited answers across your uploaded files
- Humata starts at $9.99 per month, billed monthly (covers up to 3 users).
- Humata does not cover documents, which Sharly AI does.
Suits: Asking questions across many long PDFs and getting cited answers
AskYourPDF
Chat with PDFs and other documents and get cited answers
- AskYourPDF starts at $11.99 per month, billed yearly ($14.99 billed monthly).
- AskYourPDF also lists iOS and Android apps and a browser extension.
- AskYourPDF does not cover documents, which Sharly AI does.
Suits: Students and researchers who want cited answers from long papers and books
Paperguide
AI research platform for literature and systematic reviews
- Paperguide starts at $12 per seat / month, billed annually ($8 with the academic discount).
- Paperguide also lists a browser extension.
- Paperguide also covers AI search, AI agents and long-form writing.
- Paperguide does not cover documents, which Sharly AI does.
Suits: Teams running systematic reviews that need documented screening decisions
Scholarcy
Summarizes research papers into interactive flashcards
- Scholarcy starts at $90 per year, or $9.99 per month billed monthly.
- Scholarcy also lists a browser extension.
- Scholarcy does not cover chat assistant and documents, which Sharly AI does.
Suits: Screening a stack of papers before deciding which to read in full
Limits worth knowing in Sharly AI
- The pricing page shows only yearly-billed prices; the monthly-billing prices are not visible, so the monthly cost of month-to-month billing is not confirmed.
- The free plan's limits are shown as 5 documents a day in the plan card but 10 documents a month in the comparison table, so the exact cap is unclear.
- Pro is for one user; shared workspaces and annotations need Team, which lists up to 100 seats.
- SSO / SAML, audit logs and private deployments are on the sales-only Business plan.
Common questions
What are the alternatives to Sharly AI?
The alternatives to Sharly AI in this directory are ChatPDF, Humata, AskYourPDF, Paperguide and Scholarcy. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Sharly AI.
Is there a free alternative to Sharly AI?
Yes. ChatPDF, Humata, AskYourPDF, Paperguide and Scholarcy have a free plan alongside paid ones.
Which Sharly AI alternatives work on Windows?
The Sharly AI listing does not include a Windows app. ChatPDF lists one.
Which Sharly AI alternatives work on macOS?
The Sharly AI listing does not include a macOS app. ChatPDF lists one.
When were these prices checked?
Each listing shows its own date. On this page they run from Oct 5, 2026 to Nov 12, 2026. Vendors change prices without notice, so confirm on their site before you buy.