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Price against what you get

Best-value AI research tools

Going by our grades, R Discovery, Semantic Scholar and Ai2 Asta give the most for the money among AI research tools: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $10 a month across the 21 that charge, from $5.75 (R Discovery) to $49 (Elicit). 4 more cost nothing at all. 10 of the 25 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 0 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Set price against

Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged

C2.0B3.0A4.0Free$5$10$20$50More for lessCosts more, scores moreCosts less, scores lessCosts more, scores lessR DiscoveryAi2 AstaElicitChatPDFLitmapsResearchRabbit

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

  • Nothing scores higher without costing more
  • The best score at each price
  • Has a free plan
  • No free plan
25 of the 28 AI research tools in this directory. Scores are ToolGPA’s own grades; prices are each vendor’s own, read up to Oct 10, 2026. The lines cross at the middle starting price ($10) and the average score (2.6). The data as JSON · The chart as a picture
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Paste this where you want it. The picture links back here and is redrawn whenever a price or a grade changes. Use it freely, with the link left in.

<a href="https://toolgpa.com/charts/ai-research"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/charts/ai-research/chart.svg" alt="25 AI research tools by starting price and by ToolGPA score" width="1200" height="675" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>

The best at every price

Each step is the highest score AI research tools reach at that price or below. Nothing on the chart beats these without costing more.

  1. Free

    No paid plan · scores 2.7 of 4

  2. $5.75

    a month to start · scores 3.0 of 4

    • R Discovery$69 per year, or $12 billed monthly (US prices)BBB

Paying more for less

The AI research tools that the most others beat on both counts: a higher score and a lower starting price.

  1. LitmapsStarts at $10 a month and scores 2.0 of 4.11 of 24 score higher for lessCCC
  2. ResearchRabbitStarts at $10 a month and scores 2.0 of 4.11 of 24 score higher for lessCCC
  3. HumataStarts at $9.99 a month and scores 2.3 of 4.9 of 24 score higher for lessCBC
  4. ElicitStarts at $49 a month for each person and scores 2.7 of 4.6 of 24 score higher for lessBCB
  5. UndermindStarts at $16 a month and scores 2.7 of 4.5 of 24 score higher for lessCBB

A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, and a score is three letters, not the whole product. Read a tool’s own page before ruling it out.

The four quarters

Where the tools fall when the chart is cut at the middle price and the average score.

More for less10

Each scores above the category's average and starts at or below its middle price.

R Discovery, Otio, ChatPDF, Ai2 Asta, Semantic Scholar, ChatDOC, Scholarcy, alphaXiv and 2 more

Costs more, scores more9

Each scores above the average and starts above the middle price.

Paperguide, Liner, Scite, AskYourPDF, Logically, SciSpace, AnswerThis, Undermind and 1 more

Costs less, scores less6

Each scores below the average and starts at or below the middle price.

Connected Papers, Humata, Inciteful, STORM, Litmaps, ResearchRabbit

Costs more, scores less0

Each scores below the average and starts above the middle price.

None.

All 25 on the chart

Highest score first, then lowest price. The last column counts the tools that score higher and start lower.

#ToolScoreFeatures, ease, platformsA monthAs its listing states itScore higher for less
1R Discovery3.0BBB$5.75$69 per year, or $12 billed monthly (US prices)None
2Otio3.0BBB$7$7 per month (Lite), billed monthly or $84 per yearNone
3ChatPDF3.0CBA$7.50$89.99 per year or $14.99 per month (US App Store in-app purchase)None
4Paperguide3.0ACB$12$12 per seat / month, billed annually ($8 with the academic discount)None
5Liner3.0BCA$14.99$14.99 per month, billed annually ($17.99 billed monthly)None
6Scite3.0ACB$20$20 per month, billed monthlyNone
7Ai2 Asta2.7BBCFreeFreeNone
8Semantic Scholar2.7CBBFreeFreeNone
9ChatDOC2.7CBB$7.49$89.9 per 360 days (a 30-day plan is also sold)2
10Scholarcy2.7CBB$7.50$90 per year, or $9.99 per month billed monthly2
11alphaXiv2.7CBB$8$8 per month (alphaXiv Go)3
12Anara2.7BCB$8$8 per seat / month, billed yearly ($10 billed monthly)3
13Keenious2.7CBB$10$10 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly)3
14AskYourPDF2.7CBB$11.99$11.99 per month, billed yearly ($14.99 billed monthly)3
15Logically2.7BCB$12$12 per user / month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly)3
16SciSpace2.7BCB$12$12 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly)3
17AnswerThis2.7BCB$14$14 per month, billed yearly ($35 billed monthly)4
18Undermind2.7CBB$16$16 per month, billed annually, at the academic rate ($60 for industry)5
19Elicit2.7BCB$49$49 per user / month, billed annually ($11 on academic pricing)6
20Connected Papers2.3CBC$6$6 per month, billed annually ($72)3
Show the other 5
#ToolScoreFeatures, ease, platformsA monthAs its listing states itScore higher for less
21Humata2.3CBC$9.99$9.99 per month, billed monthly (covers up to 3 users)9
22Inciteful2.0CCCFreeFreeNone
23STORM2.0DBCFreeFreeNone
24Litmaps2.0CCC$10$10 per month, billed annually, with an academic email ($40 commercial)11
25ResearchRabbit2.0CCC$10$10 per month on the annual plan ($12.50 on the monthly plan)11

How AI research tools grade

Every bar is all the AI research tools we grade, cut by the letter each got on that count.

  • Value for moneyaverage 2.4
  • Free plan and trialaverage 2.4
  • Featuresaverage 2.5
  • Ease of useaverage 2.5
  • Platforms and integrationsaverage 2.8

An A is worth 4 and an F nothing. C is the ordinary grade. Every ai research grade in one table

Not on the chart

Sold for a single payment, or with no public price that can be put as dollars a month. They are graded like the rest.

Common questions

Which AI research tools give the most for the money?

R Discovery, Semantic Scholar and Ai2 Asta. Each is the highest-scoring tool at its price or below: Ai2 Asta scores 2.7 out of 4 and is free; Semantic Scholar scores 2.7 out of 4 and is free; R Discovery scores 3.0 out of 4 and starts at $5.75 a month when paid by the year. This goes by ToolGPA's own grades for features, ease of use and platforms, averaged out of 4, set against the price each tool's paid plans start at.

Which are the best free AI research tools?

Of the 4 AI research tools here with no paid plan at all, Ai2 Asta and Semantic Scholar score highest, at 2.7 out of 4. 19 more have a free plan beside their paid ones.

Which AI research tools are best for under $10 a month?

R Discovery, Otio and ChatPDF, with a score of 3.0 out of 4: the highest among the 16 that start at $10 a month or less. R Discovery starts at $5.75 a month when paid by the year; Otio starts at $7 a month; ChatPDF starts at $7.50 a month when paid by the year.

Which AI research tools are best for under $20 a month?

R Discovery, Otio, ChatPDF, Paperguide and 2 more, with a score of 3.0 out of 4: the highest among the 24 that start at $20 a month or less. R Discovery starts at $5.75 a month when paid by the year; Otio starts at $7 a month; ChatPDF starts at $7.50 a month when paid by the year.

Which AI research tools cost the most for what they offer?

On this chart, Litmaps (starts at $10 a month, scores 2.0 out of 4, and 11 tools score higher for less), ResearchRabbit (starts at $10 a month, scores 2.0 out of 4, and 11 tools score higher for less) and Humata (starts at $9.99 a month, scores 2.3 out of 4, and 9 tools score higher for less). A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, so check what the price includes before ruling one out.

How much do AI research tools cost?

The middle starting price is $10 a month: half of the 21 AI research tools with a recurring price start below that and half above. 4 of the 28 in this directory have no paid plan, and 19 of those that charge also have a free plan.

How is the score on this chart worked out?

It is the average of three of the five grades ToolGPA gives every tool: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations, with an A worth 4 and an F worth 0. The other two grades, value for money and the free plan, are about price, so they are left out and price gets an axis of its own. 25 of the 28 AI research tools are on the chart; 3 are left off because they are sold for a single payment or publish no price that can be put as dollars a month.

How this chart is made

  • The score is the average of three of a tool’s five grades: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations. An A is 4 points and an F none. Value for money and the free plan are left out because they are about price, and price has an axis of its own.
  • The price is what paid plans start at, in dollars a month, on the cheapest way of paying the listing names. A yearly price is divided by twelve, and a price in another currency is converted. A price for each person is shown for one person.
  • A tool with no paid plan sits in the band marked Free. A tool with a free plan beside paid ones is placed at its paid price and drawn as a filled dot.
  • The grades are ToolGPA’s own judgement from each vendor’s pages and from public reviews, not from testing, and no vendor can pay for one. How we grade

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