DistillerSR vs Nested Knowledge (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Nested Knowledge grades higher than DistillerSR: 2.0 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
DistillerSR grades higher on features and platforms. Nested Knowledge grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
DistillerSR
Literature review software for systematic reviews and surveillance
Nested Knowledge
Systematic review and meta-analysis platform with AI screening
Which one is for you
Pick DistillerSR if
- Fits if you run reviews that need a full audit trail for regulators
- Works for university teams who would buy the Faculty or Research Project plan
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to try before paying, because no free tier or trial is stated
- Tight if you are a student: the Student plan covers 1 project
- Pricey if you are faculty: Faculty is $94 a month for 5 projects, and plans are bought through sales
- Watch out: corporate and government pricing is a quote form only
Pick Nested Knowledge if
- Fits if you run a systematic review alone and want to start free
- Works for academic teams who would pay the Academic seat price
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you work as a team on the free tier, as free users cannot be invited to a shared project
- Pricey if you are a company at $295 or $695 per user a month
- Tight if you want the AI screening, which needs Academic+ at $69.95 or higher
- Watch out: after cancelling, projects stay viewable and exportable but cannot be updated
How we grade them
| 1.8GPADistillerSRWeak | 2.0GPANested KnowledgeFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DStudent is $19.95 a month, Faculty $94 and Research Project $194, against a category middle of $10. Corporate pricing is quote only. | DAcademic is $19.95 per user a month, above the category's $14 dearer-quarter line. The AI features sit on Academic+ at $69.95, and commercial seats are $295 and $695. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free tier or free trial is stated on the pages read. | BOne review project is free, with no time limit and no card, and one person can finish a review on it. Collaboration is not available. |
| Features | BReview lifecycle management, AI screening, an audit trail, reference alerts, full-text retrieval and BI and API links. The listing names no gap in the core review work. | CScreening, extraction, synthesis, living reviews and AI tools. The listing shows collaboration and the full AI suite locked behind paid seats. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and a review project has to be configured before use. | CNo store rating on record, and a review needs a project built and set up before anything works. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with links to PubMed, EBSCO, OVID, Power BI and Tableau, and an API. No phone or desktop apps are listed. | CWeb only, linking PubMed, Embase and Unpaywall. No apps are listed. |
| Best for | managing systematic reviews with an audit trail | running a systematic review with AI help |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: DistillerSR and Nested Knowledge. How we grade
Price against what you get
DistillerSR starts at $19.95 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Nested Knowledge starts at $19.95 a month for each person and scores 2.0.
DistillerSR scores higher for the same starting price. Of the other AI research tools on the chart, 5 score higher than DistillerSR for less, and 39 score higher than Nested Knowledge for less.
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
Where they differ
At a glance
| DistillerSR | Nested Knowledge | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $19.95 per month (Student) | $19.95 per user / month (Academic) |
| Free plan | None | Your first Nest, an entire review project, is free with no time limit and no card; collaboration is not available on the free tier. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | DistillerSR Inc. | Nested Knowledge |
| Price read from | distillersr.com | about.nested-knowledge.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
DistillerSR
- Corporate and government pricing is not published; it is quote-only through a form.
- No free tier or free trial is stated on the pages read.
- The Student plan is limited to 1 project, and faculty and project plans to 5 projects.
- Faculty and Research Project plans are bought by contacting sales, not self-serve checkout.
Nested Knowledge
- Collaboration needs paid seats for every collaborator; free-tier users cannot be invited to a shared Nest.
- Commercial plans are $295 or $695 per user a month, and annual billing is offered at checkout without a published price.
- Prices are tax-exclusive, and Stripe self-service checkout is monthly or annual.
- After cancelling, existing Nests stay viewable and exportable but can no longer be updated.
Key features
DistillerSR
- Review lifecycle management
- Centrally manages importing references, screening, extraction and reporting with a configurable workflow.
- AI-assisted screening
- Reorders references by predicted relevance and can double-check exclusion decisions; plan availability is shown only as icons.
- Audit trail
- Integrated audit trail and version control, which the vendor presents as making evidence traceable.
- Reference database alerts
- LitConnect brings in new articles from databases such as EBSCO, OVID and PubMed; it is not on the Student or Faculty plans.
- BI and API integration
- Connects to business-intelligence tools such as Power BI and Tableau, and exposes an API as a paid module.
- Full-text retrieval
- Links references to source material through DOI.org and works with the Unpaywall plugin.
Nested Knowledge
- AutoLit review workflow
- Structured searches across PubMed and Embase, plus single or dual screening, tagging, meta-analytic extraction and critical appraisal.
- Smart AI features
- Smart Search builds Boolean strings from a question, Robot Screener acts as a second reviewer, and Smart Tags extract data.
- Synthesis outputs
- Builds PRISMA diagrams, forest plots, network meta-analysis and summary tables that update as new data is added.
- Living reviews
- Searches can be re-run and versioned, so a review can be kept current as new studies appear.
- Full text management
- Imports full texts from sources such as Unpaywall or a local computer and matches them to records.
- AI rapid reviews
- Takes a research question and orchestrates search, screening, extraction and appraisal, which a person can then refine.
Plans
DistillerSR
Student$19.95
per month, billing basis not stated
Three subscriptions for the price of one; 1 project and standard support; the page lists 3 users.
Faculty$94
per month, billed annually
One faculty user with 5 projects and standard support; bought through sales.
Research Project$194
per month, billed annually
One faculty member plus 4 students and 5 projects; bought through sales.
DepartmentalCustom
Manage multiple subscriptions across a department, with 20 to 45 projects; contact sales.
InstitutionalCustom
Capabilities for an entire institution, with 80 to 150 projects; request a quote.
Corporate and GovernmentCustom
No published price; a quote form is used for companies and public-sector teams.
Nested Knowledge
Free$0
One review project (Nest) to run an entire systematic review, single user.
Academic$19.95
per user / month
Collaborative workflows for non-profit research organizations, universities or buyers in low- and middle-income countries.
Academic+$69.95
per user / month
Everything in Academic plus the full suite of AI features.
Business Essentials$295
per user / month
Collaborative workflows with unlimited Nests; Smart Search and some AI features by plan.
Enterprise$695
per user / month
Business Essentials plus the AI features, such as Smart Screener and Adaptive Smart Tags.
Enterprise PlusCustom
Enterprise plus premium research support; contact sales.
Ways to pay less
DistillerSR
- Education
Student and academic pricing
Discounted plans from $19.95 a month for students, with faculty and research-project plans billed annually.
Nested Knowledge
- Education
Academic and student pricing
Academic plans at $19.95 or $69.95 per user a month for universities, non-profit researchers and low- and middle-income countries.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, DistillerSR or Nested Knowledge?
As of Nov 13, 2026, DistillerSR starts at $19.95 per month (Student), and Nested Knowledge starts at $19.95 per user / month (Academic). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, DistillerSR or Nested Knowledge?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Nested Knowledge has a free plan. DistillerSR does not.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.