DistillerSR vs Silvi (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Silvi grades higher than DistillerSR: 2.6 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Silvi grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
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
Silvi
Literature review platform with AI screening and data extraction
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 Silvi if
- Fits if you're running a literature review alone and want the basics free
- Works for a small team of up to 5 that wants AI screening and extraction
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want AI screening or extraction, which need Plus at €19 a month
- Tight if you work with others, since multi-reviewer workflows are paid
- Watch out: prices are in euros, and monthly-billing prices didn't show on the page
- Watch out: a Rapid plan is in the table with no price, and there's no app
How we grade them
| 1.8GPADistillerSRWeak | 2.6GPASilviGood | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | CPlus Individual is €19 a month billed as €230 a year, near the top of the research category, whose dearest tenth starts at $20. A team of 5 is €55 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free tier or free trial is stated on the pages read. | BBasic is free with unlimited reviews and the core import, screening and extraction functions. One person can really live on that. |
| 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. | BImport, screening, highlighted extraction, AI extraction, team workflows and tables. The AI parts and multi-reviewer workflows are paid, but the core review job is covered. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and a review project has to be configured before use. | CNo store rating on record. You set up a review and import studies before it does anything. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with links to PubMed, EBSCO, OVID, Power BI and Tableau, and an API. No phone or desktop apps are listed. | BWeb, with PubMed, OpenAlex, ERIC, Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote and Web of Science. |
| Best for | managing systematic reviews with an audit trail | screening and extracting data for literature reviews |
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 Silvi. 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. Silvi starts at about $21.23 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and DistillerSR starts $1.28 a month lower. Of the other AI research tools on the chart, 5 score higher than DistillerSR for less, and 6 score higher than Silvi 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
- DistillerSR also covers reports.
- Silvi also covers citations.
At a glance
| DistillerSR | Silvi | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $19.95 per month (Student) | €19 per month for 1 seat, billed as €230 yearly |
| Free plan | None | Basic plan: unlimited reviews with the core functions. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | DistillerSR Inc. | Silvi |
| Price read from | distillersr.com | silvi.ai |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 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.
Silvi
- Prices are in euros, and the monthly figures shown are the yearly-billed rate; monthly and quarterly billing exist but their prices did not show on the page.
- The pricing table also lists a Rapid plan with no price displayed.
- AI screening, AI data extraction, multi-reviewer workflows and in-app chat support are not on the free Basic plan.
- The Plus Team plan covers 5 seats.
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.
Silvi
- Study import
- Studies can be uploaded or imported through integrations with databases such as PubMed, OpenAlex and ERIC, and from Zotero, Mendeley and EndNote.
- Screening
- Include or exclude studies in bulk or one at a time, with a PRISMA flow chart. AI screening suggestions are listed on the paid tiers.
- Highlighted data extraction
- Data is extracted by highlighting text in a PDF, and the highlight is stored so each value links back to its source.
- AI extraction
- The AI proposes extracted data and highlights it in the PDF; the reviewer decides whether it is correct.
- Team workflows
- Assign tasks, require multiple reviewers, blind decisions and resolve conflicts, with a decision log.
- Tables and plots
- Extracted data appears in configurable tables and plots, and exports to Excel.
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.
Silvi
BasicFree
Unlimited reviews and the core import, screening and extraction functions.
Plus Individual€19
per month for 1 seat, billed as €230 yearly
Unlimited reviews, AI functions and advanced collaboration.
Plus Team€55
per month for up to 5 seats, billed as €660 yearly
The Plus features for a team of 5 seats, with unlimited reviews.
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.
Silvi
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, DistillerSR or Silvi?
As of Nov 13, 2026, DistillerSR is cheaper to start with: $19.95 a month, against about $21.23 a month for Silvi. DistillerSR starts at $19.95 per month (Student), and Silvi starts at €19 per month for 1 seat, billed as €230 yearly.
Which has a free plan, DistillerSR or Silvi?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Silvi 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.