Explainpaper vs SciSpace (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Explainpaper and SciSpace share a 2.4 GPA, both have a free plan and they start at the same price, so the choice depends on whether you care more about the free plan and ease of use, where Explainpaper grades higher, or features and platforms, where SciSpace does.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on value for money.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Explainpaper
Highlight confusing text in a paper and get a plain explanation
SciSpace
AI research platform for literature review and reading papers
Which one is for you
Pick Explainpaper if
- Fits if you're a student who hits a paragraph in a paper that makes no sense
- Works for readers who keep their papers in Zotero
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: basic AI models only
- Pricey if you want figure and equation explanations, outlines or saved highlights, which are Pro at $12 a month
- Skip it if you want to search for papers, as it only helps you read one
- Watch out: the Teams plan has no published price, and there are no apps beyond the browser
Pick SciSpace if
- Fits if you want search, reading and writing tools on one subscription
- Works for research teams of 2 to 300 people who want to be billed per user
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're on Android, as the mobile app is listed for iPhone and iPad only
- Pricey if you run agents a lot, since the step past 1,200 credits is Advanced at $70 a month billed annually
- Not for you if you need the free limits in writing first, as they couldn't be confirmed
- Tight if you start several jobs at once, as Premium runs 4 tasks at a time and Advanced 8
- Watch out: prices come from an archived copy of the pricing page from 30 September 2026, and no integrations are listed
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAExplainpaperFair | 2.4GPASciSpaceFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $12 a month billed yearly ($16 monthly), which puts it in the dearer quarter of a category whose middle is $10. | CPremium is $12 a month billed annually, or $20 monthly, the middle of this category. That buys 1,200 credits and 4 tasks at once. The next step is a big one: Advanced at $70 for 10,000 credits. These figures come from an archived copy of the pricing page captured on 30 September 2026. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree forever with unlimited highlight explanations, follow-up questions and Zotero import, on basic models. A student could live on it, but the stronger model is Pro. Pro has a 7-day trial. | CA free tier is reported by other listings, but SciSpace's own site turned automated readers away, so what it includes couldn't be confirmed on a SciSpace page. We'd sign up and look before planning a project around it. |
| Features | CExplanations, follow-ups, figures, equations, outlines and saved highlights. The listing shows figures, outlines and saved highlights as Pro-only, and it covers just reading a paper. | BLiterature Review answers from more than 270 million papers with references, Chat with PDF explains one paper, Extract Data pulls the findings out of several at once. Add agents, an AI writer, a paraphraser and a citation generator with 2,300+ styles and the whole job is covered. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. Upload a paper, highlight what you don't follow, and read the answer. | CNo store rating on record, and credits are the thing you have to keep in your head: every plan meters the agents by a monthly allowance and caps how many tasks run at once. Asking in plain language, or highlighting a table to have it explained, is the easy part. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with Zotero library import the single integration. No apps are listed. | BWeb, an iPhone and iPad app, and a Chrome extension that explains highlighted text on any page and replies in 13 languages. Phone and computer, then. No Android app was found on Google Play in the US when checked, and the listing shows nothing it connects to. |
| Best for | getting a plain explanation of a confusing paragraph | search, reading and writing in one place |
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: Explainpaper and SciSpace. How we grade
Price against what you get
Explainpaper starts at $12 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SciSpace starts at $12 a month and scores 2.7.
SciSpace scores higher for the same starting price. Of the other AI research tools on the chart, 13 score higher than Explainpaper for less, and 3 score higher than SciSpace 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
- Explainpaper also covers documents and highlights.
- SciSpace also covers AI search, AI agents and citations.
At a glance
| Explainpaper | SciSpace | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12 per month, billed yearly ($16 billed monthly) | $12 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Unlimited highlight explanations and follow-up questions, with basic AI models and Zotero library import. | Third-party listings report a free tier, but its current limits could not be read: SciSpace's site turned automated readers away, and the archived pricing data covers paid plans only. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of Pro | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Explainpaper | PubGenius Inc. |
| Price read from | explainpaper.com | web.archive.org (not the vendor's own page) |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Explainpaper
- Free accounts get basic AI models; the stronger model needs Pro.
- Saved highlights and figure explanations are Pro only.
- The Teams plan has no published price.
SciSpace
- SciSpace's site blocked automated reading, so prices come from an Internet Archive copy of its pricing page captured on September 30, 2026.
- The limits of the free tier could not be confirmed on a SciSpace page.
- Paid plans meter usage in monthly credits: 1,200 on Premium, 10,000 on Advanced and 40,000 or more on Max.
- The mobile app is listed for iPhone and iPad; no Android app was found on Google Play (US) when checked.
Key features
Explainpaper
- Highlight to explain
- Select text in an uploaded paper and receive a simpler explanation of that passage.
- Follow-up questions
- Ask further questions about a passage; available on the free plan.
- Figures and equations
- On Pro, click a graph, figure or equation to get it explained.
- Paper outlines
- Pro generates an outline with clickable page references.
- Saved highlights
- Pro keeps your highlights and the explanations you received.
- Zotero import
- Bring in your Zotero library on any plan.
SciSpace
- Literature Review
- Ask a research question in plain language and get answers drawn from a repository of more than 270 million papers, each with references to its sources.
- Chat with PDF
- Ask questions about a paper or PDF and get answers backed by citations that point to where in the source they came from.
- SciSpace Agent and Biomedical Agent
- Agents take on research tasks and draw on the plan's monthly credits. Each plan also caps how many tasks run at once: 4 on Premium, 8 on Advanced and 16 on Max.
- Writing and citation tools
- AI Writer, Paraphraser and AI Detector sit beside a Citation Generator that formats references in APA, MLA and more than 2,300 other styles.
- Extract Data
- Pulls the summary, conclusions and findings out of several PDFs at once so papers can be compared side by side.
- Chrome extension
- Explains highlighted text, math and tables on any web page or PDF, answers follow-up questions with citations and replies in 13 languages.
Plans
Explainpaper
Free$0
Unlimited highlight explanations, follow-up questions and Zotero import, on basic AI models.
Pro$12
per month, billed yearly ($16 billed monthly)
Explains graphs, figures and equations; automatic outlines; saved highlights; questions about the paper.
TeamsCustom
Everything in Pro, plus team management, priority support and volume discounts.
SciSpace
Premium$12
per month, billed annually ($144); $20 billed monthly
1,200 credits a month and up to 4 concurrent tasks.
Teams (Premium)$15
per user / month, billed annually ($180); $25 billed monthly
For 2 to 300 users, each with 1,200 credits a month and up to 4 concurrent tasks.
Advanced$70
per month, billed annually ($840); $90 billed monthly
10,000 credits a month and up to 8 concurrent tasks.
Teams (Advanced)$75
per user / month, billed annually ($900); $100 billed monthly
For 2 to 300 users, each with 10,000 credits a month and up to 8 concurrent tasks.
MaxFrom $160
per month, billed annually ($1,920); from $200 billed monthly
Priced by credit tier, from 40,000 credits a month up to 300,000, with up to 16 concurrent tasks.
Teams (Max)$175
per user / month, billed annually ($2,100); $220 billed monthly
For 2 to 300 users, each with 40,000 credits a month and up to 16 concurrent tasks.
Ways to pay less
Explainpaper
- Annual discount
Save 25% with yearly billing
The pricing page lists Pro at $12 a month billed yearly against $16 a month billed monthly, labeled as a 25% saving.
SciSpace
- Annual discount
Save 20% to 40% with annual billing
Annual billing brings Premium from $20 to $12 a month (40% off), Advanced from $90 to $70 (22% off) and the entry Max tier from $200 to $160 (20% off).
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Explainpaper or SciSpace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, they start at the same price. Explainpaper starts at $12 per month, billed yearly ($16 billed monthly), and SciSpace starts at $12 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Explainpaper or SciSpace?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Explainpaper and SciSpace have a free plan.
Which platforms do Explainpaper and SciSpace run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only SciSpace lists an iOS app and a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.