# OpenRefine review (2026): is it any good? > Free open-source desktop tool for cleaning and transforming messy data Checked Nov 13, 2026 ยท graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA. OpenRefine is free, open-source software for cleaning data, converting it between formats and extending it with web services and external data. It runs on your own machine, and you work with facets, clustering of similar values, and reconciliation against external databases. It is released under the BSD 3-clause license. - **Category:** Spreadsheets & Databases - **Made by:** OpenRefine contributors - **Website:** https://openrefine.org - **Runs on:** Windows, macOS, Linux - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you want to build models with formulas, as there's no formula grid. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 13, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 13, 2026, OpenRefine is free to use. - **Pricing model:** Free - **Free plan:** None. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Free | $0 | Free software under the BSD 3-clause license; the project accepts donations. | Read from https://openrefine.org/download on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with OpenRefine before buying. ## Key features - **Faceting:** Drill through large datasets with facets and apply operations to the filtered view. - **Clustering:** Merges similar values to fix inconsistencies, using the project's heuristics. - **Reconciliation:** Matches your dataset to external databases through reconciliation services. - **Infinite undo and redo:** Rewind to any earlier state and replay the operation history on a new version of the data. - **Wikibase editing:** Contribute data to Wikidata and other Wikibase instances. ## Good for - Librarians, researchers and journalists tidying inconsistent names and categories - Anyone who wants to clean data locally rather than upload it to a cloud service ## Worth knowing - It is a data-cleaning tool, not a spreadsheet: there is no cell formula grid to build models in. - Downloads are a Windows installer or zip, a Mac DMG and a Linux tar.gz; the Windows zip includes an embedded Java install. - Support comes from a community forum and chat rather than a paid vendor. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.8 out of 4**, graded Nov 13, 2026. OpenRefine is a free, open-source tool for cleaning and reshaping messy data, with clustering and reconciliation against Wikidata. It isn't a spreadsheet, so there is no formula grid for modelling, and support comes from a forum and chat. - **Value for money: A.** Free under the BSD 3-clause licence to download and run, with donations welcome. - **Free plan and trial: A.** Free outright, with no cap or paid tier. - **Features: C.** Faceting, clustering, reconciliation and undo. It cleans data well but has no cell formula grid, so it is a different job from a spreadsheet. - **Ease of use: C.** You download and run it, then learn faceting and its expression language. No store rating on record, and the Windows zip includes its own Java. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** A program for computers only, on Windows, Mac and Linux, linking to Wikidata and Wikibase. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from OpenRefine contributors's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among spreadsheet and database tools - OpenRefine's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 47 of the 63 other spreadsheet and database tools we grade, and level with 6. - It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 51 of 63) and worst on platforms and integrations (C, above 3). - OpenRefine has no paid plan. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/spreadsheets ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** OpenRefine is free, so making your own would save you nothing. And it is not the kind of software a weekend replaces. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 47 of the 63 other spreadsheet and database tools we grade. - You could not: A spreadsheet engine with its formulas. - You could not: Apps for macOS, Windows and Linux that stay in step with each other. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with Wikidata, Wikibase **Tags:** Spreadsheets, Open source, Works offline ## Alternatives - [VisiData](https://toolgpa.com/tools/visidata): Terminal spreadsheet-style tool for exploring tabular data. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/openrefine-vs-visidata) - [Tablecruncher](https://toolgpa.com/tools/tablecruncher): Fast open-source CSV editor for Mac, Windows and Linux. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/openrefine-vs-tablecruncher) - [Modern CSV](https://toolgpa.com/tools/modern-csv): Desktop CSV editor and viewer for Windows, Mac and Linux. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/modern-csv-vs-openrefine) - [Mito](https://toolgpa.com/tools/mito): Jupyter extensions: spreadsheet view and AI chat that write Python. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/mito-vs-openrefine) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026: - https://openrefine.org/ - https://openrefine.org/download Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/openrefine Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).