Elicit, Consensus and Scite are often grouped as AI research assistants, but they are built for different questions. Elicit documents a research agent, reports and systematic review workflows. Consensus is described as a search tool that answers questions from papers. Scite is built around Smart Citations, which show how later work cites a paper. Choosing between them starts with the question you are asking.
This article is a framework plus researched facts, not a ranking. We read each vendor’s own pages on 11 November 2026 and flag where they were unclear or inconsistent. None of these tools removes the need to read the underlying papers, and our guide to fact-checking AI research answers applies to all three.
How we researched this: we did not run hands-on tests for this article. It is based on the vendor’s own documentation and public sources, checked on 11 November 2026. Features and prices change, so confirm details on the vendor’s site before you buy.
Key takeaways
- Elicit lists unlimited search across more than 138 million papers on its free Basic plan, with usage-limited Research Agent and Reports.
- Scite says it classifies how later research has supported, challenged or discussed a paper, and lists 1.6 billion or more indexed citations on its homepage.
- Consensus help pages we read listed a free plan and a paid plan, but plan names appear to have changed, so confirm current tiers.
- Elicit changed to a shared monthly usage pool from 1 July 2026, so older reviews of its limits may be out of date.
- Always verify citations and extracted data against the source paper before relying on them.
Why compare these three
A researcher might want to find papers, summarise what they say, extract data into a table, or check whether a claim has been supported or challenged. Each tool leans toward some of these jobs. Treating them as interchangeable leads to disappointment.
Use the method in how to compare AI tools side by side fairly: write the job first, then judge the tool. For note-taking workflows, see how to use AI for research notes and reading lists.
Quick overview table
| Area | Elicit | Consensus | Scite |
|---|---|---|---|
| Documented focus | Research Agent, Reports, systematic review workflow, data extraction into tables | Search and answers from papers | Smart Citations, AI Assistant, collections and alerts |
| Claimed corpus | More than 138 million papers (pricing page) | 200M+ papers (help pages) | 300M+ scholarly articles, 1.6B+ citations (homepage) |
| Free access | Basic plan with limited Research Agent and Reports | Free plan with monthly limits on analyses | No permanent free plan found; 7-day trials on paid plans |
| Exports and integrations | RIS, CSV, BIB, PDF, DOCX on Plus (per pricing page); Zotero import | Not confirmed here | Zotero plugin, browser extension, API, MCP |
Corpus sizes are vendor claims and are counted differently, so they are not comparable.
Criteria that matter
- Question type: finding papers, synthesising, extracting data, or checking citations.
- Source coverage: whether your field and the full texts you need are included.
- Transparency: whether each claim links to a passage you can check.
- Limits: usage pools, credits and caps that may run out mid-project.
- Export: how results move into your reference manager.
- Data handling: what happens to uploaded papers and notes.
Elicit: what is documented
Elicit’s pricing page, read on 11 November 2026, lists Basic (free), Plus, Pro, Scale and Enterprise. Basic includes unlimited search across more than 138 million papers, unlimited summaries and chat with papers with full-text access, source viewing, Zotero import, and limited use of the Research Agent and Research Reports. Higher plans add table columns (the page lists 5 on Plus, 20 on Pro and 30 on Scale), a systematic review workflow able to screen 5,000 papers on Pro, extraction from up to 135 data sources on Pro and 200 on Scale, API access, and on Scale figure extraction and live team editing. Enterprise lists no training on your data by default and PRISMA-grade screening.
The page showed two different price sets, with Pro at $39 in one place and $49 in another and Scale at $89 or $229, so we do not quote prices. Elicit’s own blog post of 30 June 2026 says it is replacing workflow-based limits with a monthly usage pool shared across the Research Agent, Reports and Systematic Literature Reviews, starting to roll out on 1 July. A support article says the pool does not carry over, and that when it runs out the Find Papers skill still works until reset. Pro and Scale can enable extra usage billed in $100 increments.
Consensus: what is documented
Consensus’s help centre page on subscription plans, as we read it, listed a Free plan and a paid Premium plan. The free plan listed unlimited searches across 200M+ papers and unlimited research quality indicators, with monthly caps of 10 each on Pro Analyses, Study Snapshots and Ask Paper messages. Premium was listed at $11.99 per month or $107.88 per year, with unlimited analyses and snapshots, and Teams at $12.99 per seat per month. A separate help article is titled “What do you get with a Pro subscription?”, which suggests plan names have changed, and we could not open it. Treat our plan details as possibly out of date and check the live pricing page.
The Consensus help pages also reference a Deep Review feature, an API and an MCP integration, but we could not open those pages, so we make no claims about them.
Scite: what is documented
Scite’s homepage says Smart Citations show how later research has supported, challenged or discussed a paper, claim, journal or author. It claims 300M+ scholarly articles searched, 323M+ full-text articles read, 1.6B+ citations indexed and agreements with 44+ publishers. Other listed features include an AI Assistant that links claims to source sentences, full-text citation search, collections, and coverage of patents, clinical trials, grants and preprints.
Its pricing page lists Basic at $12 per month billed yearly and Pro at $40 per month billed yearly, each with a 7-day trial, plus custom Enterprise pricing. Basic lists collections up to 1,000 papers and 250 MCP credits a month; Pro lists 2,500 MCP credits, collections up to 10,000 papers, API access and patent, clinical trial and grant datasets. Scite’s August 2026 release notes say its pricing page was reorganised and a Pro trial returned, and an October 2026 update on the same page says free accounts no longer include MCP credits.
Pricing models compared
| Item | Elicit | Consensus | Scite |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Basic, limited agent and reports | Free, monthly caps on some features | Trial only, per pricing page |
| What limits usage | Shared monthly usage pool | Monthly caps on analyses on free plan | Collections size and MCP credits |
| Price figures we trust | None; page was inconsistent | Help page figures, possibly dated | $12 and $40 per month billed yearly |
See how to read an AI tool’s pricing page for how to compare usage models.
Privacy and data
Elicit lists “no training on your data by default” under Enterprise, but we did not find a statement for individual plans on a page we could read. For Consensus and Scite we did not find an explicit statement on training. If you upload unpublished manuscripts or client material, ask each vendor in writing, and review how to protect company data when using AI tools.
Accuracy and checking
Our guide to AI hallucinations explains why a fluent summary can still be wrong. We did not test accuracy, and the vendors’ own claims should not be treated as measurements. Some third-party reviews run their own tests with small samples, so read their method before relying on their numbers. For every key claim, open the cited paper, check the passage, and confirm the effect size or sample.
Who each suits, based on documentation
- Elicit may suit researchers who want table-based extraction and a systematic review workflow, if they can plan around a usage pool.
- Consensus may suit people who want quick answers from papers on a budget, if they confirm current plan names and limits.
- Scite may suit people checking whether a paper has been supported or challenged, if a paid plan or trial fits.
- Look elsewhere if you need a guaranteed no-training default on an individual plan; none was documented in what we read.
How to run your own test
Follow how to test an AI tool before you pay for it. Choose three questions from your own field: one broad, one narrow, one where you already know the literature. Run each through all three tools. For each answer, check that cited papers exist, that the passage says what is claimed, and that important studies are not missing. Record how much usage each query consumed.
Decision checklist
- Is my job finding, extracting, synthesising or citation checking?
- Does the tool cover my field and full texts?
- Can I export to my reference manager?
- Have I read the current plan limits on the vendor page?
- Did I verify five answers against source papers?
Strengths, limits and cautions
Documented strengths
Elicit’s free plan includes unlimited search and chat with papers, and its higher plans document table extraction and screening limits. Scite’s Smart Citations address a specific problem: knowing whether later work supports or disputes a finding. Consensus lists a free plan with unlimited searches across its corpus.
Limits and cautions
Elicit’s agent features share a monthly usage pool that does not roll over. Scite’s plans limit collection size and MCP credits, and its free credits were removed in October 2026. Consensus plan details we found may be out of date. All three depend on the coverage of their sources, and full-text coverage varies by publisher, so absence of a paper in results does not mean it does not exist.
Who should be careful
Students and researchers submitting work should check any rules on AI use, and cite the original papers, not the tool.
Frequently asked questions
Which is best for a systematic review?
We do not rank them. Elicit documents a systematic review workflow on higher plans; check its current screening limits and confirm any claims against your protocol.
Is Scite free?
Scite’s pricing page lists 7-day trials on Basic and Pro. Its August 2026 release notes mention a free tier for MCP credits, which an October 2026 update says was removed.
Do these tools replace reading papers?
No. They help you find and organise literature, but you should open and read the sources behind any claim.
Why are prices missing for Elicit?
Its pricing page showed two inconsistent price sets when we read it, so we describe plans without prices.
How big is each database?
Each vendor claims a different corpus figure measured in different ways, so the numbers are not directly comparable.
Conclusion
Pick the tool that matches your research job, then test it on questions you already understand. Confirm plan names and limits on the vendor pages, and keep checking sources yourself. For general selection advice see how to choose an AI tool.
Sources
- Elicit pricing page, accessed 11 November 2026
- Elicit support, usage limits, accessed 11 November 2026
- Elicit blog, 30 June 2026, accessed 11 November 2026
- Consensus help, subscription plans, accessed 11 November 2026
- Scite homepage, accessed 11 November 2026
- Scite pricing page, accessed 11 November 2026
- Scite August 2026 release notes, accessed 11 November 2026
