Elicit
AI research assistant. Search and summarize academic papers.
About Elicit
Elicit is an AI-powered research assistant built by Ought (now Elicit Inc.) that helps researchers, students, and academics find, summarize, and analyze scientific literature. Unlike traditional search engines that return keyword-matched results, Elicit uses large language models to understand your research question and surface the most relevant papers from its database of over 200 million academic publications. It can extract key findings, methodologies, and sample sizes directly from papers, presenting them in organized tables for easy comparison. Elicit is particularly valuable for literature reviews, systematic reviews, and evidence-based research where you need to quickly understand what multiple studies say about a specific question.
Key Features
- ✓Semantic Paper Search: — Ask research questions in natural language and get relevant papers ranked by relevance, not just keywords.
- ✓Automated Summarization: — Extract key findings, limitations, and methodology details from papers without reading them in full.
- ✓Research Table Builder: — Compare multiple papers side-by-side in structured tables showing sample size, methodology, and outcomes.
- ✓Citation Management: — Track sources, export citations, and maintain organized research libraries.
- ✓Concept Exploration: — Discover related concepts and papers you might not have found through traditional keyword searches.
- ✓PDF Upload & Analysis: — Upload your own PDFs and ask questions about their content using AI.
- ✓Collaborative Workspaces: — Share research findings and tables with team members for collaborative projects.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Free | See official pricing | |
| Plus | See official pricing | |
| Pro | See official pricing |
Some pricing plans have not been verified against official sources recently. Confirm on the official pricing page before purchasing.
Pros & Cons
✅ Pros
- ✅ +Vast database of 200M+ academic papers
- ✅ +Natural language queries make research intuitive
- ✅ +Excellent for literature reviews and meta-analyses
- ✅ +Free tier is genuinely useful for students
⚠️ Cons
- ⚠️ +Vast database of 200M+ academic papers
- ⚠️ +Natural language queries make research intuitive
- ⚠️ +Excellent for literature reviews and meta-analyses
- ⚠️ +Free tier is genuinely useful for students
- ⚠️ −Can hallucinate or misinterpret complex findings
- ⚠️ −Limited coverage of non-English publications
- ⚠️ −Pro features may be costly for individual researchers
Use Cases
Academic Literature Review
A graduate student uses Elicit to find and summarize 30 relevant papers for their thesis, comparing methodologies and findings in organized tables instead of spending weeks manually searching.
Evidence-Based Decision Making
A policy analyst asks Elicit about the effectiveness of specific interventions, getting structured summaries of relevant studies with effect sizes and sample sizes for informed recommendations.
Research Gap Identification
A researcher explores a topic area and identifies contradictions or gaps in existing literature, helping them position their next study effectively.
Alternatives
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Elicit free to use?
Yes, Elicit offers a free tier with unlimited search and up to 5 research tables. The Plus plan at $10/month unlocks unlimited tables, full PDF analysis, and export features.
How accurate is Elicit's paper summarization?
Elicit is generally accurate for straightforward findings but can occasionally misinterpret nuanced or complex arguments. Always verify key claims by reading the original paper, especially for critical research decisions.
Does Elicit work with non-English papers?
Elicit primarily indexes English-language publications. While it can find some non-English papers, coverage and summarization quality are significantly better for English-language literature.