Elicit vs Perplexity

Updated November 2026 · AppBreakup editorial

Elicit

AI research assistant that finds papers, summarises them and extracts data for reviews.

Free plan + paid

Visit Elicit Elicit profile

Perplexity

AI answer engine that searches the web in real time and replies with cited, conversational answers.

Free plan + paid

Visit Perplexity Perplexity profile

The short answer

Elicit is built for literature reviews: it searches an index of 138 million+ academic papers and extracts data into tables. Perplexity is a general answer engine that searches the open web and returns cited summaries. Pick Elicit for systematic, paper-by-paper evidence work; pick Perplexity for fast, sourced answers to everyday and broad research questions.

Elicit or Perplexity: our take

Both tools answer questions with sources, but they look in different places and produce different outputs. Elicit searches academic literature, ranks relevant papers, summarises findings and lets you chat with full texts. Its core output is a table where AI fills in columns such as sample size, method or outcome for each paper, which speeds up screening and data extraction. Perplexity searches the web in real time and writes a conversational answer with numbered citations and suggested follow-ups; it can also analyse uploaded files and run longer multi-step research reports.

That shapes who each suits. Elicit's higher tiers add a guided systematic review workflow that screens thousands of papers, clinical trial search, Zotero import and exports to RIS, BIB and other reference formats, which matters to researchers, students and pharma or medtech teams. Perplexity is for anyone who wants a sourced summary instead of a list of links, though it is weak for navigational, shopping and local searches. In both cases the AI can misread sources, so extracted values and summaries need checking against the originals.

Both are freemium. Elicit's free Basic plan includes unlimited search and summaries with limited reports, and paid plans start at $11 per user/month, billed annually; Enterprise adds SSO. Perplexity's free tier covers everyday questions, while Pro and higher plans unlock advanced searches and a choice of models from OpenAI, Anthropic and others. Perplexity Enterprise adds connectors to internal files and SOC 2 Type II security. Elicit runs only in the browser; Perplexity has web, desktop and mobile apps.

For a structured review of published research, Elicit is the better fit. For general research, explainers and current events, Perplexity is quicker and broader.

Choose Elicit if…

Researchers and evidence-review teams who want AI help screening and extracting data from papers
Table view with AI-filled columns speeds up data extraction
Guided systematic review workflow on higher tiers

Choose Perplexity if…

Researching questions where you want a sourced summary instead of a list of links
You need Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, which Elicit doesn't list
Answers cite their sources inline
Real-time web search with follow-up questions

What is Elicit?

Elicit is an AI research assistant aimed at literature reviews. You ask a research question and it searches a large index of academic papers, ranks the relevant ones, summarises their findings and lets you chat with the full text. Results land in a table where you can add columns that the AI fills in for each paper, such as sample size, method or outcome, which speeds up screening and data extraction. Higher tiers add research reports, a guided systematic review workflow that screens thousands of papers, custom extractions from uploaded PDFs, clinical trial search, exports to reference formats, and team collaboration. There is a free Basic plan with unlimited search and summaries but limited reports; paid plans are per user with annual discounts, and Enterprise adds SSO and custom data sources. It runs in the browser. Elicit suits researchers, students and pharma or medtech teams doing evidence reviews.

What is Perplexity?

Perplexity replaces the page of blue links with a written answer. You ask a question, it searches the web in real time, reads the sources and returns a summary with numbered citations you can check, plus suggested follow-up questions. It can search focused sources, analyse uploaded files and images, and run longer multi-step research reports. The free tier covers everyday questions; Pro and higher plans unlock more advanced searches and a choice of frontier models from OpenAI, Anthropic and others. Perplexity Enterprise adds team features, connectors to internal files and SOC 2 Type II security. It works on the web, desktop apps, iOS and Android, and the company also makes the Comet browser. It is fast for research and explanation but less suited to navigational searches, shopping or local results, and AI summaries can still misread sources, so the citations matter.

Side by side

Attribute	Elicit	Perplexity
Pricing	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Open source	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No
Platforms	Web	Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android
Best for	Researchers and evidence-review teams who want AI help screening and extracting data from papers	Researching questions where you want a sourced summary instead of a list of links
Status	Active	Active

Verified facts, compared

Facts both apps publish, checked on each vendor's own site.

Fact	Elicit	Perplexity
Free plan	Yes (Basic)	Yes (Standard)