Elicit vs Consensus
Elicit and Consensus are both AI Search & Research tools. Below: what each costs, what it does well, its biggest catches, and who should pick which, all from public sources rather than our own testing.
Side by side
| Elicit | Consensus | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | AI Research & Science · Research Assistant | AI Research & Science · Academic Search |
| Pricing | Free tier: yes. Plus $11/user/mo (annual), Pro $39/user/mo (annual). (checked Oct 10, 2026) | Free tier: yes. Pro $20/mo or $144/yr. Deep $65/mo or $540/yr. (checked Oct 10, 2026) |
| Pros |
|
|
| Catches |
|
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| Best for | Researchers doing preliminary literature scans. | Students and researchers checking what the evidence says. |
| Skip it if | You need exhaustive, systematic-review-grade search. | You need non-academic sources. |
Which should you pick?
Pick Elicit if…
you fit this: researchers doing preliminary literature scans.
But not if: you need exhaustive, systematic-review-grade search.
Watch out for: One published study found search sensitivity of ~33–40% vs traditional searching.
Pick Consensus if…
you fit this: students and researchers checking what the evidence says.
But not if: you need non-academic sources.
Watch out for: Free gets just 10 Pro messages and 3 Deep reviews.
More options
Sources
Elicit
- https://elicit.com/pricing
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/cesm.70050
- https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/research-synthesis-methods/article/using-elicit-ai-research-assistant-for-data-extraction-in-systematic-reviews-a-feasibility-study-across-environmental-and-life-sciences/C97DAEC70C3173A260F0B12E729E7250
Consensus
Pros, catches and prices are compiled from public sources (official pricing and docs pages, published reviews, user reports), not hands-on testing. Prices change often, so check the vendor page before you buy.