Consensus vs Scite

Consensus4.0Visit Scite6.0Visit

Consensus #2 in AI Research Assistants 4.0/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit Consensus

vs

Higher score Scite #7 in AI Research Assistants 6.0/10 Free plan · paid from $20/mo (annual) · 7-day trial Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit Scite

• Consensus fits best

  Researchers needing broad scholarly search and analysis

• Scite fits best

  Citation context and evidence reliability checking

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. We may earn a commission when you click some links. It never changes our verdict. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature	Consensus 4.0/10 Visit ↗	Scite 6.0/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	4.0	6.0
Ranking	#2 in AI Research Assistants	#7 in AI Research Assistants
Best for	Researchers needing broad scholarly search and analysis	Citation context and evidence reliability checking
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Not published	Not published
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Mobile	Cloud, Browser extension
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web, Chrome extension
Support	Email, Live chat, Docs	Email, Docs
Integrations	6 integrations	7 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Consensus 0/4 · Scite 0/4
Source citations	Not published	Not published
Deep research mode	Not published	Not published
File uploads	Not published	Not published
Team workspace	Not published	Not published
Specs
Source access	Not published	Not published
Source limit	Not published	Not published
Our review
Pros	Broad search across papers, authors, DOIs, topics, and study details Deep reviews, Study Snapshots, citation graphs, and inline citations Web, iOS, Android, API, Zotero, ChatGPT, Claude, and MCP support	Smart Citations classify sources as supporting, contrasting, or mentioning. Reference Check, citation reports, alerts, and dashboards support evidence review. Works across web, Chrome, API, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Copilot.
Cons	The Free plan limits Pro messages, Deep reviews, snapshots, and API/MCP calls Full-text analysis depends on paper availability Enterprise access uses custom pricing and targets organizations over 200 users	Basic starts at $20 per month when billed annually. The Free plan excludes Assistant and Search access. Mobile apps are not available.
Our verdict	Consensus is an AI search engine and workspace for scientific research. It is designed for researchers, clinicians, students, and research teams that need to find academic papers, synthesize findings, and connect claims with supporting… Read the review →	Scite is an AI-powered research platform for students, academics, researchers, and research-intensive organizations. It searches full-text scholarly literature and provides an AI Assistant grounded in peer-reviewed research. Its central… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Consensus — where it wins

  • Broad search across papers, authors, DOIs, topics, and study details
  • Deep reviews, Study Snapshots, citation graphs, and inline citations
  • Web, iOS, Android, API, Zotero, ChatGPT, Claude, and MCP support

  Where it doesn't

  • The Free plan limits Pro messages, Deep reviews, snapshots, and API/MCP calls
  • Full-text analysis depends on paper availability
  • Enterprise access uses custom pricing and targets organizations over 200 users

• Scite — where it wins

  • Smart Citations classify sources as supporting, contrasting, or mentioning.
  • Reference Check, citation reports, alerts, and dashboards support evidence review.
  • Works across web, Chrome, API, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Copilot.

  Where it doesn't

  • Basic starts at $20 per month when billed annually.
  • The Free plan excludes Assistant and Search access.
  • Mobile apps are not available.

• Consensus4.0/10 · Free plan

  A broad scholarly search workspace with deep analysis, citations, and research integrations.

  Visit ConsensusFull verdict →
• Scite6.0/10 · Free plan · paid from $20/mo (annual) · 7-day trial

  A strong choice for checking citation context, evidence, and research claims.

  Visit SciteFull verdict →