Bango review
A free, open-source desktop workspace for AI-assisted systematic reviews.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Bango is free, open-source desktop software for researchers conducting systematic literature reviews. It imports RIS and BibTeX records, identifies duplicate references, supports user-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria, and stores research data locally on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Its scope extends from initial reference management through full-text review, structured article comparison, bibliometric analysis, citation networks, PRISMA 2020 flow diagrams, and a local wiki knowledge base with AI summaries.
The main strength is breadth within a local workflow. Bango combines automatic and manual deduplication with full-text PDF and text-file attachment and extraction, study-variable comparison, and PRISMA reporting. It also connects with Zotero, OpenAlex, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science for research discovery and reference workflows. For AI assistance, the published integrations include Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, OpenAI, Ollama, and LM Studio, giving researchers options across hosted and local providers. The Free plan is open source under Apache 2.0 and has no subscription, paywall, or account requirement.
Bango is a strong fit for individual researchers or teams that prioritize local control, broad review functionality, and flexible AI-provider choices without a software subscription. Its desktop orientation is less suitable for buyers seeking a browser-based collaboration environment, and AI-assisted screening still depends on clearly defined criteria and configuration with a supported provider. Researchers who require a verified blinded-screening workflow or a hosted team workspace should choose a product explicitly built around those needs instead.
Bango pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Free, open-source use with no subscription, paywall, or account
- Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux with local data storage
- Combines screening, deduplication, PDFs, PRISMA, and bibliometrics
- Where it doesn't
- Its workflow centers on local desktop use rather than a hosted team workspace
- AI screening requires researcher-defined criteria and provider configuration
- Blinded screening is not established in the published feature set
Bango fact sheet, pricing and score →
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