Side-by-side comparison · Research & Search
ChatGPT Deep Research vs Elicit vs Kagi
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
Pick it if: ChatGPT users who want a proper write-up on a question and are happy to wait a few minutes for it.
Pick it if: Researchers, students and analysts who need to review a lot of papers carefully.
Pick it if: People who search all day for work and are tired of ads and spammy results.
Overview
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | ChatGPT's research mode, which browses for you and writes up a cited report. | Finds, screens and summarises research papers into a comparison table. | A paid search engine with no ads or tracking, plus an AI assistant that cites sources. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Paid |
| Starting price | $8/mo | $49/user/mo | $5/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | No |
| Works with Claude Code | No | No | Yes |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.3Winner |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.0 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.5 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 3.0 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | No |
| Mobile app | Yes | No | Yes |
| Desktop app | Yes | No | No |
| Browser extension | Yes | No | Yes |
| API access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | Yes | No |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | Yes | – | Yes |
| Makes images | Yes | No | No |
| Makes video | Yes | No | No |
| Writes code | Yes | No | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | No |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | No | – |
| Works in many languages | Yes | – | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 16/ 17 | 7/ 17 | 9/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Seeing what a report looks like. | Basic Free Searching and reading a few papers. | Trial Free Seeing the difference. |
Go $8/mo Casual users who want more chat, not more research. | ProOur pick $49/user/mo billed yearly Anyone doing a real literature review. | Starter $5/mo Light searchers. | |
PlusOur pick $20/mo Anyone who wants deep research weekly. | Scale $169/user/mo billed yearly Teams running many reviews at once. | ProfessionalOur pick $10/mo Anyone who searches every day. | |
Pro From $100/mo Heavy users who run research daily. | Enterprise Custom Universities, pharma and large research groups. | Ultimate $25/mo Heavy AI users. | |
Duo and Family Duo $14/mo, Family $20/mo Couples and households. | |||
| Which plan to pick | If you have Plus already, you are set; its deep research allowance covers most people. Do not buy ChatGPT just for research unless you also want the rest of it, because Perplexity Pro costs less and is faster. Pro is only worth it if you run reports every day. | Stay on Basic unless you have a review to run. When you do, Pro has everything one person needs, and the yearly commitment is the only way to get the quoted price. Scale is for teams, not for a solo researcher who wants more headroom. | Use the free trial for a week, then take Professional. 300 searches on Starter goes in a couple of weeks for most people. Only pay for Ultimate if you'd otherwise pay for an AI chat subscription, since it bundles the top models. Yearly billing saves 10%. |
Key features
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standout features |
|
|
|
Pros and cons
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pros |
|
|
|
| Cons |
|
|
|
Who each one is for
| Attribute | ChatGPT Deep Research | Elicit | Kagi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for |
|
|
|
| You'll find it used by |
|
|
|
Questions people ask
Which is better, ChatGPT Deep Research, Elicit or Kagi?
Kagi scores highest overall in our ratings (ChatGPT Deep Research 3.8/5, Elicit 3.8/5 and Kagi 4.3/5). ChatGPT Deep Research is best for market and industry scans and comparing products or suppliers. Elicit is best for literature reviews and extracting data from papers. Kagi is best for everyday search without ads or tracking and research where you want trustworthy sources.
Which is cheaper, ChatGPT Deep Research, Elicit or Kagi?
ChatGPT Deep Research: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $8/mo. Elicit: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $49/user/mo. Kagi: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $5/mo.
Which is easier to use, ChatGPT Deep Research, Elicit or Kagi?
Kagi rates highest for ease of use in our scores. People who search all day for work and are tired of ads and spammy results.
How we compare
Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.
Swap in another tool
More tools from Research & Search in the library.
