Quirkos

Quirkos is qualitative analysis software for exploring and understanding text data. It imports Word documents, plain text, PDFs, Excel spreadsheets, and text pasted from websites or other programs. As users work, it visualizes codes and supports code groups, hierarchies, color coding, overlap views, and word clouds. Query View can search text, filter by data criteria, and compare data groups side by side. Quirkos Cloud supports live synchronization, editing, and chat, with unlimited collaborators and collaborations at no extra fee. Projects can be exported to Excel for analysis in SPSS or R, or in REFI-QDA format for other qualitative programs. Quirkos Transcribe converts audio and video into transcripts, accepts files up to 2 GB, and includes 100 free minutes for Cloud users. Transcribe runs in the web browser app; its five best-supported selectable languages are English, Italian, German, Spanish, and Portuguese. Cloud subscriptions start at $5 a month for students, billed annually. Offline lifetime licences cost $69, paid once for one computer or $110, paid once for two computers.

Quirkos offers visual coding, query tools, collaboration, and export options for qualitative analysis. Choose between cloud subscriptions and offline licences based on whether you need synchronized collaboration or local projects.

It suits researchers across disciplines working with qualitative text data. Cloud collaboration and exports may also fit teams that share analysis or move project data into other qualitative programs.

Overview

Quirkos is qualitative analysis software for researchers working with documents, spreadsheets and other text. It suits people who want to make coding structures visible and compare groups of material, with cloud collaboration or a separate offline licence. Its focused analysis tools are useful, but the paid-only model and lack of automated text-analysis features make it a narrower choice than a general text analytics platform.

Key features

Quirkos imports Word documents, plain text, PDFs and Excel spreadsheets, as well as text pasted from websites or other programs. Codes take visual form as users work and can be grouped, arranged in hierarchies and color-coded; overlap views and word clouds provide further ways to examine the material. This emphasis makes a complex coding scheme easier to inspect, though researchers looking for automated sentiment, entity, intent or topic analysis will need another tool.

Query View combines text search with data-criteria filters and side-by-side comparisons of data groups. It is a better fit for examining how material differs across groups than for a workflow centered only on finding passages. Excel exports support follow-up work in SPSS or R, while REFI-QDA export makes it possible to move project data into other qualitative programs.

Cloud adds live synchronization, editing, chat and sharing, with no extra fee for unlimited collaborators or collaborations. That is useful for teams that need shared projects without a per-collaborator charge. Offline projects avoid sending project or usage data, while Cloud stores account and project data on Quirkos servers, using regional hosting where possible.

Quirkos Transcribe converts audio and video into transcripts and accepts files up to 2 GB. Cloud users receive 100 free transcription minutes; the separate Transcribe plan raises the monthly allowance to 50 hours and requires Quirkos Cloud. Transcription runs in the Web app, and its five best-supported selectable languages are English, Italian, German, Spanish and Portuguese. Quirkos says audio is encrypted before upload and transcription data is not shared with third parties, processed by them or made accessible to staff.

Pricing

Quirkos has no free plan, but offers a 14-day trial. Cloud plans include unlimited storage and live collaboration and project sharing. Quirkos Cloud — Student costs $5 a month (billed paid annually), and Quirkos Cloud — Academic and Nonprofit costs $13 a month (billed paid annually); both include 100 free transcription minutes. These annual options suit students and academic or nonprofit teams, respectively, but require an annual commitment.

Quirkos Cloud — Public Sector is $17 a month (billed paid annually), and Quirkos Cloud — Commercial is $23 a month (billed paid annually); each includes the same cloud features and 100 free transcription minutes. Quirkos Cloud costs $8 a month (billed paid quarterly) and includes access to Quirkos Web and Quirkos 2 alongside storage and collaboration. The quarterly term may suit buyers who do not want an annual billing commitment, while the annual sector plans specify a customer category.

Quirkos Transcribe costs $15 a month (billed paid quarterly) for up to 50 hours of audio per month, but requires Quirkos Cloud. For local work, the Offline Licence — 1 computer is $69, paid once (billed lifetime), and the Offline Licence — 2 computers is $110, paid once (billed lifetime). Both cover Quirkos 3 and local offline projects without registration or internet access. These are the clearest fit for people prioritizing local work over cloud synchronization.

Platforms

Quirkos supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Web and Windows. Its hybrid deployment options accommodate both cloud and offline projects, though Transcribe specifically runs in the Web browser app.

Who it's for

Quirkos is best suited to researchers who need a visual way to organize qualitative coding, compare data groups and share projects. Its unlimited cloud collaboration and exports to Excel and REFI-QDA support team and handoff workflows. It is less suitable for buyers who need a free plan or automated sentiment, entity, intent or topic analysis. Quirkos was founded in 2013 and launched in October 2014; it is based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and serves researchers across disciplines. Email and phone support comes from a team with experience in technical support and qualitative analysis.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Visual coding, hierarchies, overlap views and word clouds keep qualitative analysis structures inspectable.
• Pros: Cloud supports live collaboration with unlimited collaborators and projects at no extra fee.
• Pros: Lifetime offline licences enable local projects without registration or internet access.
• Cons: There is no free plan, so ongoing use requires a paid subscription or licence after the 14-day trial.
• Cons: Automated sentiment, entity, intent and topic analysis are not included.
• Cons: Transcription is browser-based and has a limited set of five best-supported selectable languages.

Alternatives

Text Analytics Software is a useful place to compare tools across the broader category. Choose webQDA instead if you want a browser- and mobile-platform option with time-limited individual licences. MAXQDA is another paid alternative, with macOS and Windows support and a limited free AI Assist add-on. Pick spaCy if a free, self-hosted tool for Linux, macOS or Windows better fits your needs. Transana offers a paid alternative for macOS and Windows, with a demo and trial. Dovetail may suit readers who want a freemium web and API option with a free tier limited to one channel and one project. KH Coder provides a free starting edition with limited analysis data and features. CATMA is a free option across web, desktop and self-hosted platforms, though it is not designed for massive quantitative or statistical text analysis. QualCoder is another free option for Linux, macOS and Windows, with optional AI features that may require a separate provider account or paid usage.

Verdict

Choose Quirkos if your work depends on visual qualitative coding, group comparisons and collaboration without per-collaborator fees, or if you need a lifetime offline licence. Look elsewhere if a free plan or automated text analytics is essential; those are meaningful gaps for buyers whose needs extend beyond structured qualitative analysis.