Rayyan

Rayyan is a systematic review platform for teams conducting evidence reviews. Its workflow covers reference import, collaboration, deduplication, title and abstract screening, full-text screening, data extraction, risk-of-bias assessment, and reporting. ResearchPilot AI Reviewer screens articles against user-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria and provides decisions with reasoning notes. AI Analyzer recommends include or exclude decisions with justifications based on review criteria, while leaving final decisions to researchers. ResearchPilot can also extract answers to custom questions from PDFs and metadata, highlight relevant text, and let users review the results. Rayyan accepts exported files from databases and reference managers, but does not connect directly to databases. Its API provides access to reviews, references, decisions, and metadata, along with workflow automation and external integrations. The Free plan is listed as free, billed Free forever, and includes three active reviews and two free reviewers. Essential is $4.99 a month per seat when billed annually; Advanced is $8.33 a month per seat when billed annually. Mobile app access is limited on Free and unlimited on Essential and higher. Rayyan is available on Android, iOS, and the web.

Rayyan covers key stages of systematic review work, with AI recommendations that leave final decisions to researchers. The Free plan has defined review and mobile limits, while paid plans expand access and capabilities.

Rayyan suits research teams conducting systematic evidence reviews, including pharma, medical-device, CRO, university, healthcare, government, and health technology assessment organizations.

Rayyan is a systematic-review workspace for research groups that need to manage evidence across a shared process. It suits teams that want AI support without delegating final decisions, though file-based importing and plan limits shape how it fits into a review.

Overview

The workflow spans reference import, collaboration, deduplication, title-and-abstract and full-text screening, data extraction, risk-of-bias assessment, and reporting. Keeping these stages in one platform can help teams maintain a consistent, auditable review process; it is more than a citation manager, but may be broader than needed for researchers who only want to organize papers.

Rayyan accepts reference files exported from external databases and reference managers, but does not connect directly to databases. Teams need to account for that export-and-import step. Its Systematic Auto-Resolver can deduplicate up to 200,000 references using the user's protocol, making the platform relevant to large collections as well as smaller reviews.

Key features

ResearchPilot AI Reviewer screens articles against user-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria and provides decisions with reasoning notes. AI Analyzer recommends include-or-exclude decisions with justifications based on the review criteria, while researchers retain the final say. This division is useful for teams seeking screening assistance without surrendering decision authority.

ResearchPilot can also extract answers to custom questions from PDFs and metadata, highlight relevant text, and let users review the extracted answers. That combination supports verification rather than treating extraction as an unquestioned result. The workflow also includes risk-of-bias assessment and reporting, while the API provides programmatic access to reviews, references, decisions, and metadata, plus an official Python SDK for automation and external integrations.

Mobile access supports work on the go or offline, but the Free plan restricts access; Essential and higher include unlimited mobile access. The API is reserved for Enterprise, so teams needing programmatic integration must account for that plan boundary.

Pricing

Rayyan uses a freemium model. The Free plan costs nothing, billed Free forever, and allows 3 active reviews, 2 free reviewers, 1 sample, and limited mobile app access. It is a practical entry point for a small workload, but those review and mobile caps can constrain ongoing team use.

Essential costs $4.99 a month per seat, billed annually. It includes 5 free reviewers, PRISMA flow diagrams, duplicate auto-resolution, and unlimited mobile app access. It is the lower-cost paid option for teams that need those workflow additions, though it does not include the Advanced plan's stated 9 active reviews, 10 free reviewers, unlimited samples, or AI PICO extraction.

Advanced costs $8.33 a month per seat, billed annually. It adds 9 active reviews, 10 free reviewers, unlimited samples, AI PICO extraction, and priority support. This is the better fit for users who need more concurrent review capacity and extraction capabilities; the per-seat annual billing matters for teams budgeting access across members.

Business / Academic costs $41.67 a month per license, billed annually, starting with 5 licenses. It includes 250 free reviewers, 50 organization-wide reviews, a team dashboard, workspace roles, and priority support. The five-license starting point makes it geared toward established teams rather than individuals or small groups.

Enterprise uses custom pricing, billed per license annually. It includes unlimited reviews and viewers, SSO / SAML, API access, a management console, and dedicated support. It is the plan for organizations that need those administrative and integration capabilities. Standard support applies to Free and Essential; Advanced and Business / Academic receive priority support.

Platforms

Rayyan is available on Android, iOS, and the web, with API access also listed. Its advertised offline-capable mobile app is more useful to paid users because Free access is limited. Enterprise adds API access for programmatic workflows.

Who it's for

Rayyan is suited to teams conducting systematic evidence reviews, particularly in pharma, medical devices, contract research, universities, healthcare, government, and health technology assessment. Groups that need shared review work, researcher-controlled AI recommendations, or large-scale deduplication have a clear reason to consider it. It is less compelling for teams that require direct database connections or for individuals whose needs stop at reference organization.

Pros and cons

• Pros: One workflow covers screening, extraction, risk-of-bias assessment, and reporting, reducing the need to split review stages across separate tools.
• Pros: AI recommendations include reasoning or justification, and final decisions remain with researchers.
• Pros: Deduplication supports up to 200,000 references, while export formats include RIS, BibTeX, EndNote, and CSV.
• Cons: Database references must be exported and imported; there is no direct database connection.
• Cons: Free limits active reviews, reviewers, samples, and mobile access, so sustained team use may require a paid plan.
• Cons: API access is confined to Enterprise, and Business / Academic requires a five-license starting purchase.

Alternatives

For a free, open-source option aimed at academic use with unlimited collaborators and no trials or subscriptions, consider EviSynth. Choose Elicit if its web and API availability and Basic plan's unlimited search across more than 138 million papers, summaries, and chat better match the research task, despite limited Research Agent and Research Reports usage.

RevMan is another freemium alternative, with a free plan and trial, across Linux, macOS, web, and Windows. For bibliometric work, Bibliometrix offers a free, open-source R package on CRAN and a Biblioshiny web interface.

Litmaps may suit readers who want literature mapping: its free plan includes basic search, up to 20 inputs, 100 articles, one Litmap, a monthly summary, and no collaboration. ResearchRabbit is a free-plan alternative for searches across 310+ million articles, collections, and up to 50 seed articles.

For a completely free web option with no seat limits or usage caps, consider Abstrackr. ASReview is free and open source, with no licensing fees or subscriptions, though running it on your own hardware or server may incur costs.

Browse Literature Review Software, Systematic Review Software, or AI Literature Review Software for more options.

Verdict

Rayyan is a strong choice for research teams that need a shared systematic-review workflow and want AI-assisted screening and extraction while keeping final judgment with researchers. Its breadth and large-scale deduplication are the main reasons to choose it; look elsewhere if direct database connections are essential, or if Free's caps and paid-plan terms do not fit the team's workload.