- Home
- Text Analysis Software
- Voyant Tools
Voyant Tools
What it is
Voyant Tools is a free, open-source environment for reading and analyzing digital texts. Users can build a corpus by pasting text, entering URLs, opening an existing corpus, or uploading files. It extracts text from formats such as HTML, Word, Excel, ODT, Pages, PDF, plain text, RTF, and XML. The default workspace brings together Cirrus, Reader, Trends, Summary, and Contexts, with additional tools for examining terms, collocates, phrases, and other features of a corpus. Users can bookmark and share corpus URLs; a corpus generally stays accessible when opened at least once a month. Voyant can also be embedded in remote sites using an iframe. For local or offline work, VoyantServer runs without an internet connection and does not cache work on Voyant’s server; it requires Java 11 and has setup instructions for Mac, Windows, and Linux. The hosted service logs tool activity, parameters, and IP addresses, uses Google Analytics, and stores submitted texts for persistent access. It handles Unicode text in almost any language, but offers little language-specific functionality for semantic analysis.
For and against
For
- Accepts pasted text, URLs, existing corpora, and uploaded files.
- Extracts text from common document and web formats.
- Includes tools for trends, context, terms, and phrases.
- Local server supports offline analysis.
- Open source under GPL3.
Against
- Local server requires Java 11.
- Hosted service logs activity and stores submitted texts.
- Limited language-specific functionality for semantic analysis.
The verdict
Voyant Tools combines corpus building with a range of text analysis tools in a free, open-source package. Consider its hosted-service logging and limited language-specific semantic features when choosing how to use it.
Who it suits
Voyant Tools suits digital humanities students and scholars, as well as members of the general public who want to explore digital texts. Its local server is an option for people who need offline analysis.
Plans and prices
Voyant Tools
Open-source text analysis environment · hosted web app and downloadable local server
Read 5 Oct 2026 · voyant-tools.org
On the record
- Analysis tools
- The default workspace includes Cirrus, Reader, Trends, Summary, and Contexts, with additional tools for terms, collocates, phrases, and other analyses.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Corpus input
- Users can create a corpus by pasting text, entering URLs, opening an existing corpus, or uploading files.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Embedding
- Voyant can be embedded in remote sites using an iframe, including a corpus and selected tool or the contents of a page.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- File formats
- Voyant can extract text from formats including HTML, Word, Excel, ODT, Pages, PDF, plain text, RTF, and XML.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Language limitation
- Voyant can work with Unicode text in almost any language, but has little language-specific functionality for tasks such as semantic analysis.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- License
- Voyant Tools is open source under GPL3, and the web application content and documentation use a Creative Commons Attribution license.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Local requirements
- VoyantServer requires Java 11 and provides setup instructions for Mac, Windows, and Linux.beta.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Local use
- VoyantServer runs locally without an internet connection, does not cache work on Voyant’s server, and supports offline analysis.beta.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Privacy
- The hosted service logs invoked tools and parameters, logs IP addresses to identify requests in a session, uses Google Analytics, and stores submitted texts to provide persistent access.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Voyant Tools is a web-based environment for reading and analyzing digital texts, designed for digital humanities students and scholars as well as the general public.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Scale limitation
- Voyant is designed for corpora of dozens of megabytes and beyond, but the documentation says its practical size limit is undefined and balances indexing against retrieval speed.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Sharing
- Users can bookmark and share corpus URLs, and a corpus generally remains accessible if it is accessed at least once a month.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Support
- The project directs users to its GitHub issue tracker to report bugs and request features.voyant-tools.org · read 5 Oct 2026
