LitFlow vs Rayyan

LitFlow is an AI-augmented workspace for systematic literature reviews, covering search, screening, extraction, synthesis, and reporting. Search includes database queries, snowballing, and AI-generated synonyms. For each record, AI proposes per-criterion verdicts with confidence scores, explanations, and links to source passages, while researchers make the decisions. Custom extraction schemas can receive LLM pre-fill with source links, and a qualitative coding board supports thematic structure. Reports include PRISMA information, Cohen’s κ, and an audit trail in a publication-ready methods report. AI suggestions and human decisions are logged with timestamps, actors, and rationales. Users can bring keys for Gemini, Claude, OpenAI, or Mistral, or use open-source models hosted by the University of Münster. The closed alpha runs on University of Münster infrastructure in the EU under GDPR, with pseudonymised personal data in research outputs. Operated by the university’s LitFlow research project in Münster, it is free for academic use, requires maintainer approval, and has no commercial tier listed.

Rayyan is a platform for teams carrying out systematic evidence reviews, with workflows intended to be transparent, auditable, and reproducible. Its process spans 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 criteria set by the user and gives decisions with reasoning notes. The Analyzer suggests inclusion or exclusion with justification, while the researcher retains final decision-making. ResearchPilot can also extract answers to custom questions from PDFs and metadata, highlight relevant passages, and let users inspect the answers. References are imported from exported files rather than a direct database connection. The API offers programmatic access to reviews, references, decisions, and metadata, plus workflow automation and external integrations. Rayyan is available on Android, iOS, web, and through an API. The Free plan allows three active reviews and two free reviewers; paid options start at $8.33 a month per seat, billed annually. Free mobile access is limited; Essential and higher provide unlimited mobile access.