Consensus answers research questions from the peer-reviewed literature. It searches 250M+ papers, gives cited AI analysis, builds comparison tables and runs Deep reviews of many studies. ORBIT works later, on your finished draft: it checks the paper against one journal's guidelines and against citation registries, formats it to a template, and suggests journals with their fees.
Consensus facts checked on 7 October 2026 on its own site. This compares what each tool does, not how accurately. We haven't run the same papers through both.
| What it does | ORBIT | Consensus |
|---|---|---|
| Find and read papers | Yes. Literature Discovery searches about 250M papers and shows which are legally free to read. No chat with PDFs. | Yes. Searches and analyses 250M+ research papers, including licensed full text, with Deep reviews of many studies. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Find datasets | Yes. Dataset Discovery searches about 73M datasets, each with its reuse licence. Free. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Writes or rewrites your text | No. No, by design. Cover letters and speaker notes are drafted for you; your manuscript is never written or rewritten. | Not stated. It writes cited answers to your questions; drafting your manuscript is not stated. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Grammar and language edits | No. No grammar or language editing. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Checks the paper against journal requirements | Yes. Readiness Check runs 55+ checks against one journal's own guidelines: 11 journal profiles, or paste any journal's author-guidelines page. Runs in your browser. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Checks references (retractions, DOIs, missing entries) | Yes. Reference Check resolves every entry against Crossref, OpenAlex and DataCite: retractions, entries that don't resolve, metadata that disagrees, citations with no entry. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Plagiarism or AI-writing detection | No. No plagiarism or AI-writing detection. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Formats the manuscript to a journal template | Yes. Format Paper applies one of 21 templates, or your own .docx template, to your .docx. The file is edited, not rebuilt. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Suggests journals, with the fee to publish | Yes. Journal Suggestion matches your abstract against about 98,000 journals, with the fee to publish and whether each still publishes. Free. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Drafts cover letters | Yes. Submission Letters drafts cover, resubmission and transfer letters, leaving marked blanks instead of inventing names or funders. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Charts from your data | Yes. Figure Builder turns your table (CSV, TSV or XLSX) into a publication chart, in the styles your data can support (45 in all). SVG, PNG or vector PDF. | Not stated. It builds comparison tables from studies; charts are not stated. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Diagrams from text (flowcharts, PRISMA, CONSORT) | Yes. Figure Builder draws 15 diagram types from your text, including PRISMA 2020 and CONSORT 2025 flow diagrams on the official templates, editable in place. No number appears unless your text states it. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Turns the paper into slides | Yes. Paper to Slides turns a .docx into a deck, in your words or with drafted speaker notes. | Not stated. Not stated on the pages we read. (source: https://consensus.app/) |
| Price | 5 free credits every month, no subscription. Checking one paper against one journal and formatting it is 3 credits, so it fits inside the free credits. Beyond them you pay per task: ₹1,000 a credit, ₹3,000 for that check and format. | Free plan with basic search. Pro $12 a month billed yearly ($20 monthly). Deep $45 a month billed yearly ($65 monthly). Up to 40% off for students and faculty. Shown in USD in India. (source: https://consensus.app/pricing/) |
| Where your manuscript goes | Readiness Check and Figure Builder run in your browser, so the file is never uploaded. Format Paper works on the file in memory and keeps no copy. | Documents you upload are processed by its AI providers and never used to train models. You can clear your history or delete your account in Settings. (source: https://consensus.app/home/privacy-policy/) |
"Not stated" means Consensus's own pages, read on 7 October 2026, don't say. Consensus pricing
Not for finding evidence. Consensus answers research questions from the literature; ORBIT works on the paper you've written. Both have paper search, so there is some overlap at the start.
Consensus reads the papers and writes a cited answer. ORBIT's Literature Discovery finds papers, shows which are legally free to read, and maps similar papers, but leaves the reading to you.
Consensus is a monthly or yearly plan with a free tier. ORBIT is pay per use, with 5 free credits a month, and you'd use it a few times per paper.
This compares what each tool does, not how accurately. We haven't run the same papers through both.
Names are trademarks of their owners. ORBIT isn't affiliated with any of them. Facts checked on 7 October 2026. Report something out of date.