Side by side
PDF.chat vs PDFCite
Both stand on ai pdf assistants. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Choose PDF.chat if page-cited answers, scanned document OCR, or side-by-side AI model comparisons are useful to your document work. The free plan is a way to start without a credit card, while paid plans offer monthly page allowances or one-time packs. Look elsewhere if your workflow cannot send relevant passages to third-party AI providers on paid tiers.
Visit PDF.chatPDFCite brings document questions, citation tools and paper-network exploration into a browser extension. Its free plan covers citation and graph features, while AI access requires an account and has unspecified limits.
Visit PDFCiteThe facts
| PDF.chat | PDFCite | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Not published |
| Runs on | API, Web | Extension |
| Lowest paid plan | Starter: $48 a year | Free or on request |
| Plans published | 10 | 1 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | pdf.chat | pdfcite.com |
| On ai pdf assistants | #16 of 27 | #20 of 27 |
PDF.chat: what it does well
- Answers cite the relevant page and support over 100 languages.
- OCR reads scanned or photographed documents.
- Compare Claude, GPT, Gemini, Llama, and DeepSeek in one chat.
- Exports include DOCX, searchable PDF, CSV, and JSON.
- Free plan requires no credit card.
What to know first
- The free page allowance resets at midnight UTC.
- API usage is metered per page.
- Paid tiers may send relevant document passages to third-party AI providers.
PDFCite: what it does well
- Citations highlight the source passage.
- Can explain selected diagrams, tables, charts and equations.
- Citation graphs show connections among papers.
- Works with multiple PDFs in one chat.
- Unlimited citation and graph features on the Free plan.
What to know first
- AI features require a free account.
Alternatives to PDF.chat Alternatives to PDFCite The whole list