Microsoft 365 Copilot vs Semantic Scholar

A side-by-side comparison to help you choose the right tool.

Microsoft 365 Copilot scores higher overall (85/100)

But the best choice depends on your specific needs. Compare below.

Pricing
Starts from about $30/user/month for business offerings, with personal bundles also available in Microsoft 365 consumer plans.
Free plan
No
Best for
Organizations already standardized on Microsoft 365, Knowledge workers living in Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Teams, IT-led deployments that need enterprise controls
Platforms
web, windows, mac, ios, android
API
Yes
Languages
en
Pricing
Completely free to use. API access is also free with rate limits.
Free plan
Yes
Best for
researchers exploring citation networks and paper influence, academics finding relevant papers using natural language queries, students who need a free alternative to paid research databases, anyone building on existing research who needs comprehensive literature discovery
Platforms
web, api
API
Yes
Languages
en

Choose Microsoft 365 Copilot if:

  • You are Organizations already standardized on Microsoft 365
  • You are Knowledge workers living in Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Teams
  • You are IT-led deployments that need enterprise controls
Read Microsoft 365 Copilot review →

Choose Semantic Scholar if:

  • You are researchers exploring citation networks and paper influence
  • You are academics finding relevant papers using natural language queries
  • You are students who need a free alternative to paid research databases
  • You want to start free
Read Semantic Scholar review →

FAQ

What is the difference between Microsoft 365 Copilot and Semantic Scholar?
Microsoft 365 Copilot is microsoft's work-focused ai assistant embedded across microsoft 365 apps and enterprise workflows. Semantic Scholar is free ai-powered academic search engine from the allen institute for ai that helps researchers find and understand scientific literature through semantic understanding and citation analysis.
Which is cheaper, Microsoft 365 Copilot or Semantic Scholar?
Microsoft 365 Copilot: Starts from about $30/user/month for business offerings, with personal bundles also available in Microsoft 365 consumer plans.. Semantic Scholar: Completely free to use. API access is also free with rate limits.. Semantic Scholar has a free plan.
Who is Microsoft 365 Copilot best for?
Microsoft 365 Copilot is best for Organizations already standardized on Microsoft 365, Knowledge workers living in Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Teams, IT-led deployments that need enterprise controls.
Who is Semantic Scholar best for?
Semantic Scholar is best for researchers exploring citation networks and paper influence, academics finding relevant papers using natural language queries, students who need a free alternative to paid research databases, anyone building on existing research who needs comprehensive literature discovery.