Plans & Billing

Alfred Scholar offers three plans designed for researchers at different stages - from individual scholars to full research labs. This page covers plan features, pricing, upgrades, downgrades, and usage tracking.

#Available plans

#Free

Get started with the essentials. No payment or credit card required.

• 10 documents
• 100 AI messages per month
• Standard AI model
• Unlimited citations and manuscripts
• 1 plagiarism check per month
• BibTeX and RIS import
• 1 peer reviewer

#Pro

For serious researchers who need more. Removes document limits, unlocks unlimited AI messages, and provides access to the Advanced AI model for more accurate and detailed responses.

• Unlimited documents
• Unlimited AI messages
• Advanced AI model
• Unlimited citations and manuscripts
• 5 plagiarism checks per month
• All citation styles
• 3 peer reviewers
• Zotero sync
• Email support

#Lab

One plan for your entire research lab. Includes everything in Pro plus shared workspaces, unlimited plagiarism checks, and the Frontier AI model.

• Everything in Pro
• 1 owner + up to 9 colleagues (10 seats total)
• Unlimited peer reviewers
• Unlimited plagiarism checks
• Frontier AI model
• Shared workspaces
• Role-based access control
• Supervisor review workflow
• WhatsApp priority support

#Pricing

All prices are in Indian Rupees (INR). Paid plans are currently available in India only. The Free plan is available worldwide.

Tip: Annual billing saves roughly 30% compared to paying monthly. You can switch from monthly to annual billing at any time.

All prices are inclusive of GST.

#Usage limits and fair use

Alfred Scholar tracks three usage metrics against your plan's limits:

• Documents - Total documents uploaded in your workspace.
• AI messages - Chat messages sent to Alfred each calendar month.
• Plagiarism checks - Reports generated each calendar month.

Citations and manuscripts are unlimited on all plans.

#Daily fair-use caps

To keep the platform fast for everyone, paid plans have daily soft caps on AI messages:

If you hit the daily cap, you can continue the next day. These caps are generous and rarely reached during normal research activity.

#Upgrading your plan

You can upgrade your plan at any time:

1. Go to Settings > Billing.
2. Review your current plan and available upgrades.
3. Click Upgrade on the plan you want.
4. Complete the payment through Razorpay (UPI, cards, and net banking accepted).

When upgrading, you pay the prorated difference. Your new plan activates immediately after payment with instant access to the higher plan's features and limits.

Available upgrades:

• Free to Pro
• Free to Lab
• Pro to Lab
• Monthly to annual billing (same plan)

#Downgrading or cancelling

To cancel your subscription:

1. Go to Settings > Billing.
2. Click Cancel Subscription.
3. Confirm the cancellation.

After cancelling:

• Your paid plan stays active until the end of your current billing cycle. You keep full access until the expiration date shown on your billing page.
• After the cycle ends, your workspace moves to the Free plan.
• Your data is never deleted. All your documents, manuscripts, citations, and chat history remain in your workspace.
• If your usage exceeds Free plan limits (for example, more than 10 documents), your existing content stays accessible for reading and editing. You will not be able to upload new documents until you are within the Free plan's limits or upgrade again.

Note: There is no direct downgrade from Lab to Pro. To switch, cancel your Lab subscription and subscribe to Pro after it expires.

You can resubscribe to any paid plan at any time from the billing settings page.

#Billing cycles

Alfred Scholar offers two billing cycles:

• Monthly - Charged every month on the date you subscribed.
• Annual - Charged once per year on the date you subscribed.

Switching from monthly to annual billing on the same plan is treated as an upgrade and takes effect immediately.

#Checking your usage

To see how much of your plan you have used:

1. Go to Settings > Billing.
2. The Usage section shows your current consumption:
   • Documents - How many documents you have out of your plan's limit.
   • AI messages this month - Messages sent this calendar month.
   • Plagiarism checks this month - Reports generated this calendar month.
   • AI model - The model tier available on your plan (Standard, Advanced, or Frontier).

#Frequently asked questions

Can I get a refund?

We offer a full refund within the first 7 days of any paid plan. No questions asked. After that, you can cancel anytime and your plan stays active until the end of the billing cycle.

What payment methods are accepted?

We accept UPI, credit cards, debit cards, and net banking through Razorpay.

Can I get a GST invoice?

Yes. Add your GSTIN in billing settings and we will generate a GST-compliant invoice for every payment.

What happens to my data if I cancel?

Nothing. Your documents, manuscripts, citations, and chat history are never deleted. If you exceed the Free plan's limits after downgrading, existing content remains accessible - you just cannot upload new documents beyond the limit.

Can I switch plans mid-cycle?

Upgrades happen immediately and you pay the prorated difference. Cancellations take effect at the end of your current billing cycle.

Who owns my data?

You do. Your documents, citations, manuscripts, and all research data belong to you. We never use your data to train AI models. You can export everything at any time.

What is the difference between AI models?

• Standard - Fast and handles everyday questions well.
• Advanced - More capable for nuanced research queries and complex citations.
• Frontier - The most powerful model, ideal for systematic reviews and multi-paper analysis.

Model names are generic because we regularly evaluate and switch to the best available provider.

#Next steps

• View pricing - Compare plans side by side on the pricing page.
• Manage your workspace - Understand workspace settings and team management.
• Invite team members - Add colleagues to your Lab workspace.