Systematic reviews with AI, in your own hands
From the PICO question to the summary-of-findings table: searching, paired screening, full text, extraction, risk of bias and PRISMA in one tool installed on your institution's server.
Free for academic use. Your data never leaves your server. And it installs on your phone as an app.
How it works
The whole review workflow, in order
Every phase has its own screen, status and counters. The team always knows where it stands.
Protocol and question
Define PICO or PCC, inclusion and exclusion criteria and the search strategy. Export the registration form to PROSPERO/OSF.
Import and duplicates
Import RIS, BibTeX, PubMed, CSV or search PubMed directly. Deduplication matches on DOI, PMID and title.
Title and abstract screening
Two blinded reviewers, highlighted keywords, keyboard shortcuts, conflicts resolved by a third and live kappa.
Full text
Automatic PDF retrieval (Unpaywall, PMC, DOI), reading next to the form and PRISMA exclusion reasons.
Extraction and risk of bias
Custom extraction templates, double extraction with comparison, RoB 2, ROBINS-I, Newcastle-Ottawa and more.
Synthesis and report
PRISMA 2020 diagram, GRADE / summary-of-findings table, CSV for meta-analysis and AI-use statement.
Real screens
This is how you work with SysRevAI
Screens from a sample review. Pick a step to see it.
Features
Everything a review team needs
No paid add-ons and no caps on the number of references.
Structured protocol
PICO/PCC, criteria, per-database searches and exportable registration.
Universal import
RIS, BibTeX, PubMed XML, CSV, DOI and direct PubMed search.
Deduplication
Matching on identifiers and title similarity, with manual review.
Paired screening
Blind, double-blind with a third reviewer, pilot, workload assignment and conflicts.
Integrated full text
PDF next to the form, automatic retrieval and exclusion reasons.
Custom extraction
Field templates, double extraction and side-by-side comparison.
Risk of bias
RoB 2, ROBINS-I, NOS, QUADAS-2, JBI and your own tools.
PRISMA 2020
Editable flow diagram and checklist with status.
GRADE and synthesis
Summary of findings, certainty per outcome and CSV for meta-analysis.
Team and roles
Coordinator, reviewer, third, reader; invitations and activity log.
Living reviews
Saved searches that re-run and flag new references.
API and exports
Read-only REST API, public links and export to RIS, BibTeX, CSV, DOCX.
Conflicts with an AI proposal
The AI checks every protocol criterion and recommends including or excluding, with a confidence % and the reason.
Portable data
Export everything as one ZIP and import it into another installation, with decisions, PDFs and comments.
Automatic backups
A full platform backup every 2 hours, rotated automatically and restored from the console.
Licences at hand
Look up your keys and domains and download the software again from a link in your inbox.
Tools for every researcher
Beyond reviews, the Tools menu helps with the rest of your scientific work.
Global search
PubMed, CrossRef, OpenAlex and Europe PMC in one query, sent straight to a review.
Normalise citations
Paste any bibliography and get it in APA, Vancouver, NLM, Chicago, MLA, Harvard, AMA or IEEE.
Verify citations
Checks each reference against Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, CrossRef and arXiv and flags those that do not exist or have wrong data, including AI-generated ones.
Article analysis
A critical report on any article and help writing your own manuscript, with AI.
How article analysis works →AI
AI that assists, never decides
Language models prioritise, suggest and summarise. Every final decision is made by a person and logged.
- Prioritises the screening queue by likelihood of inclusion.
- Proposes decisions criterion by criterion, with a confidence percentage and the reason.
- Pre-extracts data from the PDF so the reviewer only verifies.
- Analyses single articles: ask questions about the text, with citations.
- Translates abstracts and the interface between the three languages.
- Generates the AI-use statement and enforces a per-review budget.
Article analysis Only in SysRevAI
Read critically and write better, with AI at your side
Upload an article or your own manuscript as PDF or Word. The AI assesses it like a demanding peer reviewer and helps you improve the writing: something you will not find in Rayyan or Covidence.
Critical report
Scores from 0 to 100 on five axes (methodology, clarity, novelty, evidence and handling of limitations), an executive summary, a devil's advocate and recommendations per section. Exports to Word.
Chat with citations
Ask the AI about the article and get answers that quote the text. Add related articles and guidelines for it to take into account.
Writing support
Edit the manuscript in the platform, select a passage and ask the Copilot to rewrite it, clarify it or add a table. You accept or reject each change.
Versions and co-authors
Save versions and restore earlier ones, invite co-authors and download the document as Word when it is ready.
Privacy
Your data, on your server
SysRevAI is installed on your institution's infrastructure. No cloud in between, no vendor lock-in.
Self-hosted
PHP and MySQL on any server. No review data leaves your network unless you decide so.
AI with your own key
AI API calls use your own key and can be switched off per review.
Traceability
Activity log, two-step verification, roles, automatic backups every 2 hours and a full data export.
Mobile app
The SysRevAI app for phones and tablets
For iPhone, iPad and Android. Screen references, read the full text and resolve conflicts wherever you are, even offline. It works with sysrevai.com and with your institution’s server.
- Offline screening: decisions are kept on the phone and sent when the connection comes back.
- Full text with the PDF and the protocol’s criteria in view; on a tablet, side by side.
- Notifications for conflicts, mentions and tasks, and comments with your team.
- The tools in your pocket: verify citations by scanning a printed bibliography, search references and analyse articles.
Your reviews stay on your server: the app talks to it directly.
Coming soon to the App Store and Google Play.
Comparison
What Rayyan and Covidence do, on your own server and open source
SysRevAI covers the whole systematic review workflow, from the question to GRADE. The difference is where the data lives, who holds the code and what it costs.
Your data stays at home
It is installed on your institution’s server. Rayyan and Covidence only run in their own cloud.
Open source (AGPL-3.0)
You can audit it, adapt it and depend on no vendor. The other two are closed source.
€0 for up to 10 users
No fee per review or per licence. You only pay for the AI you use, with your own key.
| Feature | SysRevAI Open source | Rayyan | Covidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open source and self-hosted | Yes: AGPL-3.0, on your server | No: Vendor cloud | No: Vendor cloud |
| Where the data is stored | Yes: On the server you choose (or ours, if you prefer) | Partial: Rayyan’s cloud (AWS and Azure) | Partial: Servers in Australia |
| Price | Yes: €0 for up to 10 users and unlimited reviews | Partial: Limited free plan (3 reviews); paid from $4.99 per licence per month | Partial: $339 per review per year; $907 for 3 reviews |
| Blinded screening and conflicts | Yes: Double blind, third reviewer, pilot and kappa | Yes: Blind mode | Yes: Dual review |
| Full text | Yes: Plus automatic retrieval from 9 open-access sources | Yes: PDF upload | Yes: PDF upload |
| Risk of bias | Yes: RoB 2, ROBINS-I, Newcastle-Ottawa and JBI | Partial: NOS and MMAT, Advanced plan | Yes: Cochrane RoB 1, editable template |
| GRADE and PRISMA 2020 | Yes: Both, exported to Word and SVG | Partial: PRISMA on paid plans | Partial: PRISMA |
| Artificial intelligence | Yes: Prioritisation, pre-screening, extraction and an AI-use statement | Yes: Ranking; PICO and ResearchPilot on higher plans | Yes: Trial classifier and extraction suggestions |
| Built-in search and living reviews | Yes: PubMed, OpenAlex, CrossRef and Europe PMC, with scheduled searches | Not listed | Not listed |
| Critical article analysis and writing support | Yes: AI critical report and a Copilot editor for your manuscript | Not listed | Not listed |
| Support | Yes: Tickets from inside the platform, Community included; Institution includes installation on your servers | Partial: Priority on paid plans | Yes: Online; 24/7 for institutions |
Data from the official rayyan.ai and covidence.org websites, checked in October 2026; it may change. included · partial or depends on the plan · not available. Rayyan and Covidence are trademarks of their owners.
Pricing
Simple pricing
The software is free to install on your own server. Institutions with many teams can ask for tailored support.
Community
For universities, hospitals and research groups installing it on their own server.
- Every feature, up to 10 users
- One licence per domain
- Updates from the admin panel
- Ticket support from inside the platform
Institution
For libraries and research-support services with many teams.
- Unlimited users and domains, and SSO
- Training and methodological support
- Priority on new features
- Help installing it on your organisation's servers
Support included in every edition
Ask the SysRevAI team for help with tickets from inside the platform: each ticket carries the technical details we need, you can attach screenshots and documents, and you get an e-mail when we reply.
Trial accounts
The team owner opens tickets from the trial itself, for the whole 30 days.
Community
The installation's administrators open tickets from their panel, free of charge, under the installation's licence.
Institution
Tickets, plus help installing SysRevAI on your organisation's servers, coordinated with your IT department.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
If your question is not here, write to us through the contact form.
What do I need to install it?
A web server with PHP 8.2 or later, MySQL 8 or MariaDB 10.6, and the usual extensions (PDO, mbstring, curl, zip). The web installer walks you through it in a few minutes.
What is the licence number for?
It identifies your installation for updates and support. It is generated when you download and entered during installation. It is free.
Do I need an AI key?
No. Without a key the whole review workflow works; only the AI helpers stay inactive. You can add a key at any time from Administration.
How many reviewers and reviews can I have?
With the Community licence, up to 10 active users per installation (deactivated users do not count) and unlimited reviews. The Institution licence has no user limit.
Can I migrate from Rayyan, Covidence or a spreadsheet?
Yes. Export the references as RIS or CSV and import them; previous decisions can be loaded as tags or initial decisions.
How is it updated?
From Administration → Maintenance, with pre-flight checks, a database backup and automatic rollback on failure.
Can I use it from my phone?
Yes. SysRevAI installs as a web app on phones, tablets and computers (Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, macOS) and runs full screen with every feature: screening, conflicts, extraction and team chat. The only requirement is that the installation uses HTTPS.
Can I try SysRevAI without installing it?
Yes. Create a 30-day trial account at sysrevai.com/prova and invite up to 5 people. On day 30 it is blocked and 7 days later it is deleted; before that you can export all the data and import it into your own installation.
What happens to my data if I change servers?
From Profile → My data you export all your content as a ZIP and import it into another installation. The platform also makes a full backup every 2 hours and keeps the 24 newest.
What support does SysRevAI offer?
Trial accounts and Community and Institution installations have a built-in ticket system: you ask for help from the Support pill inside the platform, with attachments, and the SysRevAI team replies there and by e-mail. The Institution edition also includes help installing the platform on your organisation's servers.
Start your next review today
Download SysRevAI, install it on your server and invite the team.