The best AI tools for thesis writing are
- Paperpal for research support, language editing, and reference formatting
- Thesify for topic suggestions and to identify gaps in your paper
- Grammarly to develop a thesis statement and fine-tune your delivery
- SciSpace for ensuring a comprehensive Methods chapter
- Jenni AI to speed up your literature review
Top 5 AI thesis writing tools compared
| Tool | Use for | Special feature | Extra checks performed | What you get for free |
| Paperpal | · Writing
· Paraphrasing · Summarizing · literature review · citation and reference formatting |
ChatPDF: upload your own PDFs and get instant summaries or answers to your queries | · Plagiarism
· AI text · Manuscript structure · Inclusive language · Age of references · Number of references · Use of brand names · Use of copyrighted methods
|
· 7000 words per month plagiarism check
· 5 scans per day (1200 words each) AI detection · 200 language editing suggestions per month · Unlimited citation generation · 5 Chat PDF uploads per month |
| Thesify | · Topic suggestions
· to identify gaps in your paper |
EU grant finder to discover funding opportunities within the EU | Submission readiness indicator to check structure and readability | 7 day trial (all features) |
| Grammarly | · Generate a thesis statement
· Fine-tune delivery |
Works in multiple apps, from Facebook to Microsoft Teams | · Plagiarism
· AI text |
· 100 AI prompts
· Grammar correction · Tone suggestions |
| SciSpace | Ensure a solid, comprehensive Methods chapter | Support in creating scientific diagrams | · Plagiarism
· AI text · Manuscript quality and rigor · Research novelty check |
· 100 monthly credits for SciSpace usage
· Limited access to all tools · No exports allowed |
| Jenni AI | Speed up your literature review with speedy import of .bib or .ris files | Integration with Zotero and Mendeley | None | · 10 AI autocompletes per day
· 5 AI edits · 5 AI chat messages · 2600 citation styles · 10 PDF uploads |
Paperpal
Why use Paperpal to write your thesis?
Paperpal is the preferred AI tool for numerous students because
- It provides discipline-specific and context-aware edits for clarity, readability, grammar, and tone
- Instant AI outlines help overcome writer’s block and improve structure
- Citations from legitimate published research instantly provided
- Option of 10,000+ citation/reference styles
- No ads in even the free plan
- Meet university restrictions on AI use easily with a built-in transparency feature called AI Footprint, which tracks your use of Paperpal in real-time
Price
USD 11.58 per month onwards
Thesify
Why use Thesify to write your thesis?
Thesify is a useful tool to brainstorm topic ideas and identify gaps in your paper. Use thesify to get
- Specific feedback on your thesis statement
- Short simplified summaries of complex or lengthy articles
- Insights on areas that need further exploration
- Detailed feedback on gaps in your argument
- A list of similar works that you have missed citing
Price
€6.25 per month
Grammarly
Why use Grammarly to write your thesis?
Grammarly is a popular tool for thesis writing because it
- Includes a free AI thesis statement generator
- Provides proofreading for grammar and style on the go
- Can help humanize text detected as AI-generated
- Runs a check for plagiarism and indicates citations you may have missed
- Provides full-paragraph rewrites (in the paid version)
Price
USD 12 per month onwards
SciSpace
Why use SciSpace to write your thesis?
SciSpace is a powerful tool to help you during your research:
- AI image generator to create flowcharts, bar graphs, scatter plots (note that this is done by scraping web data, not your own study findings)
- Chat with PDF feature to extract insights from PDFs of research papers you upload
- Tool to search The Cancer Genome Atlas across genes, mutations, and clinical variables
- Tool to search Ensembl for genes, variants, genomic coordinates, and species-specific records
- Tool to calculate pH, hydrogen ion concentration, and buffer conditions for research samples
- Tool to calculate molarity, volumes, and dilution steps for laboratory solutions
- Serial dilution calculator for laboratory protocols (concentrations and volumes for multi-step serial dilutions)
- Structured checklist for final submission of your thesis
Price
USD 12-90 per month, depending on agents and tools chosen
Jenni AI
Why use Jenni AI to write your thesis?
Jenni AI can make literature search and writing the literature review faster by
- Generating summaries from your PDF files
- One-click imports from Zotero and Mendeley
- Seamless importing of .bib and .ris files
- Options to filter your literature search by publication year and journal impact factor (PS: I’ve never filtered my literature search by journal impact factor, so I don’t know how useful this feature actually will be)
Price
USD 12-20 per month
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I allowed to use AI to write my thesis?
You’ll need to check whether your university/institute permits AI use and for what, before you start writing your thesis. Most universities allow you to use AI tools like Paperpal for language editing and formatting.
Is it okay to use an AI thesis generator?
No, you’re not allowed to generate an entire thesis from AI, e.g., using Gatsbi or ThesisAI. If caught, you’ll face suspension or expulsion. A thesis is supposed to reflect your own research, insights, and perspective.
Do I need to disclose whether I’ve used AI in my thesis?
Yes, disclosing the use of AI is a best practice and frequently required by your university. You should list which tool(s) you have used and for what task(s) and confirm that you have approved all AI inputs and take responsibility for them. For example,
Paperpal was employed to assist with rephrasing for clarity, flow, and consistency. All substantive revisions were reviewed and approved by me, ensuring the original ideas and intellectual content remain my own.
