What is Explainpaper?

Explainpaper is a focused AI tool built to solve one specific and painful research problem: understanding dense, jargon-heavy academic papers. Users upload any PDF research paper and use the highlight-and-explain feature to instantly get a plain-language explanation of any passage, equation, table, or technical term they find confusing. The AI, powered by GPT-4 on the Pro plan, responds in clear, accessible language while preserving scientific accuracy, and users can ask unlimited follow-up questions to deepen their understanding. Explainpaper also generates AI-powered summaries of entire papers, creates smart outlines to navigate complex documents, and tracks your saved highlights and explanations across sessions. Founded in 2022, Explainpaper is used by researchers, students, interdisciplinary scientists, science journalists, and lifelong learners who need to read papers outside their immediate area of expertise without spending hours on each one.

Key Features

Highlight and Explain Any TextUnlimited Follow-Up QuestionsAI Paper SummarizationSmart Outline GeneratorHighlight History TrackingGPT-4 Powered Explanations (Pro)Equation and Table ExplanationMulti-Field CoverageSaved Paper LibraryPDF Upload SupportDark Mode ReaderLight and Comfortable Reading Modes7-Day Pro TrialWeb-Based No Install RequiredMulti-Paper Analysis (Coming Soon)Paper Search (Coming Soon)

How to Use Explainpaper

1Go to explainpaper.com and upload any research PDF for free

2Highlight any confusing text, equation, or technical term

3Read the AI-generated plain-language explanation in the side panel

4Ask follow-up questions to go deeper into any concept

5Upgrade to Pro for GPT-4 explanations, paper summaries, and smart outlines

✅ Best For

Interdisciplinary researchers and scientists who frequently read papers from adjacent fields and need quick, accurate explanations of unfamiliar terminology without losing hours to background reading.
Undergraduate and master's students who are reading peer-reviewed papers for the first time and need a patient, always-available guide to walk them through dense methodology and results sections.
Science journalists, policy researchers, and curious non-specialists who need to accurately interpret complex academic findings without the training to parse field-specific jargon.

❌ Not For

Researchers who need a full literature review pipeline, citation management, systematic review tools, or paper discovery features, as Explainpaper is focused exclusively on explaining single uploaded documents.
Teams needing multi-user collaboration, shared annotation libraries, or integration with reference managers like Zotero, since Explainpaper is built as a solo reading comprehension tool.

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Pricing

Free$0

✓Unlimited highlight explanations and follow-up questions
✓forever

Plus$12/mo

✓Paper summaries
✓highlight history
✓paper search (coming soon)

Pro$20/mo

✓GPT-4 powered
✓multi-paper analysis (coming soon)
✓all Plus features

Prompts to Try

Explain what this equation means in plain English

What does the term confounding variable mean in this methodology section?

Summarize the key findings of this paper in three bullet points

Use Cases

A computer science student uploading a dense transformer architecture paper highlights three paragraphs she doesn't understand and receives clear analogies from Explainpaper's AI, enabling her to write her seminar summary confidently without asking her professor for help.

A cardiologist reading outside his specialty uploads a neuroscience paper on vagal tone and asks Explainpaper to explain the statistical methodology, getting an accurate plain-language breakdown that lets him evaluate the study's reliability in 10 minutes.

A science policy researcher uses Explainpaper to work through five climate science papers in a single afternoon, highlighting key claims and getting explanations she uses to write a briefing document for government officials.

A high school teacher uploads a simplified biology research paper and uses Explainpaper to prepare class discussion questions by having the AI explain complex terms she wants to turn into teaching moments.

A startup founder reads a competing academic paper on battery degradation and uses Explainpaper to understand the materials science sections, extracting relevant insights for his product team without hiring a specialist consultant.

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