How is PICO Portal Individual different from Scite?
ComparisonCitation class is not a screening decision. PICO Portal Individual starts from a question and keeps the include or exclude.
What does Scite do that PICO Portal Individual does not?
Scite is the right tool when the question is whether later papers support a specific claim.
Scite classifies citations as supporting, contrasting, or mentioning. Open Scite.
How do they compare on search, answer, and screen?
| PICO Portal Individual | Scite | |
|---|---|---|
| Access | 14-day free trial. No department contract. | Free tier, plus a paid plan. Universities often hold a license. |
| Search | 470 million articles from OpenAlex, ORCID and PubMed. | Citation statements, not a protocol search. |
| Answer | Plain language. Each claim links to a source you can open. | Supporting or contrasting citations. |
| Screen | Named reviewer, time, rationale, and the source passage. | Not a screening tool. |
Who should use which?
PICO Portal Individual — Building the set of studies, then citing them.
Scite — Checking how a known paper is cited.
Can I use PICO Portal Individual and Scite in the same review?
Yes. Keep Scite for Citation statements, not a protocol search. Put the include or exclude in PICO Portal Individual. The record shows the named reviewer, the time, the rationale, and the source passage.
Do I name Scite in the methods?
Yes, if you searched there. Also name PICO Portal Individual if the decision sits there. A reader must be able to open the same record.
Can a student start without a university license?
Yes. PICO Portal Individual starts with a 14-day free trial and does not need a department contract. Scite: Free tier, plus a paid plan. Universities often hold a license.
What do I lose if I leave Scite?
Scite is the right tool when the question is whether later papers support a specific claim.
Does either tool write the review?
No. Scite returns Supporting or contrasting citations. PICO Portal Individual returns a cited answer. You write the sentence.
Where is the decision record?
On the PICO Portal Individual record: named reviewer, timestamp, rationale, source passage. Scite: Not a screening tool.
Can I upload a file from Scite?
Yes, if it is a citation file. You then see that file in the same queue as the OpenAlex results.
Which tool do I open first?
Open Scite if you already have a list. Open PICO Portal Individual if you have a question and no file.
Is the answer a substitute for the paper?
No. Open the citation. The passage is on the record so a second person can check the claim.
What can a supervisor check?
The question, the search, each include or exclude, and the passage. You see the queue, the conflicts, and the agreement while the stage is still open.