Compare software

OpenAlex vs BASE (Bielefeld Academic Search Engine): catalog facts
OpenAlex	BASE (Bielefeld Academic Search Engine)
Free Free to search, analyze and reuse.	Free Free to search in the browser.
Web	Web
Covers about half a billion scholarly works Web app, API and bulk download	Focused on open-access academic content Draws on thousands of institutional repositories
A search catalog rather than an AI reading assistant Analysis beyond the web app needs API or data skills	Anti-scraper check requires modern JavaScript and can slow page loads Covers repository content, so some paywalled literature will be missing
Web application, Hosted service	Web application
Closed source	Closed source
License not stated	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Needs internet
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.