DistillBrief
DistillBrief turns business, technical, and research PDFs into briefs that highlight key points.
What DistillBrief is
DistillBrief turns business, technical, and research PDFs into briefs that highlight key points. It accepts digital and scanned PDFs, using automatic OCR for image-based documents, and uploads are limited to 10 MB. After a brief is ready, you can ask questions about the same document. Summaries and key points can be copied or exported; Pro adds professional export formatting and unlimited chat. The service is aimed at individuals and teams working with reports, research papers, technical documents, board packs, and vendor proposals. The Free plan costs nothing and includes five briefs a month, OCR for up to 10 pages, history saving after sign-in, and exports. Pro costs $9 a month and includes unlimited briefs, OCR for up to 25 pages, saved extraction history, and professional export formatting. Uploaded PDFs are processed temporarily in memory rather than permanently stored, but signed-in history may contain filenames, extracted text, summaries, and timestamps. AI summaries can contain errors or omissions, so review them before important decisions.
Good
- Processes both digital and scanned PDFs.
- Automatic OCR handles image-based documents.
- Follow-up questions can refer to the same PDF.
- Free plan includes five briefs monthly.
- Pro includes unlimited briefs and chat.
Watch out
- Uploads are limited to 10 MB.
- Free OCR is limited to 10 pages.
- Signed-in history may include extracted text.
- AI summaries may contain inaccuracies or omissions.
Who it suits
DistillBrief suits individuals or teams who need key points from business, technical, or research PDFs. It may fit people who want to ask follow-up questions or export summaries, provided their documents meet the upload limit and privacy considerations.
Verdict
DistillBrief combines PDF briefs, OCR, follow-up chat, and exports in a web service with a free tier. Consider the file and OCR limits, document privacy, and the need to review AI output before relying on it.
Plans and prices
From DistillBrief's own pricing page, checked 4 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 5 PDF briefs per month · OCR up to 10 pages · sign in to save history · export summaries and text · No credit card required |
| Pro | $9 a month | Unlimited PDF briefs · OCR up to 25 pages · saved extraction history · professional export formatting · Billed securely via Stripe · cancel anytime |
The facts
Each one read from DistillBrief's own pages, with the date it was checked.
Money
- Account and billing services
- Clerk handles authentication, Neon PostgreSQL may store signed-in extraction history, and Stripe handles Pro billing.checked 4 Oct 2026
What it does
- AI provider
- Extracted text may be sent to OpenAI APIs to generate summaries and related output.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Compliance
- The maker advises against uploading highly sensitive, confidential, regulated, or personal documents unless users accept its processing flow.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Exports
- Users can copy or export summaries and key points, and Pro includes professional export formatting.checked 4 Oct 2026
- File limit
- The upload flow accepts PDFs up to 10 MB.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Follow-up chat
- Users can ask questions about the same document after a brief is generated; Pro includes unlimited chat.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The site describes use by teams and individuals working with reports, research papers, technical documents, board packs, and vendor proposals.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Output limitations
- The terms warn that AI summaries may contain inaccuracies, omissions, or misinterpretations and should be reviewed before important decisions.checked 4 Oct 2026
- PDF retention
- Uploaded PDFs are processed temporarily in memory and are not permanently stored; signed-in extraction history may include filenames, extracted text, summaries, and timestamps.checked 4 Oct 2026
- PDF support
- It processes digital and scanned PDFs, using automatic OCR for image-based documents.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- DistillBrief turns long business, technical, and research PDFs into clear briefs with key points.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Security
- The privacy policy says the service uses HTTPS, access controls, and infrastructure providers to protect data in transit and at rest.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Support
- The site lists [email protected] for questions, privacy requests, and billing inquiries.checked 4 Oct 2026
Alternatives to DistillBrief
- 1
ChatPDF
Free planAndroidiOSWebAPI8.2From $89.99 a year - 2
AskYourPDF
Free planAndroidiOSWebAPI8.1From $11.99 a month - 3
Eightify
AndroidiOSWebExtension7.7From $59.99 a year - 4
Podwise
AndroidiOSWebAPI7.6From $70.80 a year - 5
Scholarcy
Free planWebAPIExtension7.5From $90 a year - 6
SciSummary
Free planWebAPIExtension7.4From $48 a year