Short answer: ATLAS.ti is not free. As of October 21, 2026, the official ATLAS.ti shop lists a one-year student license at $130, an educational single-seat license at $336 per year and a commercial seat at $628 per year (net prices, USD). A free trial gives five days of active use within 20 days. Free alternatives include Taguette, QualCoder and Qualitati's 30-credit monthly free tier.
Last updated: October 21, 2026
PhD students, lab managers and research agencies usually ask the same three things before buying qualitative data analysis (QDA) software: is it free, what does the cheapest license include, and what will it really cost over a whole project? This guide answers those questions on ATLAS.ti pricing in 2026, using the prices listed in the official ATLAS.ti shop on October 21, 2026. All prices below are net prices in US dollars as shown in the shop. Taxes, currency and regional pricing can change what you pay at checkout, so confirm before you buy.
Key takeaways
- ATLAS.ti has no free plan. The free trial covers up to five days of active use within a 20-day window, with no credit card required. After that it falls back to a restricted version with small project limits.
- Cheapest full license: the student license at $71 for six months or $130 for one year. Students can also take a web-only plan at $14 per month.
- Academic staff: $336 per year for one educational seat, or $738 for three years.
- Seats are concurrent. A seat means one active user at a time, so a small lab can share one license if people do not work at the same moment.
- Every seat license includes Windows, Mac and Web. Automatic transcription is sold separately as minute packages, from $19 for two hours, and works only in the desktop app.
Is ATLAS.ti free?
No. ATLAS.ti is commercial QDA software. The only free access is the ATLAS.ti free trial, which according to ATLAS.ti covers the Windows, Mac and Web versions for up to five days of active use within a 20-day period, with no credit card required. When the trial ends, the software continues as a restricted version limited to 10 documents, 50 quotations, 25 codes and 2 memos. That is enough to learn the interface, not to analyze a real study. Many universities also hold campus licenses, so check your library or IT software catalog first.
ATLAS.ti pricing in 2026: every license tier
The shop sells four customer segments (Students, Educational, Non-Commercial and Government, Commercial) plus campus licenses by quote. Each segment offers seat licenses that include Windows, Mac and Web, and a cheaper personal web-only subscription.
| Segment | 1 seat, annual | 1 seat, 3 years | Web-only (personal) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student | $130 (or $71 for six months) | Not offered | $14 per month |
| Educational | $336 | $738 | $28 per month |
| Non-Commercial and Government | $433 | $943 | $30 per month |
| Commercial | $628 | $1,275 | $54 per month |
Source: ATLAS.ti shop, read on October 21, 2026. Net prices in USD, per license.
Multi-seat licenses
Educational, non-commercial and commercial buyers can also buy 5-seat and 10-seat licenses. For educational buyers, 5 seats cost $1,194 per year ($3,510 for three years) and 10 seats cost $2,170 per year ($5,913 for three years). The commercial equivalents are $2,062 and $3,732 per year. Above 30 concurrent seats, ATLAS.ti asks buyers to contact sales.
Student license rules
The student license page says the license is for undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in degree studies. Within five days of purchase you must upload a valid student ID and a second official photo ID. The license is personal, cannot be shared, and cannot be bought by an institution. ATLAS.ti states that the student version is identical to the full program.
Transcription credits
Automatic transcription is sold separately: 2 hours for $19, 5 hours for $45, 10 hours for $75, 20 hours for $140 and 100 hours for $650. The shop states that these packages require ATLAS.ti Desktop and are not compatible with ATLAS.ti Web.
What about AI features?
ATLAS.ti's AI tools include AI Coding, AI Summaries and Conversational AI. Its AI data security page says these features use OpenAI's GPT models through an API, are opt-in, and can be processed in a United States or Europe region. The same page notes that additional fees might apply but does not publish an AI price list, so we cannot state one.
The product has also moved quickly in 2026. According to the ATLAS.ti update history, version 26.1.0 (June 30, 2026) added a built-in MCP server so external AI assistants can work with projects, version 26.1.2 (August 18, 2026) made Conversational AI available in all AI processing regions, and version 26.2.0 (September 29, 2026) introduced Survey Documents for coding open-ended survey answers.
ATLAS.ti License Cost Planner (3-year view)
Annual sticker prices hide the real decision: how long you need the software and how many people use it at once. This planner applies the October 21, 2026 shop prices to five common situations. It is a Qualitati-built worked example, not a quote.
| Situation | Sensible ATLAS.ti option | Cost over the period | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master's thesis, one analysis semester | Student, six months | $71 | Verification within five days of purchase |
| PhD, three years of coding | Student, one year, renewed | $390 (3 × $130) | Enrollment must stay valid at each renewal |
| Faculty member, three-year grant | Educational, 1 seat, 3 years | $738 (vs $1,008 paid yearly) | Paid upfront; the license period starts on the purchase date |
| Lab of five, staggered coding | Educational, 1 seat shared | $336 per year | Only one person can work at a time |
| Agency team of five coding in parallel | Commercial, 5 seats, 3 years | $5,642 | Transcription billed separately |
Two rules fall out of the numbers. First, the three-year educational term costs about 27% less than paying yearly ($738 vs $1,008), but only if the project really lasts three years. Second, concurrency decides team cost more than headcount does: five researchers who rarely code at the same time may need one seat, not five.
ATLAS.ti vs NVivo vs Qualitati on price
The table compares entry prices from each vendor's public pages on the dates shown. Currencies differ (ATLAS.ti lists USD for a US visitor; NVivo and Qualitati were read in euros), so compare the structure, not the decimals.
| Criterion | ATLAS.ti | NVivo | Qualitati |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free option | Trial: 5 active days in 20 | 14-day trial | Free tier: 30 credits per month, no card |
| Student entry price | $130 per year | €115 per year | €9 per month (€90 per year) |
| Academic entry price | $336 per year | €470 per year | €19 per month (Researchers plan) |
| Collects data (interviews, surveys) | No | No | Yes: AI-moderated interviews, focus groups, conversational surveys |
| Manual coding depth | Very deep (networks, memos, queries) | Very deep | AI-assisted coding in QDA Workspace and ThemeLens; lighter manual toolset |
| Price date | October 21, 2026 | October 6, 2026 | October 21, 2026 |
Where Qualitati fits
Qualitati is a European, budget-friendly qualitative research platform for universities and research companies, with GDPR and data privacy as central priorities. It is not a like-for-like replacement for every ATLAS.ti feature. It fits a different part of the workflow:
- Collect and analyze in one place. Run AI-moderated interviews in text or voice, AI-moderated focus groups and conversational surveys, in 10 languages.
- AI-assisted analysis. ThemeLens runs thematic analysis across up to 100 transcripts at once with participant-anchored quotes; QDA Workspace supports inductive and deductive coding and codebook generation.
- Published pricing. A free tier with 30 non-cumulative monthly credits and no credit card, then Student (€9 per month) and Researchers (€19 per month) plans. See transparent pricing.
Many researchers will combine tools: collect data and run a first AI-assisted pass in Qualitati, then do deep interpretive coding in ATLAS.ti or another CAQDAS package. For a wider comparison, read our ATLAS.ti alternatives guide, the MAXQDA vs ATLAS.ti vs NVivo comparison or the Qualitati vs ATLAS.ti page.
Limitations and methodology concerns
- Price snapshots age quickly. These figures were read on October 21, 2026, in USD, net of tax. Your checkout price may differ by country.
- AI costs are not fully published. ATLAS.ti says additional fees might apply to AI features but lists no AI price, so budget a margin if you plan heavy AI use.
- Software does not make analysis rigorous. Reviewers judge your coding process, memos and audit trail, not the tool's brand.
- AI-assisted coding needs disclosure and human review. Whichever tool you use, report which AI features you used and how you checked their output.
Who this is for, and when not to use it
This guide is for PhD students, academics and research agencies budgeting ATLAS.ti for a thesis, grant or client project. Do not use it as a formal procurement quote: request a written quote from ATLAS.ti, especially for campus or 30+ seat purchases.
FAQ
Is ATLAS.ti free for students?
No. As of October 21, 2026, students pay $71 for six months, $130 for one year, or $14 per month for web-only access, unless their university has a campus license. There is a free trial.
How much does ATLAS.ti cost per year?
For one seat: $130 (student), $336 (educational), $433 (non-commercial and government) and $628 (commercial) per year, net prices in USD from the ATLAS.ti shop on October 21, 2026.
How long is the ATLAS.ti free trial?
Up to five days of active use within a 20-day period, covering desktop and web, with no credit card required, according to ATLAS.ti's free-trial page.
Can several people share one ATLAS.ti license?
Educational, non-commercial and commercial seat licenses are concurrent: one seat allows one active user at a time. Student licenses are personal and cannot be shared.
Does ATLAS.ti include transcription?
Not in the license price. Transcription packages start at $19 for two hours and work only with ATLAS.ti Desktop.
What is a cheaper alternative to ATLAS.ti?
For basic text coding, free open-source tools such as Taguette or QualCoder (see our free QDA software guide). If you also want AI-moderated interviews and AI-assisted analysis, Qualitati's free tier gives 30 credits per month.
Bottom line
ATLAS.ti pricing in 2026 starts at $71 for a six-month student license and $336 per year for an educational seat, with a short free trial and transcription sold separately. Check for a campus license first, match the license term to your project length, and count concurrent users rather than headcount. If you want a lower-cost, GDPR-focused platform that also collects the data, start free with 30 credits on Qualitati or view transparent pricing.