Tool profile
Quirkos: cost, fit and limits
Quirkos is a qualitative data analysis program made by Quirkos Limited of Edinburgh that lets researchers code text visually, with cloud and offline licenses. It does not offer AI analysis, and its only automation is a paid transcription add-on. Students, academics, nonprofits and small teams use it.
What to know first
Quirkos publishes the most complete price list of any coding package in this category and takes a stated position against AI analysis: its homepage says it does not offer unreliable AI analysis. Cloud is billed monthly in four sector tiers, and an offline license is bought once. Buyers who want AI-suggested codes should look elsewhere, while buyers who want manual control and low cost fit.
Quirkos at a glance
| Maker | Quirkos Limited, United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Free trial only |
| Entry price | $5 per month billed annually |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI Qualitative Data Analysis Software in 2026, rank 10 of 10 |
| Website | quirkos.com |
Who Quirkos is best for
Students and thesis writers
Cloud for students costs $5 a month on annual billing, and the offline license is a one-time $69 for one computer, which suits a project that ends in a defined year.
Researchers wary of AI analysis
The homepage states Quirkos does not do AI analysis and the privacy page says user data is not used to train AI, so no model touches the codes.
Teams migrating from other packages
The homepage says Quirkos imports from and exports to NVivo, MAXQDA and ATLAS.ti, and exports to Word, PDF, HTML or CSV.
Fieldworkers without reliable internet
Quirkos 3 is an offline desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux, and with an offline license projects stay on your own hard drive.
Quirkos plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud, student | $5 per month billed annually | Quirkos Cloud for students, saving 38 percent on annual billing, with the web app, Quirkos 3 offline desktop app and unlimited cloud storage. |
| Cloud, academic and nonprofit | $13 per month billed annually | The same Cloud features for academic and nonprofit users, saving 12 percent on annual billing versus quarterly, with a 14-day free trial of all features. |
| Cloud, public sector or commercial | $17 or $23 per month billed annually | Public sector is $17 and commercial $23 monthly on annual billing, with savings of 9 and 4 percent. Prices exclude tax and UK and EU buyers pay VAT. |
| Offline license | $69 for one computer, $110 for two | A permanent lifetime license where projects are stored on your own hard drive, with a downloadable trial and no cloud subscription. |
| Quirkos Transcribe add-on | from $12 per month billed annually | Automated transcription on any Cloud subscription. The Cloud trial includes 100 free minutes of transcription. |
Checked November 2026.
What Quirkos does
- Visual coding
- The homepage lists theme hierarchies, overlap and correlation views, word clouds, comparison queries and autosave, built around coding text by hand in a visual layout rather than a spreadsheet-style grid.
- Offline and cloud editions
- Quirkos 3 works offline on Windows, Mac and Linux, while the web app runs in any browser with Quirkos Cloud, and phones and tablets are supported through the cloud.
- Import and export
- The homepage lists import from and export to NVivo, MAXQDA and ATLAS.ti, and export to Word, PDF, HTML or CSV, which keeps a project portable if a team changes tools.
- Automated transcription
- Quirkos Transcribe converts audio and video to text and the homepage says it uses end-to-end encryption. The privacy policy says uploaded audio is deleted once transcription is complete.
- Autosave and unlimited cloud storage
- Quirkos Cloud saves projects automatically and backs them up on the vendor's servers with unlimited storage, per the homepage, removing manual backup for cloud users.
How Quirkos handles your data
Quirkos's homepage says it does not share user data with anyone or use it to train AI, and that Cloud projects are encrypted end to end and at rest. The privacy page says project data is stored on the server nearest your location, possibly in another country, hosted with Digital Ocean and Mythic Beasts, and that a specific country can be requested. Project data is kept for two years after a subscription ends. Transcribe audio is deleted after transcription and the text after collection or a week. Quirkos Limited is registered in Scotland.
Where Quirkos falls short in practice
- No AI analysis. The homepage says unreliable AI analysis is not offered, so there are no code suggestions, summaries or chat over transcripts. Teams that want them must add a second tool.
- Cloud data may cross borders. The nearest server is used by default, which may be in a different country. A project with a residency rule needs the country request made before upload.
- Transcription costs extra. Automated transcription is a separate add-on from $12 a month, not part of Cloud, and only the first 100 minutes are free during the Cloud trial.
Works with
Alternatives to Quirkos
Quirkos: common questions
Does Quirkos use AI to code my data?
No. The homepage says Quirkos does not offer unreliable AI analysis, and its only automation is the Quirkos Transcribe add-on for audio and video. The homepage also says user data is not used to train AI, so coding stays manual and the researcher makes every decision.
How much is the Quirkos offline license?
The licences page lists a permanent offline license at $69 for one computer or $110 for two. Prices exclude tax, and UK and EU customers pay VAT at checkout. A trial can be downloaded before buying. Quarterly and annual Cloud billing are separate options.
Which Quirkos price applies to a PhD student?
The student tier is $5 a month on annual billing, saving 38 percent against the monthly rate. Academic and nonprofit users pay $13, public sector $17 and commercial users $23 per month on annual billing, with prices shown excluding tax and VAT added in the UK and EU.
Can I move a project from NVivo to Quirkos?
The homepage says Quirkos imports from and exports to NVivo, MAXQDA and ATLAS.ti. It does not say which elements transfer, so test a small project first and check codes, memos and source text. Quirkos 3, the offline version, is included with Cloud.
Where does Quirkos Cloud store my data?
On the server nearest your location, which may be a different country, hosted by Digital Ocean and Mythic Beasts according to the privacy page. You can request that a specific country be used for your data. Retention is two years for project data.