Open Access Helper vs RACP
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Open Access Helper
Easily find legal, free versions of paywalled scientific articles using trusted APIs. Seamlessly connect to university library proxies like EZProxy and OpenAthens. This open-source tool respects your privacy and makes research more accessible.
- Find legal, free scholarly articles
- Access paywalled research
- Integrates with unpaywall.org and core.ac.uk
- Seamless EZProxy/OpenAthens connection
- Indicates version type (Published, Accepted, Submitted)
- Open-source and privacy-respecting
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Open Access Helper: Effortless Access to Scholarly Articles Unlock Open Access Easily find legal, free-to-read versions of paywalled scientific articles. Open Access Helper uses the trusted APIs from unpaywall.org and other sources to locate open access copies, making research more accessible for students, researchers, and curious minds. How It Works When you view a research article, the extension detects its DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and checks for an available open access version. Simply click the Open Access Helper badge to access the document! As you hover over the badge, it will indicate whether you’ll be accessing the “Published Version,” “Accepted Version,” or “Submitted Version.” EZProxy or OpenAthens Made Simple If your university library uses EZProxy or OpenAthens for off-campus access, this extension makes it seamless to connect. Just set your institution’s domain (e.g., harvard.edu), and with one click, you can proxy the current page through your library’s server. 100% Legal and Privacy-Respecting Every link provided leads to officially open-access or legally archived copies of research articles. Plus, Open Access Helper doesn’t collect personal data—just anonymous usage stats to improve functionality. Open Source & Developer-Friendly This is a passion project—check out the code, share feedback, or report bugs. Your contributions and ideas are always welcome! Get started today—make research easier and more accessible with Open Access Helper!
RACP
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+ We are teaching and sharing the knowledge to our students include: - Multiple Language skills (Chinese, English, etc.) - Short Courses and Oriented Courses - Exchange Program to abroad
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is iOS requirement: RACP at 12.0 against Open Access Helper's 17.6. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Open Access Helper ships an update monthly, RACP fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Open Access Helper | RACP |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (4 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 4 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 63 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Claus Wolf | khemra ly |
In-app purchases
Open Access Helper
No in-app purchases
RACP
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Open Access Helper free?
Is RACP free?
Do Open Access Helper or RACP have ads?
Which is updated more often, Open Access Helper or RACP?
Other comparisons
