The answer in two sentences. Delve fits researchers who want to start coding in an afternoon, work in a team, and pay month to month. Liminon fits one person on a Mac who wants to pay once and keep recordings off other people's servers. Facts below were read on 2026-10-16.
Side by side
| Liminon | Delve | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | One-time: $129 early-bird, $179 standard, $79 student; free during the beta (pricing) | $50 per user per month, month to month; 14-day free trial; education and institutional pricing exist (amounts not read) |
| Where the AI runs | On your Mac, through an optional local model in Ollama; suggestions stay pending until you accept them | Delve AI assists coding; where it processes data: not stated on the page we read |
| Platforms | macOS 14+, Apple Silicon only | Not stated; a login-based service |
| Transcription | On-device speaker-separated transcription; the first run downloads the models once | Not stated; the page describes coding transcripts |
| Team work | One person per project folder (.qproj); share by handing over the folder or exports | Shared dashboard, transcript assignment, double-coding, progress tracking; view-only members free |
| Limits | None in the beta; one project folder per study | Unlimited projects, transcripts and codes on the listed plan |
| Importing another tool's project | Not yet (REFI-QDA on the roadmap) | Not stated |
| Learning material | Short in-app guidance and our coding guide | Free online course, webinars, guides |
Three years of cost, on listed prices
Delve's pricing section lists $50 per month per user, month to month, with a 14-day free trial and a credit card required to start. Over 36 months for one person that is $1,800. Liminon's standard price is $179 once, $129 early-bird, $79 for students, with updates through v1.x: a difference of about $1,600 over three years at the standard price. Delve also says education pricing exists (the amount is on a separate page we did not read), and that team members with view-only access are free while each editor pays. If you code for six months and stop, a monthly plan can be the cheaper choice; the longer the project runs, the more the one-time price counts for.
What Delve does well
- Learning curve. The page stresses ease of use and links a free online course, webinars and guides, which matters for a first dissertation.
- Coding structure. Nesting and merging of codes, and double-coding for reliability with side-by-side comparison of two coders' work.
- Team features. A shared dashboard, transcript assignment and progress tracking. Liminon has none of these.
- No project caps. Unlimited projects, transcripts and codes on the listed plan, and you keep ownership of your data.
- Cancel any time. Useful when funding is uncertain.
When to choose Delve
- You code with a co-researcher or a team and need double-coding and a progress view.
- You are not on an Apple Silicon Mac. Delve's platform is not stated on its page; it is a login-based service, so check it runs where you work.
- Your project is short and a few months of subscription costs less than a license.
When Liminon is the better fit
- Recordings stay put. Delve is a cloud service and its page says nothing about where its AI processes data; the privacy details sit on pages we did not read. If your protocol demands a single device, Liminon is built for that: transcription, coding and optional AI run on your Mac.
- Transcription is in the same app. Liminon transcribes and separates speakers on-device. Delve's page describes coding of transcripts; transcription is not stated there.
- A long project. Years of fieldwork and analysis with no renewing bill.
What you give up by switching
Team dashboards, double-coding comparison, a hosted service reachable from any browser, and Delve's training material. Liminon is a single-user Mac app (Apple Silicon, macOS 14+), English works best, and it cannot import another tool's project yet.
Moving over
Export your transcripts from Delve, drop the original recordings into a new Liminon project, and rebuild the codebook; a codebook exported as a table can be recreated in a few minutes. If you are partway through a team-coded study, finish it in Delve first. For other options see our twelve-tool comparison.
Sources
- delvetool.com/getstarted (pricing section) and delvetool.com, read 2026-10-16.
FAQ
How much does Delve cost?
Its pricing section lists $50 per month per user, billed monthly after a 14-day free trial, with discounted education pricing and large-group licenses on request.
Is Liminon a cheaper Delve alternative?
For a project longer than about four months at the standard $179 price, yes: Delve at $50 a month passes $179 in the fourth month. For a short project, Delve's monthly plan can cost less.
Does Delve keep my data on its servers?
It is a cloud service and its pricing page says you keep ownership and control of your data. Where its AI processes data is not stated on the pages we read, so ask Delve if your protocol requires it.
Can Liminon do team coding like Delve?
No. Liminon is a single-user Mac app with no live collaboration; you can hand over the project folder or the exports.
Try Liminon free during the beta
Transcribe, code, and analyze interviews on your Mac.
macOS 14+ · Apple Silicon (M1 or later) · Free during beta