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University of Texas University of Texas Libraries

Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA)

Free Software & Tools

 

Many free CAQDAS tools come and go. Here are a few good options currently being used by scholars...

ELAN

Taguette

RQDA

QCODER

QualCoder

Delivery

Java-based application for Windows, macOS, Linux

Cloud-based or as a Python/Calibre package for Windows, macOS, Linux

R package for Windows, macOS, Linux

R package for Windows, macOS, Linux

Python application for Windows, macOS, Linux

Data Types

Audio, video

Text only (.txt, .doc, .pdf, etc.)

plain text only (.txt)

text only (.doc, .txt)

text, pdfs, images, video, audio

Functions

Basic coding

Basic coding

Coding, Aggregation, Query, Visualization

Coding, Analysis

Coding, Query, Visualization, Analysis

Pros and Cons

Easy to use and designed specifically for  audio/visual data.

Easy to use and allows for collaboration when on server. Sensitive data requires a local or server install.

GUI interface helps users who are new to R.

Command line driven. Good for mixed methods research, when already using R for quant data.

Higher initial learning curve, but easy once understood. More features than most free tools.

User Supports

Developer site

Tutorials and user guides

Taugette server (for could use)

GitLab site

Getting Started site

Developer site

GitHub site

User guide

Video tutorials

GitHub site

GitHub site

Useful blog from the developer

Video tutorials

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 Generic License.