Direct comparison
Data Management Plan Software Compared
Compare DMPTool, DMPonline, RDMO, Data Stewardship Wizard, and ARGOS for cost, hosting, and machine-actionable DMP support before picking one.
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How do DMPTool, DMPonline, RDMO, Data Stewardship Wizard, ARGOS compare side by side?
The table below compares DMPTool, DMPonline, RDMO, Data Stewardship Wizard, ARGOS across 8 procurement-relevant dimensions, from operator through best fit.
Side-by-side comparison
| Dimension | DMPTool | DMPonline | RDMO | Data Stewardship Wizard | ARGOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | California Digital Library (UC3) | Digital Curation Centre (DCC) | Open-source consortium (institution-run instances) | Open-source, originated in ELIXIR | OpenAIRE / EOSC |
| Hosting model | Hosted service | Hosted service | Self-hosted by institution | Self-hosted, or an institution's hosted instance | Hosted service |
| Cost | Free | Free for end users; institutions pay for customization tier | Free (open source); institution bears hosting cost | Free (open source); institution bears hosting cost | Free |
| Primary region/funder focus | US federal funders (NSF, NIH, DOE, NEH, IMLS) | UK/EU funders (UKRI, Wellcome, Horizon Europe) | Institution-defined, common in German/EU research organisations | Discipline-defined, strong life-sciences uptake | EU / OpenAIRE-EOSC affiliated projects |
| Built on | Open-source DMPRoadmap | Open-source DMPRoadmap | Standalone open-source platform | Standalone open-source platform | Standalone platform, OpenAIRE-built |
| Machine-actionable export | Supports maDMP/RDA DMP Common Standard export | Supports maDMP/RDA DMP Common Standard export | Structured export, catalog-dependent | Built around versioned, machine-actionable knowledge models natively | Built for machine-actionable, FAIR-aligned plans natively |
| Template/question-set customization | Institutions can add guidance text and branded templates | Institutions can customize templates (paid tier) | Fully customizable question catalogs | Fully customizable, versioned knowledge models | Template library plus custom dataset descriptions |
| Best fit | US-funded projects at a participating institution | UK/EU-funded projects | Institutions wanting a self-hosted, fully controlled instance | Life-sciences projects needing machine-actionable output | EOSC/OpenAIRE-integrated European projects |
Common questions
Common questions about DMPTool vs DMPonline vs RDMO vs Data Stewardship Wizard vs ARGOS
What is data management plan software?
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It's a tool that walks a researcher through building a data management plan (DMP) using a funder- or discipline-specific question template, rather than starting from a blank document. Most also let you export the finished plan as a PDF or, increasingly, as structured machine-readable data.
Is there one data management plan tool everyone should use?
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No. The right tool depends on your funder: DMPTool for US federal funders, DMPonline or ARGOS for UK/EU funders, and RDMO or the Data Stewardship Wizard where an institution wants to self-host and fully control the question set.
Are these DMP tools free?
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Yes, at the point of use for the researcher. DMPTool, DMPonline (individual accounts), RDMO, DSW, and ARGOS all have no per-plan cost to the researcher. Institutions may pay for hosting (RDMO, DSW) or for a customization subscription (DMPonline).
What is DMPTool, specifically?
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DMPTool is the DMP-authoring service operated by the California Digital Library through UC3, curated around US federal funder templates (NSF, NIH, DOE, NEH, IMLS). See the full profile at the DMPTool dictionary entry, or the step-by-step guide to using it for NSF and NIH plans.
Do I need special software to write a data management plan for research generally, or only for a specific grant?
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You don't strictly need dedicated software — a DMP can be written in any document editor — but using DMPTool, DMPonline, RDMO, DSW, or ARGOS gets you the correct funder question set, built-in guidance text, and (for DSW/ARGOS in particular) a plan that's structured enough to export as machine-actionable data rather than only a static PDF.
Going deeper
