ChatGPT alternatives

By Web Tool Ratings editors · Updated Oct 10, 2026 · How we rate

We may earn a commission from links on this page, at no extra cost to you. It never changes our picks. How we make money.

ChatGPT is the default, but it isn’t the best at everything. Every alternative below has a free plan, and most paid tiers sit around $20 a month, so you can test them on your real work before switching.

The full list

Best for writing & code

Claude

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · Best for writers, analysts and developers working with long documents or code

Natural long-form writing, huge documents and Claude Code. Pro is $20 ($17 billed yearly).

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes
Paid from: $20/mo
Billed yearly: $17/mo

From $20 /moVisit Claude Full review

Best for Google users

Google Gemini

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · Best for people who live in Gmail, Docs and Android

Lives in Gmail, Docs and Android; AI Pro bundles 2 TB of storage.

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes
Paid from: $20/mo

From $20 /moVisit Google Gemini Full review

Best for research

Perplexity

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · Best for research and questions where you want sources

Every answer cites sources, and the free plan is excellent.

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes
Paid from: $20/mo
Billed yearly: $16.67/mo

From $20 /moVisit Perplexity Full review

Best inside Microsoft 365

Microsoft Copilot

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · Best for microsoft 365 users who want AI inside Word, Excel and Outlook

AI in Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams.

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes
Paid from: $9.99/mo

From $9.99 /moVisit Microsoft Copilot Full review

Best for real-time trends

Grok

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · Best for heavy X users who want real-time trends and news in their AI answers

Pulls live posts and news from X; SuperGrok is $30/mo.

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes
Paid from: $30/mo
Billed yearly: $25/mo

From $30 /moVisit Grok Full review

Best free option

DeepSeek

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · Best for free reasoning and coding help, and developers who need a cheap API

Strong reasoning and coding at no cost, but data is processed in China.

Category: AI assistant
Free plan: Yes

Visit DeepSeek Full review

Compared at a glance

Tool	Our rating	Category	Free plan	Paid from	Year 1 (cheapest paid)
Claude	4.6/5	AI assistant	Yes	$20/mo	$204
Google Gemini	4.6/5	AI assistant	Yes	$20/mo	$240
Perplexity	4.5/5	AI assistant	Yes	$20/mo	$200
Microsoft Copilot	4.3/5	AI assistant	Yes	$9.99/mo	$120
Grok	4.3/5	AI assistant	Yes	$30/mo	$300
DeepSeek	4.3/5	AI assistant	Yes	-	-

Checked Oct 10, 2026. Details change: confirm on the provider’s site.

Quick picks

If you want…	Pick
Better writing	Claude
Google Workspace integration	Gemini
Sources you can check	Perplexity
Word, Excel and Outlook	Microsoft Copilot
Real-time social trends	Grok
Free reasoning & coding	DeepSeek