Which free AI chatbot should I use right now?
Last verified 2026-10-10Paid placement never changes our picks.
Short answer
As of October 2026, start with ChatGPT if you want a broad everyday assistant with unlimited text chats, Gemini if you use Google apps and want image generation and Deep Research included, and Perplexity if you want web answers with sources. The main catch: every free plan is capped and limits change often, so try two before settling.
Top picks
Broad everyday help with chat, images and voice at no cost
- Free tier
- Unlimited text chats under abuse guardrails; limited uploads, images, voice, de…
- Starting price
- From $8
- Platforms
- Web, desktop, mobile
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Unlimited text chats under abuse guardrails; uploads, images, voice and deep research are limited. Free tier uses smaller models.
Google account users wanting images and Deep Research free
- Free tier
- Free with a Google Account; limited Nano Banana Pro; compute-based limits reset…
- Starting price
- From $4.99
- Platforms
- Web, Gemini app
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Free limits are compute-based and reset every five hours; video generation is not on the free plan.
Web answers with sources you can check
- Free tier
- Basic searches plus 3 Pro Searches per day; no advanced models or image generat…
- Starting price
- See pricing page
- Platforms
- Web, iOS
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Free plan: basic searches plus 3 Pro Searches a day; no advanced models or image generation.
Free answers with sources on Windows, Mac and phone
- Free tier
- Limited free version, subject to capacity and limits; numbers not published
- Starting price
- From $9.99
- Platforms
- Web, Windows, Mac, mobile
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Free version is subject to capacity and limits Microsoft does not publish.
Writing, documents and light code with file creation
- Free tier
- Chat, web search, file creation, code execution, memory; no Opus; 5 projects; 5…
- Starting price
- From $20
- Platforms
- Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Built by Anthropic, the maker of the model that drafted this page; held to the same standard. Free excludes Opus, Claude Code and Research.
A European alternative with connectors and scheduled tasks
- Free tier
- Limited messages and web searches, limited coding sessions, basic image generat…
- Starting price
- From $14.99
- Platforms
- Web, iOS, Android
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Mistral's help center says Le Chat is now called Vibe. Free has limited messages and searches.
A no-subscription chat app with open-weight models
- Free tier
- App stated as free, no ads or in-app purchases; web and desktop not stated
- Starting price
- Free
- Platforms
- Web, iOS, Android, Windows, macOS
- Last verified
- 2026-10-10
Vendor says the app is free with no in-app purchases. Review privacy terms; imitator apps exist.
Prices come from each tool's fact block. "See pricing page" means we have not confirmed the number on the official pricing page in the last 30 days, so we do not show one.
How to choose
- If you want general help with writing, questions and the occasional image → ChatGPT Free (unlimited text chats under abuse guardrails; image creation, voice and uploads are limited).
- If you already have a Google account → Google Gemini Free (Google lists image generation and editing, Deep Research, Gemini Live and Canvas on the free plan).
- If you need answers you can check → Perplexity Free (basic searches plus 3 Pro Searches a day, with sources) or Microsoft Copilot (free baseline with web research and sources).
- If you mostly write or work with long documents and light code → Claude Free (chat, web search, file creation and code execution) or Mistral's Vibe Free (limited messages, basic image generation, 100+ connectors).
- If privacy matters → read each service's data-use settings before pasting sensitive text; we did not verify default training settings, and DeepSeek's app is run by a company based in China.
How we checked
- 7 of 7 picks have a Toolsfine fact block.
- 7 of 7 picks had their pricing checked on the official site in the last 30 days.
- 1 of 1 models also suggested ChatGPT.Panel: Claude (2026-10-10).
- Verified on 2026-10-10.
Listed in other directories
| Tool | theresanaiforthat.com | futurepedia.io | toolify.ai |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Not checked | Listed | Not checked |
| Google Gemini | Not checked | Not checked | Not checked |
| Perplexity | Not checked | Not checked | Not checked |
| Microsoft Copilot | Not checked | Listed | Not checked |
| Claude | Not checked | Listed | Not checked |
| Mistral Vibe (formerly Le Chat) | Not checked | Not checked | Not checked |
| DeepSeek | Not checked | Listed | Not checked |
"Not checked" means we could not open that directory's page; it does not mean the tool is missing there.
Where sources disagree
- Fairness disclosure: Claude is built by Anthropic, the maker of the model that drafted this page; held to the same standard. It is ranked by the same criteria as the others and placed fifth.
- Perplexity free limits: Perplexity's help center gives 3 Pro Searches a day and practically unlimited basic searches; its pricing hub only says limited usage. We follow the help center.
- Mistral naming: Mistral's pricing page sells Vibe plans and its help center says Le Chat became Vibe; many guides still call it Le Chat.
- DeepSeek and Grok: DeepSeek's web chat did not load for our fetcher; its free status comes from the vendor's app announcement. Grok is free to try, but its limits and SuperGrok price were not readable, so it is not a pick.
Also mentioned elsewhere
Other sources name these tools for this job. They are not in our picks because we have not checked them yet.
- Meta AI · Official siteFree assistant inside Meta apps; official pages blocked our fetcher, so limits are unverified.
- Poe · Official siteLets you chat with many vendors' models in one app; free allowance not checked.
- Kimi · Official siteFree chat assistant from Moonshot AI; limits not checked.
- Qwen Chat · Official siteAlibaba's free chat assistant; limits not checked.
Know a tool we should check? Submit it →
Related answers
Changelog
- 2026-10-11 · Page updated
- 2026-10-11 · First published
- 2026-10-10 · Picks, prices and sources re-checked
Last verified 2026-10-10 · next re-check 2026-11-10. Report an error
Researched with AI assistance and checked by our editors. AI can make mistakes and vendors change plans often — confirm prices and terms on the vendor's site before you buy.
Paid placement never changes our picks. Data: JSON